LIBERTY, Mo. – While most of campus is set to depart for the Thanksgiving holiday this week, the William Jewell men's basketball team prepares for a two-game road trip to MIAA foes Central Missouri on Tuesday followed by Missouri Western on Saturday.  

ADMISSION 🎟
🟢 Spectators are permitted. 

BROADCAST 🎥 
• vs. Central Missouri ($)
• vs. Missouri Western ($)

LIVE STATS 📊
• vs. Central Missouri
• vs. Missouri Western

CARDINAL NOTES

• Jewell is coming off a 1-1 week that saw them get a big win over No. 11 ranked Washburn, 56-52, before dropping a 78-71 decision on the road at Emporia State.  
• Kobe McKinley continued his hot start 14 points and 7.5 rebounds last week, including a double-double against Washburn and a career high 18 points at Emporia State. The junior is playing in the most consistent minutes of his career and making the most of them, sitting second on the team with 13.3 points and 7.0 rebounds per outing, to go with a team best 2.3 steals.  
• The Cardinals have grabbed on average 8.8 steals per game through the first two weeks, second only to Illinois Springfield (9.0) in the GLVC. Jewell, who swiped a season-best 14 steals in the season opener against Purdue Northwest, leads the GLVC and is 42nd in Division II with 35 total takeaways. 
• Isaac Patterson enjoyed a career day off the bench on Saturday as the freshman scored seven first half points on 3-of-4 from the floor. He also pulled down two rebounds and handed out two assists in a season best 19 minutes.
• Jewell has been to the free throw line more than 17 times per game this season and connected on 78.6% of those tries, which is third best in the conference and 37th nationally. Big man Heri Tshiyoyo leads with a 90% clip while Jordan Jermain (88.9), Mason Alexander (83.3) and Trey Shannon (80.0) are all shooting at least 80%. 
• Shannon leads the conference and ranks third in Division II through the first two weeks in minutes played, averaging 39:44. The junior from Wellington has missed less than one minute of action and put in a full 40 in each of the last two games. 
• The Cardinals come into the week pulling down 26.25 defensive rebounds per game, one more than this point last season. Tshiyoyo has contributed heavily to that total, ranking fifth in the league and top-45 nationally with seven defensive boards per outing. The junior center is putting in just shy of a double-double with 10.3 points and 9.8 rebounds through four games.
• Jordan Jermain has quickly made a name for himself, entering the week leading the Cardinals with 16.0 points per game to go with 2.0 assists and over one steal. The sophomore is shooting 50% from the field and nearly 90% from the free throw line and has upped his career average to double figures at 11.1 points per contest. 
• Mason Alexander will go down as one of the best long-range shooters in program history. Over the weekend, he went 4-of-10 from behind the arc, moving into a tie with Larry Mandacina (2005-09) for seventh all-time with his 156th career triple. The senior is also eighth with 428 attempts and 14th with a .364 clip from three-point land. 
• Chris McCabe is now in his third season at the helm of the Cardinal program. The 14th coach in program history will look to get Jewell back to the GLVC Tournament for the first time since 2018.

ABOUT CENTRAL MISSOURI

• Central Missouri enters the week at 1-1 after a win over Grand View to open the season and falling Maryville by three on Friday.  
• The Mules are averaging 63 points per game, 13th in the MIAA, led by Gaven Pinkley's 14. Koray Gilbert adds 10 per outing to give UCM two in double-figures through the early part of their season. 
• UCM takes care of the basketball, averaging just 9.5 turnovers per game, 19th in Division II. Their assist-to-turnover ratio is fifth in the MIAA a 1.26. 
• In addition to his offense, Pinkley leads the Mules defensively with one block per game to go with 7.5 rebounds, including three on the offensive glass.  
• The Mules shoot 42% from the floor but do most of their work inside the arc. From the outside UCM is hitting just 20.8% and averaging five triples per game. 
• Doug Karleskint is in his eighth season at Central Missouri, winning more than 110 games. 

ABOUT MISSOURI WESTERN

• Missouri Western got an early start to the season, playing in the annual Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic, and come into the week at 2-4 on the year. 
• The Griffons pour in more than 75 points per game but give up nearly 78. Four players average at least nine points, led by JaQuaylon Mays with 24.3 per contest, the second highest scorer in the MIAA. The junior guard has scored 22-plus in five of six games this season. 
• MWSU loves to shoot the three, coming in ninth in Division II with 145 attempts from behind the arc and tenth with 52 makes for an average of 35.9%. Additionally, the Griffons get the free throw regularly, going 86-for-135 on the season, second most in the nation. 
• Will Martin is in his second season at the helm of the Missouri Western program after two years as an assistant for the Griffons.