Complete Game Notes
Game #5: Southwest Baptist (3-2, 0-0 GLVC) at Lincoln (3-1, 0-0 GLVC)
Date: Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025
Time: 3:00 p.m. CST
Site: Jefferson City, Mo.
Live Stats: https://lubluetigers.com/sidearmstats/mbball
Live Video: https://www.glvcsn.com/lincolnbluetigers/
 
Game #6: #8 Missouri S&T (2-0, 0-0 GLVC) at Lincoln
Date: Monday, Dec. 1, 2025
Time: 7:30 p.m. CST
Site: Jefferson City, Mo.
Live Stats: https://lubluetigers.com/sidearmstats/mbball
Live Video: https://www.glvcsn.com/lincolnbluetigers/
 
THE TIP OFF:  The Lincoln men's basketball team opens GLVC play this week with games on Saturday (Nov. 29) and Monday (Dec. 1) in Jason Gym. On Saturday, LU hosts Southwest Baptist at 3:00 p.m. CST. On Monday, the Blue Tigers host Missouri S&T at 7:30 p.m. Lincoln split the season series with Southwest Baptist last year and went 0-2 in the regular season against Missouri S&T before beating the Miners in the semifinals of the GLVC tournament en route to claiming the conference title. LU won its first three games of the year, including beating Hannibal-LaGrange, 69-44, in its only home contest so far, but dropped a 92-90 decision to Emporia State in a neutral site game in Kansas City, Mo. last Saturday (Nov. 22).
 
FAST BREAKS
- Saturday marks the 53rd meeting between Lincoln and Southwest Baptist. The Bearcats lead the series, 30-22.
 
- The Blue Tigers and the Bearcats split the series last year, with SBU winning in Bolivar, Mo., 75-56, on Nov. 30 and LU winning in Jefferson City, 67-45, on Jan. 11.
 
- Lincoln will play Missouri S&T for the 83rd time, with LU leading the series, 43-39.
 
- Missouri S&T swept the regular season series last year, but Lincoln beat the Miners in the semifinals of the 2025 GLVC Men's Basketball Championship, 87-64.
 
PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  After a pair of 20-point performances, Solomon Oraegbu leads Lincoln with 18.0 points per game. He also averages 6.3 rebounds while Max Ekono, who is scoring 8.3 points per game, leads the team with 7.0 boards per night. Enari Thomas averages 11.5 points and 5.0 rebounds and Tyler Chapman is averaging 13.8 points, 2.8 boards and 3.0 assists per contest. Malcolm Davis also averages 3.0 apg. and scores 8.8 ppg.
 
HEAD COACH JIMMY DREW:  In 2024-25, Drew led Lincoln to its first-ever GLVC tournament title as well as the program's first bid into the NCAA tournament since 1981. In four years leading the Blue Tigers, he has won over 50 games, including posting a 23-9 record last season. Drew led LU to a 17-10 record during his first season and won 15 games in 2023-24.
 
LAST TIME OUT:  Tyler Chapman led Lincoln with 22 points and Solomon Oraegbu matched Malcolm Davis with 15, but Emporia State edged the Blue Tigers, 92-90, in a game played on the campus of Avila University on Saturday (Nov. 22). Enari Thomas chipped in 11 points as LU shot .448 overall but just .332 from beyond the arc while ESU shot .484 overall.
 
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS:  Southwest Baptist has five excellent scorers, led by Zac Reedus with 17.0 points per night. Barron Silsby averages 14.0 points and a team-high 2.6 assists while Brandon Moore is tallying 12.0 points per contest. Jevin Sullivan (8.8 ppg., 6.6 rpg.) and Luke Ogle (8.2 ppg.) are SBU's other leading scorers while Leo Gayman leads the team in rebounding (8.0).
 
SBU HEAD COACH AARON NIVEN:  After a five-year stint as an assistant coach at Southwest Baptist, Niven was named the head coach in 2023. Over the past three seasons, he has led SBU to 16 victories. Niven previously was the head coach at Spring Hill College and, for his career, has over 60 victories.
 
SCOUTING THE MINERS: Alex Benassi has been Missouri S&T's top scorer through the first two games of the season, as he averages 17.5 points, 3.5 boards and 2.5 assists. Andrew Young leads the Miners in rebounding (7.5) and tallies 13.5 points per contest, while Cameron Stovall is next in both categories (12.0 ppg., 6.5 rpg.). Zac Brown averages 7.0 points and Blaise Beauchamp leads the team with 4.5 assists per night.
 
MST HEAD COACH BILL WALKER:  An alum of Missouri S&T, Walker has served as the team's head coach since 2019. Walker has led the Miners to three-straight winning seasons and the 2024-25 GLVC regular season championship. Before taking over as the coach of the Miners, Walker was the head coach at Illinois-Springfield for five seasons and also was an assistant at Texas A&M.
 
WORTH A MENTION:  After making their first trip to the NCAA tournament since 1981 last year, Lincoln earned some respect from the DII coaches in the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division II preseason poll. LU received 25 points to earn a mention in the Receiving Votes category. Lincoln was the GLVC's second- highest ranked program behind Missouri S&T, which was ranked No. 8.
 
ATTACK THE GLASS:  Lincoln once again excels in rebounding, attacking the glass for 38.3 boards per game, the fifth-most in the GLVC. Lincoln's +10.8 rebound margin leads the league and is the 22nd-best in NCAA Division II. The Blue Tigers are also third in the conference and 51st in the country in defensive rebounding (28.3).
 
WE'LL TAKE THOSE FREE POINTS:  Lincoln has been excellent at the free throw line, shooting .847, the fourth-best percentage in the nation. The Blue Tigers average 20.8 free throws per game, rating them 25th in the country. LU, which leads the GLVC in free throw percentage and is second in free throws made per game, ranks third in the GLVC with 24.5 attempts per game.
 
FINE AT THE LINE:  Solomon Oraegbu has found a way to the free throw line, attempting 33 shots at the charity stripe, the third-most in the GLVC and the 52nd-most in the country. Oraegbu has thus far not missed, making all 33 of those free throw attempts to lead the country with a perfect 1.000 percentage. Oraegbu's 33 makes rank him 14th in the nation and first in the GLVC.
 
DEFENDERS:  The Blue Tigers are allowing 64.0 points, the 23rd-fewest in NCAA Division II. Opponents shoot just .387 against Lincoln, rating the Blue Tigers 30th in Division II in that stat. LU's scoring margin of +18.5 is the 24th-best in the country while its .307 three-point field goal defense ranks eighth in the GLVC.
 
BIG-TIME BENCH:  LU has received tremendous support from its reserves, as Lincoln averages 35.5 bench points, the third-most in the GLVC and the 35th-most in Division II. A big part of that has been Solomon Oraegbu, who has come off the bench to average 18.0 points per contest, which is the seventh-most in the league. Amar Kadic and D'Necco Rucker are each averaging 4.8 points off the bench.
 
GET YOUR TICKETS:  Lincoln is partnering up with Hometown Ticketing once again to sell tickets to all of LU's basketball games online in 2025-26. For more information, or to purchase single game or regular season tickets, visit www.LUBlueTigers.com/Tickets.
 
WATCH LIVE:  Fans who are unable to attend a game in person will still be able to cheer on the Blue Tigers to victory via The GLVC Network. Every LU home game will be broadcast through a new multi-camera system and can be seen at https://www.glvcsn.com/lincolnbluetigers.
 
JOIN THE CLUB:  The Blue Tiger Athletics Club is a great way to engage with other LU fans while supporting Lincoln student-athletes. Every dollar raised by the club goes towards scholarships, improving facilities and purchasing equipment. To join the BTAC, or to learn more, please visit www.LUBlueTigers.com/BTAC.
 
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 travel to Fayette, Iowa to play Upper Iowa on Thursday (Dec. 4) at 7:30 p.m. CST.