The following “Starting Five” points offer a quick look inside GLVC men’s basketball action this week:
STARTING FIVE
[1 | the finale is here]
The final game of the GLVC men's basketball regular season is upon us and both Bellarmine and Quincy
will be looking to secure wins over their respective travel partners, Southern Indiana and Truman State, for outright GLVC East and West Division titles. The Screaming Eagles and Bulldogs, however, can earn a share of the divisional crowns with wins on Thursday. Elsewhere, with 11 GLVC Championship Tournament bids locked up, Missouri-St. Louis and William Jewell will be batting for the 12th and final bid. If UMSL defeats Maryville and Jewell knocks off Rockhurst, both teams will boast a 5-13 record, and the Tritons will receive the tiebreak based on a better divisional record. The same result occurs if both teams lose on Thursday and fall to 4-14, meaning Jewell needs to defeat Rockhurst and have UMSL lose to Maryville to make the postseason tournament.
[2 | bellarmine, southern indiana ranked in the top 10]
Two GLVC teams are represented in this week’s NABC/NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Poll, it was announced Tuesday. Bellarmine (24-3, 16-1 GLVC) remained at No. 4 for the second consecutive week and also picked up a first-place vote, while No. 10 Southern Indiana (25-2, 15-2) jumped four spots from 14th. For a complete look at the NABC Division II Coaches Poll,
click here.
[3 | glvc boasts five teams in top eight of first ncaa midwest region rankings]
The GLVC was represented by five teams in the top eight of the first NCAA Midwest Region rankings released last Wednesday, including the top two spots in No. 1 Bellarmine and No. 2 Southern Indiana. UW-Parkside came in at No. 6, followed by No. 7 Quincy and No. 8 Truman State. Ferris State (GLIAC), Kentucky Wesleyan (G-MAC) and Findlay (GLIAC) ranked third through fifth, while Wayne State (GLIAC) and Lake Superior State (GLIAC) were placed ninth and 10th. The top eight teams at the end of the season will advance to the NCAA Midwest Regional, which will be hosted by the top seed.
[4 | bellarmine, southern Indiana garner national television exposure for finale]
Thursday’s top-10 matchup between No. 4 Bellarmine and No. 10 Southern Indiana has been picked up by the American Sports Network (ASN), and will air live on TUFF TV affiliates and NCAA.com at 8 p.m. ET. The women’s battle, which pits No. 20 Bellarmine and No. 23 USI, will also be televised at 6 p.m. Additionally, the games will be re-broadcast on ASN on a tape-delayed basis. The women's game will be re-broadcast on Friday at 1 p.m. ET and the men's game will re-air at 3 p.m. ET. Due to the national television broadcast and stream on NCAA.com, GLVCSN will not stream the two games.
[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 47.62 field goal percentage (12,074-25,355), ranking ahead of the Mountain East (47.18) and Northern Sun (47.10). GLVC teams have also combined for a 37.97 three-point field goal percentage (3,623-9,543) and a 73.10 free-throw percentage (6,090-8,331) that rank second and third, respectively. To emphasize that nation’s-best field-goal percentage, six GLVC programs rank in the top 25 nationally in that category, including No. 1 Bellarmine (53.6), No. 7 Quincy (51.5), No. 13 UW-Parkside (50.4), No. 15 Truman State (50.0), No. 23 Southern Indiana (49.4), and No. 24 Drury (49.3). Beyond the arc, four teams rank in the top 20, including No. 2 Bellarmine (43.4), No. 6 Truman (42.5), No. 15 UW-Parkside (41.3) and No. 18 USI (41.0). Among the other national notables, Southern Indiana is fifth overall in scoring margin (19.6), sixth in rebound margin (9.5), and eighth in scoring offense (90.7), while Bellarmine is second in free-throw percentage (80.2) and fourth in assists per game (19.7) and assist-turnover ratio (1.57). Individually, UIndy’s Eric Davidson (94.3) and USI’s Alex Stein (92.3) are ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, while Davidson ranks ninth nationally in three-point field goal percentage (47.1).