LIBERTY, Mo. - The William Jewell men's basketball team opens the 2024-2025 season at the annual GLVC/GLIAC Crossover, this year hosted by Davenport University. The Cardinals will take on Purdue Northwest followed by a match up with the hosts on Saturday.

CARDINAL NOTES

• Jewell is coming of a 21-11 season that saw them win the GLVC Championship and advance to the NCAA-II Tournament for the first time. 
• This winter, the Cardinals were picked third in the GLVC preseason poll, their highest ever pick for the third straight season, and are receiving votes in the Division II national polls. 
• It's no secret that the headliner on the roster will be fifth year senior Jordan Jermain. The Raymore, Mo. native is back for his final season and will be joined this year by his younger brother, Ashton. The elder brother is already among the top-15 all-time in career scoring, minutes, games, and three point field goals to name a few and will be looking to lead the Cardinals back to the NCAA Tournament. 
• Three players who saw a surge during the 2023-2024 season and will be expected to carry a bigger load this winter is Eli Wingert, Justice Sutton, and Isaac Patterson. Wingert's performance during the conference tournament was crucial for the Cardinals and his 6'8 athletic frame with tremendous passing abilities will stretch the floor and create match up problems for opposing defensive.
• Head coach Chris McCabe lost two starters from last season to graduation and went to work bolstering his squad with five newcomers, including transfers Bradley Lightbourne and Jason Thirdkill, Jr. Lightbourne starred at Kansas City Kansas Community College earning All-Conference First Team honors and brings a wealth of experience. He missed all of last year with a medical redshirt while at Washburn University. Thirdkill, Jr. is a former three star recruit out of Fort Worth, Texas who spent his freshman season at Division I Lamar University. He comes to the Cardinals with outstanding athletic ability, a desire to win, and is another player who adds needed collegiate experience to the roster. 
• In addition to the transfers, three rookies will make their debuts this winter. Ashton Jermain is the younger brother of Jordan Jermain and brings a high basketball IQ and wealth of familiarity with the program to the floor. Two other local standouts, Adam Fuller and Bryce Mitchell are both long and athletic and are expected to see the court.  
• Chris McCabe has orchestrated one of the top turnarounds in the GLVC over the last five years. In his second season, after taking over for Larry Holley who spent 40 years at the helm, the Cardinals were just 5-16 overall. Since then he has led Jewell to 51 wins over last three years, third most in the league with a conference title. 
• This winter McCabe beefed up the schedule with hopes of preparing his team for the postseason. The Cardinals will face off with 28 Division II opponents, one of only five schools in the GLVC to do so, including seven who are among the preseason national polls. 
• Also back this winter are associate head coach Christian Hildebrandt and assistant coach Mason Alexander. Both are William Jewell alumni and have played an increasingly important roles on the sidelines for the Cardinals. Hildebrandt will be entering his seventh year on the bench while Alexander will be in his second after a five-year playing career that saw him graduate as the all-time leader in minutes played.  
• The William Jewell College men's basketball program is the second oldest in NCAA Division II, beginning in 1898 and trailing only West Chester by one year. With their win over Purdue Northwest on November 11, 2023 the Cardinals reached the 1,700 victory plateau, becoming the fifth program in Division II to do so, joining Central Washington, Northern State, McKendree and Central Missouri.