STAT REPORT
The latest CCIW men’s basketball statistics report through Wednesday, Dec. 4 can be viewed at this link.
 
UPCOMING SCHEDULE (All times Central)
Saturday, Dec. 7
4:15 p.m. | #5 Illinois Wesleyan at Carroll
4:15 p.m. | Wheaton at Elmhurst
4:15 p.m. | Millikin at North Park
6:00 p.m. | Knox at Carthage
7:15 p.m. | (RV) Augustana at (RV) North Central
 
Wednesday, Dec. 11
7:00 p.m. | Rose-Hulman at Millikin
 
Thursday, Dec. 12
5:00 p.m. | North Central at Loras
 
IN THE POLLS
Illinois Wesleyan remained among the nation’s top-ranked teams Monday night, checking in at #5 in the most recent national poll released by D3hoops.com.
 
IWU notched 535 points in the poll. Trine was the nation’s #1 squad, securing 24 of a possible 25 first-place votes. WashU, Emory, Trinity (Conn.) and IWU rounded out the top five.
 
Augustana and North Central each received a single point in Monday’s poll.
 
NATIONAL NOTABLES
Carroll senior guard Erik Victorson (Oregon, Wis.) ranks 10th in Division III with 3.43 3-pointers made per game.
 
Augustana fifth-year forward Tyler Knuth (Rockford, Ill.) ranks 14th in Division III with a 95.0 free-throw percentage.
 
North Central senior guard Drew Gaston (Shabbona, Ill.) ranks 16th in Division III with a 94.7 free-throw percentage.
 
North Central fifth-year guard Ethan Helwig (Aurora, Ill.) ranks 23rd in Division III with 7.57 defensive rebounds per game.
 
AROUND THE CCIW
Augustana fifth-year forward Tyler Knuth (Rockford, Ill.) went 4-for-5 from 3-point range on his way to a 25-point performance in the Vikings’ 77-66 win at Elmhurst on Wednesday. It was the third 20-point game of the campaign for Knuth, who ranks second in the CCIW in scoring (17.6 per game) and is the league leader in both free-throw percentage (95.0) and 3-point field-goal percentage (45.2). The Vikings (5-1, 1-0 CCIW) travel to North Central on Saturday at 7:15 p.m.
 
Carroll junior forward Jacob Naber (Janesville, Wis.) logged 17 points and seven rebounds Wednesday in the Pioneers’ 70-64 loss to North Park. Naber is the CCIW leader this season in both field-goal percentage (57.9) and offensive rebounding (3.86 per game) and is the only player in the league this season with multiple double-doubles (two). The Pios (2-5, 0-1 CCIW) host #5 Illinois Wesleyan Saturday at 4:15 p.m.
 
Carthage sophomore guard Riley Brooks (Ripon, Wis.) scored a career-high 29 points – his sixth consecutive game in double figures – to vault the Firebirds past #5 Illinois Wesleyan Wednesday on the road, 77-68. The performance moved Brooks to the third spot on the CCIW scoring leaderboard this season with 17.5 points per game. The Firebirds (5-2, 1-0 CCIW) have won three in a row and will put that streak on the line Saturday night in non-league action against Knox at 6 p.m. in Kenosha.
 
Elmhurst junior forward Dominic Trelenberg (Westchester, Ill.) stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points, 12 rebounds and four assists in EU’s 77-66 league loss to Augustana on Wednesday. His 12 boards were a career high and lifted his season average to 7.7 per game. Trelenberg is the only player to rank among the CCIW’s top five scorers (16.1 per game) and rebounders. The Bluejays (3-4, 0-1 CCIW) remain at home Saturday for a 4:15 tip-off with Wheaton.
 
Illinois Wesleyan senior guard Nick Roper (St. Louis, Mo.) had 24 points Wednesday night in the fifth-ranked Titans’ 77-68 defeat versus Carthage in Bloomington. His performance equaled a career best in scoring and his 16.1 points per contest this season rank fifth among league players. The Titans (6-1, 0-1 CCIW) will shoot to get back on track Saturday after at 4:15 at Carroll.
 
Millikin sophomore guard Lane Thomann (Mackinaw, Ill.) delivered 14 points and five rebounds Wednesday to help the Big Blue win their league opener at North Central, 73-67. Thomann also tied a career best with five free throws made in the victory and is 28-for-31 from the foul line on the season, a .903 percentage that ranks third among CCIW players. MU (4-3, 1-0 CCIW) has won three straight contests and returns to the road Saturday for a 4:15 p.m. CCIW start at North Park.
 
North Central senior guard Terrence Moncrief (Joliet, Ill.) led the Cardinals with 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists in their 74-60 triumph at Illinois Tech last Saturday. Moncrief – who owns the league’s second-highest assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.08 – has also been a strong contributor to NCC’s defensive efforts, averaging 1.86 steals per game to rank third in the CCIW. The Cardinals (5-2, 0-1 CCIW) host Augustana this Saturday at 4:15 p.m.
 
North Park senior forward Taijon Barry (Chicago, Ill.) came off the bench to score in double figures for the first time in his career, contributing 13 points on Wednesday to the Vikings’ 70-64 CCIW win at Carroll. Barry also had four rebounds and two steals, bumping his season average to 1.57 steals per game – seventh-most among CCIW defenders. The Vikings (4-3, 1-0 CCIW) have won three in a row, four of their last five and return home Saturday for a 4:15 p.m. bout with Millikin.
 
Wheaton sophomore guard Soren Richardson (Northfield, Minn.) netted 20 points Wednesday night in the Thunder’s 87-63 loss to Chicago. The performance – his league-high sixth 20-point game of the campaign that pushed him over 500 points for his career – allowed Richardson to maintain his hold atop the league scoring list with 22.6 points per game this season. The Thunder (3-6, 0-0 CCIW) will open CCIW action Saturday at 4:15 p.m. at Elmhurst.