The following “Starting Five” points offer a quick look inside GLVC men’s basketball action this week:
STARTING FIVE
[1 | last full week of the regular season upon us]
The last
full week of GLVC men's basketball is upon us and action got an early start this week as William Jewell (8-15, 4-11 GLVC) defeated McKendree (9-14, 3-12) in a conference matchup Monday that was postponed due to weather on Jan. 14. Five Cardinals scored in double figures to lead Jewell to the win, including senior Jorge Perez-Laham and his 24 points, six assists and four steals. Emil Ostafiicuic earned his third double-double of the year with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Junior guard Justin Blanks posted a double-double with a season-high 32 points along with 12 rebounds as McKendree nearly overcame a 17-point deficit. Senior guard Michael Jackson added 25 points before fouling out late in the contest. Among the headliners this week, UIndy (14-9, 11-4) will host the other two teams tied with the Hounds for third in the East, Lewis (16-9, 11-4) and UW-Parkside (19-5, 11-4). Rockhurst (14-9, 8-7), tied for third with Drury in the GLVC West, hits the road to battle the divisional leaders, including first-place Quincy (21-5, 11-4) on Thursday and second-place Truman State (18-7, 10-5) on Saturday.
[2 | bellarmine, southern indiana ranked in top 25 poll]
Two GLVC teams are represented in this week’s NABC/NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Poll, it was announced Tuesday. No. 4 Bellarmine (22-3, 14-1 GLVC) surged three spots from seventh, while No. 14 Southern Indiana (23-2, 13-2) improved one spot. UW-Parkside (19-5, 11-4) is currently receiving votes outside the poll. For a complete look at the NABC Division II Coaches Poll,
click here.
[3 | bellarmine’s eberhard, usi’s taylor named to bevo francis award watch list]
Bellarmine sophomore Adam Eberhard and Southern Indiana senior Jeril Taylor were named to the Top 50 Watch List for Small College Basketball's Bevo Francis Award,
the organization announced Wednesday. The Clarence “Bevo” Francis Award is presented annually to the player who has had the finest overall season within Small College Basketball. Considerations will be season statistics and individual achievements, awards, personal character and team achievements, and players affiliated with NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA Division I, NAIA Division II, USCAA and NCCAA are eligible. The initial watch list for the honor comprised 100 players. It will be pared down to 25 on March 15, 13 on April 1 and the winner will be announced on April 3. Taylor and Eberhard are currently among the league’s top-five scorers as Taylor paces the GLVC with 21.6 points per game, while Eberhard contributes 17.7 points each time out.
[4 | points in pairs]
Three GLVC schools currently have a pair of point producers currently ranked in the league’s top 10 for overall scoring. Southern Indiana senior Jeril Taylor paces the conference with 20.9 points per game, while sophomore teammate Alex Stein is seventh at 17.0. Quincy senior Joseph Tagarelli is second overall with 19.8 points each time out, and fellow senior Hawk Evan McGaughey is eighth at 17.0. McKendree also boasts a pair of top scorers in senior Michael Jackson (17.0) and junior Justin Blanks (16.4), who rank sixth and 10
th, respectively. When looking at conference-only games, Tagarelli (20.7) and McGaughey (18.6) are the only pair found in the top 10.
[5 | glvc represented among ncaa statistical leaders]
In the latest
NCAA statistical report released Monday, a number of GLVC teams and student-athletes currently rank among the nation’s best in select categories. The GLVC remains the hottest shooting league in NCAA Division II, holding down the nation’s top field goal percentage this week. The GLVC as a whole leads the other 23 Division II conferences with a nation-leading 47.67 field goal percentage (11,180-23,451), ranking ahead of the Mountain East (47.24) and Northern Sun (47.17). GLVC teams have also combined for a 37.93 three-point field goal percentage (3,339-8,802) and a 73.18 free-throw percentage (5,639-7,706) that rank second nationally. To emphasize that nation’s-best field-goal percentage, five GLVC programs rank in the top 20 nationally in that category, including No. 1 Bellarmine (53.4), No. 7 Quincy (51.6), No. 12 UW-Parkside (50.3), No. 18 Drury (49.9), and No. 19 Truman State (49.9). Beyond the arc, four teams rank in the top 25, including No. 2 Bellarmine (43.1), No. 6 Truman (42.3), No. 14 USI (40.9), and No. 21 UW-Parkside (40.6). Among the other national notables, Southern Indiana is fifth overall in scoring margin (19.3), sixth in rebound margin (10.2), and seventh in scoring offense (91.2), while Bellarmine is second in free-throw percentage (80.2) and fourth in assists per game (19.5). Individually, UIndy’s Eric Davidson (94.3) is third in free-throw percentage and Quincy’s Herm Senor (6.4) is 10
th in assists per game.