Complete Game Notes
Game #9: Lincoln (3-5) vs. McKendree (4-3)
Date: Saturday, Dec. 14, 2019
Time: 1:00 p.m. CST
Site: Quincy, Ill.
Live Stats: https://quhawks.com/sidearmstats/mbball/
Live Video: https://www.glvcsn.com/quincy/

Game #10: Lincoln at Quincy (3-3)
Date: Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019
Time: 3:15 p.m. CST
Site: St. Louis, Mo.
Live Stats: https://quhawks.com/sidearmstats/mbball/
Live Video: https://www.glvcsn.com/quincy/

THE TIP OFF:  The Lincoln men's basketball team turns its attention back to non-conference play this weekend as the Blue Tigers play a pair of games in the QU Subway Holiday Classic. Hosted by Quincy University in Quincy, Ill., the QU Subway Holiday Classic will open Saturday (Dec. 14) with the Blue Tigers playing McKendree at 1:00 p.m. CST. LU will then play the host school on Sunday (Dec. 15) at approximately 3:15 p.m. CST. The Blue Tigers are fresh off an 89-66 home win over Missouri Western, as Lincoln shot .559 overall and .519 from three-point land en route to its first MIAA victory of 2019-20. LU will face a McKendree team that saw a three-game win streak fall with an 89-75 loss at Union on Dec. 7, dropping the Bearcats to 4-3 on the year. Quincy, meanwhile, is 3-3, but has dropped its last two contests.

FAST BREAKS
- Lincoln and McKendree will play each other for the 17th time on Saturday. The Blue Tigers lead the series, 9-7.

- The Blue Tigers have won the past two meetings with McKendree, including a 73-69 victory last season.

- This will be the 29th meeting between Lincoln and Quincy, with the Hawks leading the series, 16-12.

- LU beat QU last season, 81-66, in the first game between the teams since 2007-08.

PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  L'Kielynn Taylor leads Lincoln with 8.8 rebounds per game while Jonell Burton is the top scorer with 18.3 points per night. Cameron Potts has done a bit of everything, leading Lincoln in assists (5.4 apg.) and steals (15) while averaging 11.8 points and 6.3 rebounds. Marcel Burton averages 10.0 points and is shooting .800 at the line.

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:  Lincoln enjoyed its hottest shooting night of the season, firing at a .559 clip from the field and .519 from long range as the Blue Tigers defeated Missouri Western, 89-66, in Jefferson City last Saturday (Dec. 7). Six Lincoln players scored in double figures, with Bansi King leading the way with 15 points. Cameron Potts scored 14 and dished seven assists, and Jonell Burton had 10 points and seven rebounds.

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS:  Four starters are averaging at least 10 points per game for the Bearcats, led by Logan Kohrmann with 16.4 points per game. Bryson Bultman averages close to a double-double (11.0 ppg., 8.0 rpg.), while Oliver Stephen averages 14.9 points. Aleksa Popovic is averaging 10.9 points while the other Bearcat starter, Jakobie Robinson, averages 5.7 rebounds.

MCK HEAD COACH CHRIS FOSTER:  The third-year head coach of McKendree has led the Bearcats to 13 wins, including four this season. Before joining McKendree, Foster was the head coach at a different GLVC school, Truman State, where he directed the Bulldogs to four-straight 20-win seasons.

SCOUTING THE HAWKS:  Tanner Stuckman averages team-highs in scoring (20.7 ppg.) and rebounding (7.2 rpg.) while Austin Downing is second on the scoring chart with 11.6 points per night. Ryan Briscoe (9.0 ppg.) are Quincy's other leading scorers, and Aziz Fadika is second on the rebounding list (5.0 rpg.).

QU HEAD COACH RYAN HELLENTHAL:  Now in his third year as the head coach at Quincy, Hellenthal previously was an assistant for one season with the program, helping QU win 25 games and the GLVC West division title. Before coming to Quincy, Hellenthal was an assistant at both Central Missouri and Long Beach State.

HE SHOOTS, HE SCORES:  Jonell Burton, who is leading the Blue Tigers with 18.3 points per game, is currently fourth in the MIAA in scoring and fifth in total field goals made (58). Burton scored in double figures in each of the season's first five games, eclipsing the 20-point plateau twice, including pouring in 40 vs. Harris-Stowe.

ON THE OFFENSIVE:  L'Kielynn Taylor already has 23 offensive rebounds on the season, ranking fourth in the MIAA and 79th in DII early in the year with 2.9 offensive boards per game. Taylor, who is fifth in the league in total rebounding (8.8) and fourth in defensive rebounding (5.9),, is fifth in the league in total rebounds (70) and is 66th in Division II in rebounds per game.

MASTER THIEF:  Cameron Potts has notched 15 steals during the first eight games of the year and is fourth in the MIAA with 1.9 steals per game. Potts, who ranks 110th in Division II in steals per contest, has helped LU average 6.1 steals/game.

THE GIVER:  When he's not taking the ball away from the other team, Cameron Potts is giving it to his teammates, as Potts ranks 45th in Division II with 5.4 assists per game. Potts, who is fourth in the MIAA in assists, also has the league's eighth-best assist-to-turnover ratio (1.6).

DOWNTOWN'S CLOSED:  Teams had a difficult 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 sixth in the league, allowing opponents to shoot just .317 beyond the arc.

D-D-D-DEFENSE:  In addition to being tough along the perimeter, LU has been strong all around while on defense, ranking 83rd nationally with 70.1 points allowed per game. The Blue Tigers, who are sixth in the MIAA in defensive rebounding (26.8) and 10th in offensive rebounding (9.9), are eighth in the conference with 36.6 boards per night.

FIELD TACTICS:  Eight Blue Tigers are posting a field goal percentage of .400 or higher, with Jordan Notch (.629), Cameron Potts (.547), L'Kielynn Taylor (.516) and Alafia Oluwasogo (.500) making at least 50-percent of their shot attempts. As a team, LU is shooting .442 from the field while holding opponents to .422 shooting, with that field goal defense ranking 82nd in NCAA Division II.

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.

REJECTIONS:  Lincoln has blocked 29 shots in 2019-20, with the 3.6 rejections per game ranking sixth in the MIAA. Jonell Burton, a member of the MIAA All-Defensive team in 2018-19, leads the Blue Tigers with 13 rejections while Cameron Potts is next with five blocks.

NOTCHING SOME HELP:  Jordan Notch, who started the first seven games of the year, has stepped up his play the last four contests, with a 12 points and nine rebound game against Maryville. Notch poured in 11 points in the win over Missouri Western and, over the past four games, is shooting 16-24 (.667) from the field.

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 close the month of December at home on Wednesday (Dec. 18) with a 6:00 p.m. CST game vs. Culver-Stockton.