Men's Basketball | 2/8/2013 11:12:00 PM
STRETCH RUN
The Hornets wrap up a brief two game home stand with a game against MIAA newcomer Lindenwood.
THE COACHES
Shaun Vandiver is 18-28 in his second season at Emporia State. A first round draft pick by the Golden State Warriors in 1991 spent ten years as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level. As a player he led Hutchinson CC to the 1988 NJCAA National Championship before earning first-team All-Big 8 honors at Colorado. This is his first meeting with Lindenwood.
Brad Soderberg is 95-24 in his fourth year at Lindenwood and 306-171 in his 17th year as a head coach. This is his first meeting with Emporia State.
LAST TIME OUT
Emporia State jumped out to a 14-0 lead and never trailed in a 71-64 win over Lincoln in White Auditorium. Kaleb Wright was the only Hornet in double figures, finishing with 17 points, although Paul Bunch, Chris Sights, Taylor Euler and Terrence Moore all ended with nine points. Gavin Brown had career highs of 13 rebounds and seven assists for the Hornets.
ABOUT EMPORIA STATE
The Hornets are 9-10 on the season, 4-7 in the MIAA. In the last seven games seven different players have scored in double figures at least once for Emporia State, but you have to go back eight games for a player to reach 20 points. Paul Bunch missed the first six games and is not yet eligible for the MIAA rankings but would lead the MIAA in blocks and be second in rebounding and field goal percentage.
ABOUT LINDENWOOD
The Lions are 15-5 overall and 8-4 in the MIAA and tied for second in the league standings. They are in their transition year from the NAIA and are ineligible for the MIAA Tournament. Lindenwood is the top scoring team in the MIAA at 79.3 points per game and rebound margin at +7.8 boards per game. Josh Gibbs is their leading scorer at 16.9 points per game to rank fifth in the MIAA. Darris Smith is the top three-point shooter by percentage in the MIAA.
SERIES HISTORY
This is the first meeting between Emporia State and Lindenwood in men’s basketball.Emporia State and Lindenwood are the last two MIAA teams to make it to the NAIA National Tournament in Kansas City. The Hornets lost to BYU-Hawaii in Kemper Arena in 1992 while the Lions fell to 84-67 in Municipal Auditorium in 2011.
TAKING ON THE NEWCOMERS
Ft. Hays State, Neb.-Omaha, Lincoln, Northeastern State, Central Oklahoma, Neb.-Kearney and Lindenwood have joined the MIAA since Emporia State made their first trip through the league during the 1991-92 season. The Hornets are 6-3 against teams in their first year in the conference with a 3-1 record in White Auditorium.
UP NEXT
Emporia State travels to Edmond, Okla. on Wednesday, February 13 to take on Central Oklahoma. Tip-off from Hamilton Fieldhouse is set for 7:30 p.m.
