Complete Game Notes
Game #3: Lincoln (1-1) at Missouri S&T (5-21 in 2018-19)
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2019
Time: 7:30 p.m. CST
Site: Gibson Arena (4,000) in Rolla, Mo.
Tickets: Available at Site
Live Video: https://glvcsn.com/mst/
Live Stats: https://minerathletics.com/sidearmstats/mbball/

THE TIP OFF:  The Lincoln men's basketball team plays its first road game of 2019-20 on Wednesday (Nov. 13) when the Blue Tigers make the short trip down to Rolla, Mo. to take on Missouri S&T. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CST as Lincoln makes its first visit to Gibson Arena since 2016. The Blue Tigers are 1-1 after playing a pair of thrillers in Kansas City during the opening week of the season. In the opener on Friday (Nov. 8), Sioux Falls rallied after trailing most of the game to edge the Blue Tigers, 64-63. Lincoln evened its record on Saturday (Nov. 9) after withstanding a late comeback attempt by Upper Iowa for a 61-59 victory. Missouri S&T will play its first game of the season on Wednesday and has a new coach in Bill Walker after going 5-21 in 2018-19.

FAST BREAKS
- Lincoln and Missouri S&T will meet for the 81st time on Wednesday, with Lincoln leading the series, 41-39.

- This is the fourth-straight year that the Blue Tigers will play the Miners. Lincoln has won each of the last two games, but Missouri S&T won the last meeting in Rolla, 91-88, in 2016.

- In the last meeting between Lincoln and Missouri S&T, the Blue Tigers prevailed, 71-63, in Kansas City last year.

- A victory would give LU a winning record through the first three games of a year for the fifth-straight season.

PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  Cameron Potts averaged 14 points, six boards, five assists and 3.5 steals during the opening weekend while L'Kielynn Taylor came close to a double-double in both games, averaging 14 rebounds and nine points. Jonell Burton is leading LU with 15 points per game, and Lamont Ballard, Jr. is averaging 9.5 points.

HEAD COACH JOHN MOSELEY:  Now in his sixth season as the head coach of the Blue Tigers, Moseley has led LU to four-straight postseason appearances as well as four-consecutive winning seasons. In 2015-16, he became the first coach to take Lincoln to the postseason since 1986-87 and led LU to its first winning campaign since 2001-02. The Blue Tigers have posted double-digit wins in each of the past four seasons.

LAST TIME OUT
Sioux Falls 64, Lincoln 63
Lincoln led at halftime and was ahead for most of the second half, but a 12-2 run during the final five minutes allowed Sioux Falls to hand the Blue Tigers a 64-63 loss in the first game of the year for both teams. Jonell Burton scored 16 points and Cameron Potts added 14 while L'Kielynn Taylor pulled down 14 rebounds.

Lincoln 61, Upper Iowa 59
Cameron Potts tallied 14 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and five steals as Lincoln defeated Upper Iowa, 61-59. Jonell Burton also scored 14 points, and L'Kielynn Taylor added 14 boards and nine points to the winning cause. Lamont Ballard also had 10 points for LU.

SCOUTING THE MINERS:  Missouri S&T has three players on its 2019-20 roster who averaged double digit points a year ago, led by Jordan Newt, who shot .433 from the floor and scored 14.3 points per night in an injury-shortened year. CJ Hedgepeth averaged 12.4 points while Dulan Scott averaged 12.1. The Miners have seven new players and eight total returners.

MST HEAD COACH BILL WALKER:  An alum of Missouri S&T, Walker is in his first year coaching his alma mater after a five-year stint as the head coach at Illinois-Springfield. Walker, who was an assistant with both UMSL and Central Missouri early in his career, went 59-80 at UIS.

ALL-MIAA:  Four Blue Tigers were named to the All-MIAA team last season, including returning senior Jonell Burton, who became the for Lincoln player selected to the league's all-defensive team. Burton averaged 5.5 rebounds and ended the year with 33 blocks and 24 steals. Burton, who also averaged 13.8 points, was also garnered All-MIAA honorable mention accolades.

ON THE OFFENSIVE:  L'Kielynn Taylor already has 11 offensive rebounds on the season, a total that ranks second in the MIAA and fourth in DII early in the year. Taylor, who leads the league in defensive rebounding (17), is averaging 14.0 boards per contest, the sixth-most in the nation. Beyond his rebounding, Taylor is averaging nine points per game, fourth-most on the team.

MASTER THIEF:  Cameron Potts notched seven steals during the opening weekend of the year and is leading the MIAA with 3.5 steals per game. Potts, who ranks eighth in Division II in steals per contest, is currently fourth in the MIAA and 16th in the country in total steals.

TAKE IT AWAY:  Thanks in part to Cameron Potts' strong defense, Lincoln is leading the MIAA in steals per game with 9.5 per contest. That total ranks 32nd in the nation while LU is third in the league with 19 total steals.

FEELING NEUTRAL:  Four of Lincoln's first five games in 2019-20 will be played on neutral courts, starting last weekend with two games in Kansas City. On Nov. 22, LU plays Harris-Stowe on Saint Louis University's campus, and then on Nov. 26, Lincoln will take on Maryville on UMSL's court.

DOWNTOWN'S CLOSED:  Teams had a hard time making three's against Lincoln last year, as the Blue Tigers ranked second in the MIAA and 42nd in NCAA Division II in three-point defense (.327). That trend has continued in 2019-20, as Lincoln is currently second in the league and 21st nationally, allowing opponents to shoot just .234.

D-D-D-DEFENSE:  In addition to being tough along the perimeter, Lincoln is one of the MIAA's leaders in total defense, allowing 61.5 points per game, the 21st-fewest in Division II. LU is also 22nd nationally in field goal defense (.362), 32nd in steals per game (9.5) and 44th in total steals (19).

ON THE LINE:  Jonell Burton, Lincoln's top-returner in terms of points per game, is leading the Blue Tigers with 15.0 points per contest. 11 of his 30 points have come at the free throw line, where Burton is shooting .846, the 15th-best percentage by an MIAA player. The 11 free throws are the sixth-most in the league while his 13 attempts are ranked seventh.

SLIDING UP THE POLLS:  Lincoln received quite a bit of respect from around the MIAA in the league's preseason polls. In the coaches poll, the Blue Tigers received 93 points to be picked seventh in the 14-team league. In the media poll, Lincoln collected 156 points and was selected sixth in the conference.

KING OF THE THREE:  Bansi King made four treys during the opening weekend, including a buzzer-beater during the first game vs. Sioux Falls. King is shooting .444 from three-point land and averaging 7.0 points per contest with a .385 total field goal percentage.

IT'S A CLASSIC:  Tickets are now on sale for the Show Me Classic, a basketball game at Chaifetz Arena on the campus of Saint Louis University between Lincoln and Harris-Stowe. Visit www.lubluetigers.com/smc2019 to reserve your seats for the Nov. 22 match-up of HBCUs.

GEAR UP FOR THE GAME:  Lincoln fans can get everything they need for the game at www.BlueTigersStore.com, the official online store for LU athletics. Everything from jerseys to office supplies can be found on the site, with a portion of all sales going to benefit Lincoln athletics.

NEXT UP:  The Blue Tigers host an exhibition game vs. Livin' the Dream on Monday night (Nov. 18) at 6:30 p.m. CST. Lincoln faculty and staff members will receive free admission.