Complete Game Notes
Game #27: Southwest Baptist (12-14, 6-11 MIAA) at Lincoln (16-10, 9-8 MIAA)
Date: Wednesday, February 27, 2019
Time: 7:30 p.m. CST
Site: Jason Gym (1,538) in Jefferson City, Mo.
Tickets: Adults - $5.00 | LU Faculty & Staff/Non-LU Students - $3.00 | LU Students & Kids 5 and Under – Free
Live Video: http://www.themiaanetwork.com/lubluetigers/
Live Stats: https://lubluetigers.com/sidearmstats/mbball/

THE TIP OFF:  Playoff positioning is on the line for the Lincoln men's basketball team when the Blue Tigers host Southwest Baptist on Wednesday (Feb. 27) at 7:30 p.m. CST. The Blue Tigers have punched their ticket to the MIAA Men's Basketball Championship for the fourth-straight season, and enter the final week of the regular season in fifth place in the conference standings. Lincoln has won nine MIAA games, and, with one more league victory, will clinch a top-five seed in the tournament. LU also debuted at No. 8 in the NCAA Division II Central Region rankings, and will be fighting to maintain a shot at earning an at-large spot in to the NCAA tournament. Southwest Baptist, meanwhile, has six MIAA victories and is fighting for one of the slots in the playoffs.

FAST BREAKS
- This will be the 50th meeting between the Blue Tigers and the Bearcats, with SBU leading the all-time series, 28-21.

- Lincoln has won the last five meetings with Southwest Baptist, including beating SBU on the road on Jan. 19.

- With 16 wins, LU has secured a fourth-straight winning season for the first time since posting eight-consecutive winning seasons from 1971-72 through 1978-79.

- Lincoln is one win away from recording 10 conference wins in a season for the first time since 2015-16.

PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  Terrance Smith leads Lincoln with 16.4 points and 6.8 boards per night while Ni'Sean Rigmaiden leads LU with 4.9 assists while scoring 11.3 per night. Amariontez Ivory (13.5 ppg.) and Jonell Burton (13.0 ppg.) are LU's other offensive leaders, and L'Kielynn Taylor is averaging 5.4 rebounds.

HEAD COACH JOHN MOSELEY:  Now in his fifth season as the head coach of the Blue Tigers, Moseley has led LU to three-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:  Washburn ended the game on an 8-2 run to beat the Blue Tigers, 75-70, in Jason Gym on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 23). Three LU players came close to tallying double-doubles, with Terrance Smith recording nine points and nine rebounds; Ni'Sean Rigmaiden scoring nine points and dishing eight assists; & Grant Olsson collecting 19 points and nine boards. Amariontez Ivory led all scorers with 21 points, and Jonell Burton finished with 12 points.

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS:  Karim Mouliom leads SBU with 14.5 points and 8.3 rebounds, and Damian Prgomet (11.8 ppg.), Chris Rossow (11.3) and Godfrey Rolle (11.3) all average double digit points. Rossow has dished 115 assists and has 40 steals to lead the Bearcats in both categories.

SBU HEAD COACH CLARK SHEEHY:  Now in his fifth year with the Bearcats, Sheehy joined SBU after a successful seven-year run at his alma mater, John Brown. Sheehy guided JBU to three NAIA tournament appearances, including an elite-eight trip in 2010. In his first season, Sheehy led the Bearcats back to the MIAA tourney, and in just over four years he has directed the Bearcats to more than 50 wins.

REGIONALLY RANKED:  The first edition of the NCAA Division II regional rankings came out last week, and Lincoln is in the top-10. The Blue Tigers, who have 14 wins both in the Central Region and against NCAA Division II programs, are slotted No. 8 in the region. As eight teams from each region make the NCAA Division II tournament field, every game is important for the Blue Tigers to stay in playoff contention.

BACK TO THE TOURNAMENT:  On Saturday, Lincoln clinched its fourth-straight trip to the postseason. The Blue Tigers, with nine wins in MIAA play, are currently fifth in the league standings, and, depending on how the final three games turn out, could finish in the top four. All MIAA tournament games will be played inside Municipal Auditorium, and Lincoln is going to make its third trip in four years to the Muni.

ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT:  Grant Olsson, a senior physics major with a 4.0 GPA, was named to the Google Cloud Academic All-District 7 first team on Feb. 21. Olsson, one of only two MIAA players on the all-district team, is the second Blue Tiger to earn the recognition, following Joshua Buie, who was honored in 2015.

WINNER, WINNER:  With its win over Emporia State, Lincoln clinched its 15th win of the year and a fourth-straight winning season. LU went 16-14 in 2015-16, 17-13 in 2016-17 and 15-14 last season. This marks the first time that LU has had four-straight winning seasons since posting eight consecutive winning campaigns from 1971-72 through 1978-79.

SHOOTING STARS:  LU ranks among the best teams in the MIAA in making baskets, as Lincoln is fourth in the league in field goal percentage at .479. The Blue Tigers, who rank 25th in DII in three-point percentage (.398) and 52nd in total field goal percentage, are 15-4 this season when finishing games with a higher accuracy rating than their opponents.

BURTON TO BURTON:  Lincoln has a pair of outstanding point guards who happen to share a name. Jonell Burton and John Burton (unrelated) each scored 20 points in the win over Pittsburg State, and Jonell, with 13.0 points per game, is third among LU players in scoring. John, meanwhile, is averaging 6.0 points and shooting .362 from long distance.

TOURNAMENT TIME:  Lincoln will make its seventh trip to the MIAA Postseason Tournament and its fourth in the past four years next week. LU has twice advanced to the championship game, losing to Truman State in 1981 and falling to Southeastern Missouri in 1987.

IVORY TOWER:  Amariontez Ivory scored at least 10 points in 21 of his 29 games last year, and is having another stellar season in 2018-19. An All-MIAA honorable mention last year, Ivory now has tallied 17 total performances with 20-plus points, including a 30-point day at Emporia State, and averages 13.5 points this season with 17 double-digit point performances in 2018-19.

DOWNTOWN'S CLOSED:  Teams have had a hard time making three's against Lincoln, as the Blue Tigers lead the MIAA and rank 12th in NCAA Division II in three-point defense (.310). While opponents have attempted 565 shots from downtown, Lincoln has allowed just 175 treys this season.

THREE'S COMPANY:  Amariontez Ivory has been hot from beyond the arc, as he is ranked among the best in NCAA Division II in three-point shooting. Ivory ranks 10th in the nation and leads the MIAA with a .467 three-point percentage, and he has made 78 total treys, the 42nd-most by a DII player.

BREAK THAT RECORD:  The 2018-19 Blue Tigers have the chance to break some season records. With a .755 free throw accuracy rate, LU is poised to break the 2017-18 record of .735, and with a field goal percentage of .479, Lincoln is making a run at the record percentage of .489 from 1966-67.

AGENT SMITH:  Terrance Smith has doubled up in five games this season, including tallying season-highs in points (35) and rebounds (14) in LU's win over Missouri Southern. Smith, who also posted double-doubles against Ecclesia, Missouri S&T, Northwest Missouri and Emporia State, leads the team with 16.4 points and 6.8 boards per game.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK:  After leading the LU men's basketball team to three-straight victories, including a win over No. 20 Missouri Southern, Terrance Smith was named as the MIAA Men's Basketball Co-Player of the Week on Jan. 7. Smith, who scored 35 points and grabbed 14 boards vs. MSSU, averaged 21.7 points & 8.3 rebounds that week.

DIALING LONG DISTANCE:  Lincoln is once again one of the top teams in the MIAA in three-point shooting, as LU is second in the conference with a .398 percentage from long distance. That percentage is the 25th-best this year in NCAA Division II. LU is averaging 9.2 treys per night, the fifth-most in the conference.

HE GIVES AND HE TAKES:  Ni'Sean Rigmaiden has been a huge asset to the Blue Tigers in nearly every facet of the game, but especially in assists and steals, where he leads the team with 127 and 35, respectively. Rigmaiden, who is fourth in the MIAA in assists and fourth in total steals, also averages 11.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

POINTS FOR FREE:  LU is opportunistic at the line, as the Blue Tigers are shooting .755 on free throws, a percentage that is fifth in the MIAA and 49th in NCAA Division II. Amariontez Ivory is 53-for-61 at the line while Jonell Burton shoots .840 at the charity stripe.

GRANTED:  Grant Olsson has stepped up his game in his second season with the Blue Tigers, as the senior averages 10.7 points and 4.2 boards per game. Olsson, a starter in 25 games this year, has scored in double figures in 13 of the past 20 games and has grabbed at least four boards in 17 contests.

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:  Lincoln closes the 2018-19 regular season on Saturday (March 2) by hosting Central Missouri at 2:00 p.m. CST.