#HLMBB Weekly Notebook – January 18

#HLMBB Weekly Notebook – January 18

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#HLMBB Standings | #HLMBB Statistics | #HLMBB Weekly Notebook
INDIANAPOLIS – Week 5 of Horizon League play starts on Thursday with the standings crowded at the top as Cleveland State, Milwaukee, Northern Kentucky and Youngstown State each tied for first place at 6-2. Some separation may occur after this week’s action as the Norse host the Vikings on Thursday followed by MKE welcomes YSU on Saturday.

#HLMBB NEWS & NOTES

  • Detroit Mercy’s Antoine Davis has become one of the most prolific scorers in NCAA history. On Dec. 1 he became the Horizon League’s all-time leading scoring, surpassing the previous record of 2,914 points set by Loyola’s Alfredrick Hughes (1981-85) and then on Dec. 10 became the 11th player in NCAA history to surpass 3,000 career points. The Horizon League Preseason Player of the Year sits third all-time with 3,232 points, 435 away from Pete Maravich’s NCAA record of 3,667. He is the NCAA record holder with 130 consecutive games in double figures and on Jan. 14 broke the NCAA’s all-time 3-point record with a school-record 11 triples and sits at 513 3-pointers in his career.

  • Davis currently leads the nation in scoring at 26.2 points per game, total points with 498 and field goals with 165, while ranking second in total 3-pointers (84) and 3-pointers per game (4.4).

  • Davis has been named to five national awards list this season: John R. Wooden Award Midseason and Preseason Top 50 Watch List, Naismith Award for the Player of the Year, the Bob Cousy Award for the nation’s top point guard and the Lou Henson National Player of the Year.

  • Youngstown State is the Horizon League’s highest ranked team in the NET with a 14-5 record and also the hottest as it is riding a four-game winning streak. The Penguins have one of the top offenses in the country leading the nation in points per possession (1.144) while also ranking top-10 in 3-point percentage (2nd - 40.7), points per game (5th - 84.9), field goal percentage (6th - 50.3) and effective field goal percentage (6th - 57.6). YSU posted the most points in a HL game so far this season 105 with 33 assists, the most helpers in a game by a Horizon League team this season.

  • The ‘Guins are one of the most balanced scoring attacks in the HL as four players are ranked inside the top-20 in scoring led by Dwayne Cohill with 16.7, followed by Brandon Rush with 14.4, Malek Green at 14.3 and Adrian Nelson at 11.6. Cohill and Green are also ranked inside the top-3 in field goal percentage with Cohill shooting 56.8 percent and Green at 56.1 percent. In addition, Bryce McBride leads the country in free-throw percentage at 98.0 percent (48-49).

  • Wright State’s Brandon Noel has been dominant for the Raiders since the calendar flipped to 2023. The redshirt freshman is averaging a double-double in five contests while shooting 71 percent on his way to 20.2 points per game and 13.6 rebounds per game. He helped lead WSU to its first sweep of the Wisconsin road trip since 2013 as he scored a career-high 32 points on 14-of-17 shooting vs. Green Bay followed by a 23-point, nine-rebound effort in the overtime win at Milwaukee. During Horizon League play he is scoring 17.0 points per game and grabbing a League-best 10.6 rebounds.

  • Northern Kentucky’s Chris Brandon sits 28th in the nation in rebounds as he is grabbing 9.6 per game. Not far behind is Youngstown State’s Adrian Nelson who is 34th in the nation with 9.2. Nelson is also tied for the most double-doubles in the HL and 28th in the country with seven.

  • Earlier this season, Oakland head coach Greg Kampe became the fourth coach in League history to earn 100 Horizon League victories. He is in his 39th season at the helm of the Oakland men’s basketball program. Kampe is the second-longest tenured active coach in Division I, only behind Jim Boeheim (Syracuse, 45 seasons) who faced one another on Dec. 6. Kampe’s 669 career wins ranks 13th among active Division I coaches.

  • Milwaukee remains tied at the top of the standings at 6-2 in the League. MKE is third in the League in scoring at 77.5 points per game as it is also second in the country with 36.1 points off the bench per game. The Panthers are also tops in the HL in defensive field goal percentage as they rank 12th in the nation in blocks per game with 5.7 led by Ahmad Rand who is 15th in blocks per game with 2.3.

  • Northern Kentucky is tied on top of the Horizon League standings at 6-2 thanks to its efforts on the defensive end as NKU is the No. 1 scoring defense through the first four weeks of HL play at 63.5 points per game. The Norse are also tops in the HL in steals (9.4) and turnover margin (+6.6). NKU is also 18th in the country with over nine steals per contest led by the reigning Freshman of the Year Sam Vinson who is ninth in the nation with 2.6 swipes per game. Marques Warrick is the second-leading scorer during #HLMBB play with 18.6 points per game.

  • Cleveland State is the fourth team to reach 6-2 heading into Week 5 after a weekend road sweep through Indiana. The Vikings are one of the top defenses during Horizon League play ranking top-2 in scoring (67.4), defensive field-goal percentage (41.9) and defensive 3-point field goal percentage (29.3). Tristan Enaruna leads offense with 16.8 points per game during League play.  

  • The Golden Grizzlies sit at 5-3 through four weeks of Horizon League play as they have won five out of their last six contests. Over the past six games, the Golden Grizzlies are averaging 73.5 points and have shot over 50 percent three times. Jalen Moore has been the catalyst for Oakland as he is averaging 17.8 points over the six games, shooting 86.5 percent from the foul line (45-52) and averaging over five assists per contest. Trey Townsend continues to lead the Golden Grizzlies as he is top-10 in the League in points (16.6), field goal percentage (51.6), rebounds (7.1) and blocks (1.0).

  • Purdue Fort Wayne is one of the most prolific 3-point shooting teams as the Mastodons are 16th in the country in 3-pointers made per game (9.9) and ninth in 3-point field goal attempts (28.4). Purdue Fort Wayne is also strong defensively as the No. 3 scoring defense in the HL at 65.3 points per game and are holding opponents to a 27.6 shooting percentage from long range. Jarred Godfrey continues to do a little bit of everything for the ‘Dons as he is averaging 18.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game in League play, all top-15 in the Horizon League, while shooting a League-best 97.6 percent (41-42) from the foul line.

  • Detroit Mercy’s Gerald Liddell has made a big impact for the Titans since transferring from Alabama State and becoming eligible on Dec. 1. In 10 games, Liddell is averaging 17.3 points and 11.1 rebounds per game and has tallied a double-double in seven games, tied for the most in the HL this season.

  • Wright State has one of the most efficient offenses in the country as it ranks fourth in field goal percentage at 50.4 percent led by underclassmen AJ Braun and Brandon Noel both shooting over 60 percent from the floor.

  • Two of the highest individual scoring games in the country this year have been by Horizon League players. NKU’s Warrick scoring the most points in a single game in Division I this season with 45 in a double overtime win on 18-made field goals, while YSU’s Cohill posted 43 points in a road win against Wright State on 16-of-19 shooting.

  • RMU’s Josh Corbin is second in the HL 23rd nationally with 3.1 3-pointers per game, trailing just Detroit Mercy’s Davis. Enoch Cheeks is also playing well for the Colonials as he is sixth during HL play in scoring (17.8) and field goal percentage.
RESULTS
DATE GAME RECAP
Thursday, Jan. 12 Youngstown State 84, Detroit Mercy 79 Box Score
Purdue Fort Wayne 70, IUPUI 55 Box Score
Oakland 69, RMU 65 Box Score
Wright State 99, Green Bay 67 Box Score
Milwaukee 80, Northern Kentucky 75 Box Score
Saturday, Jan. 14 Cleveland State 89, IUPUI 54 Box Score
Detroit Mercy 87, RMU 75 Box Score
Youngstown State 85, Oakland 69 Box Score
Northern Kentucky 74, Green Bay 53 Box Score
Wright State 78, Milwaukee 74 (OT) Box Score
Monday, Jan. 16 Cleveland State 72, Purdue Fort Wayne 60 Box Score

NIKE #HLMBB PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

UPCOMING SCHEDULE (all times ET)
Thursday, Jan. 19
Oakland at IUPUI, 7:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
Cleveland State at Northern Kentucky, 7:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
Purdue Fort Wayne at Wright State, 7:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
Youngstown State at Green Bay, 8:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
RMU at Milwaukee, 8:00 P.M. (ESPN+)

Saturday, Jan. 21
Detroit Mercy at IUPUI, 12:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
Purdue Fort Wayne at Northern Kentucky, 6:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
Youngstown State at Milwaukee, 7:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
RMU at Green Bay, 7:00 P.M. (ESPN+)
Cleveland State at Wright State, 7:00 P.M. (ESPN+)

Monday, Jan. 23
Oakland at Detroit Mercy, 7:00 P.M. (ESPN+)