Road Warriors
The Wayne State men’s basketball team (13-7, 8-3 GLIAC) will head to Hillsdale on Saturday (Feb. 2) for its third straight road contest. Game time is slated for 3 p.m. The Warriors are currently in the middle of a five-game road trip with WSU posting a 1-1 record in the first two games. Wayne State and Hillsdale are tied for second in the GLIAC South Division with 8-3 league records, which trails first-place Gannon (9-1) by 1 1/2 games.
Scouting Hillsdale
Hillsdale sports a 17-3 overall record, but has lost two of its last three contests, including an 85-79 overtime setback at Ashland last Saturday (Jan. 26). The Chargers opened the season with 13 straight victories before suffering their first loss of the season at Michigan Tech on Jan. 10. Hillsdale holds an impressive 10-1 record at home this season with its only loss coming against Gannon (61-59) on Jan. 19. HC is outscoring its opponents by nearly 10 points per game, averaging 78.3 ppg. Matt Mlynarchek, who has been named the GLIAC South Division Player of the Week twice this season (Nov. 26, Jan. 28), ranks second on the team in scoring (16.6 ppg) and first in rebounding (10.2 rpg). Jonathon Dues leads the team with 17.2 ppg. Chris Northcross and Rodney Whaley average 10.9 and 10.7 ppg, respectively.
News N’ Notes
Wayne State has surpassed its win total from a year ago with 13 victories...Last season, the Warriors went 12-14 overall...The Warriors finished with a 6-1 record against GLIAC North Division opponents...WSU currently sports a 2-2 mark against the South Division...The Warriors are outscoring their opposition by over 10 points per game, averaging 76.2, compared to 65.3 for their opponents.
Wayne State Ranked in NCAA Regional Poll
The Wayne State men’s squad is currently ranked 10th in the latest NCAA Division II Regional Poll, which was released through games played on January 20. The Warriors, who are in the Great Lakes Region, are one of six GLIAC schools currently ranked in the poll. Gannon is ranked No. 2, Michigan Tech third, Hillsdale fourth, Ashland fifth and Findlay sixth.
Versus Ranked Opponents
The Warriors have played four teams that were mentioned in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II National Poll. Two teams are currently ranked in the poll. Gannon is ranked No. 9, while Michigan Tech is No. 13. Findlay was knocked out of the top-25 last week, but still holds votes in the poll, while Augusta State also holds votes. WSU is 1-3 against the four ranked teams with its lone victory coming against Augusta State (70-48) at the Lynn University Tournament (Nov. 23) in Florida. Wayne State fell at Michigan Tech by one point (71-70), took Gannon to overtime (84-78 OT) and dropped a four-point decision at Findlay (88-84) last Saturday.
A.J. Parker Making Noise
In his first season for the Warriors, freshman A.J. Parker (Harrison Twp.) has proven to everyone that he can play the game of basketball. Parker, a product of L’ Anse Creuse High School, has led Wayne State in scoring eight times this season, including a three-game stretch against Gannon (22 pts.), Mercyhurst (21 pts.) and Ashland (17 pts.). Parker has scored in double-figures 10 times in 20 game appearances. Not only is Parker second on the team in scoring average (12.1 ppg), but he also ranks second on the team in rebounding (4.5 rpg). Parker, who has come off the bench every game this season, recorded a season-high 30 points and 10 rebounds against Michigan-Dearborn on Dec. 10.
Last Time Out
Wayne State outscored Findlay in the second half, but it wouldn’t be enough as the Warriors were defeated by the Oilers, 88-84, on Saturday (Jan. 26). WSU (8-3) still holds a 1/2 game over Findlay (7-3) in the GLIAC South Division standings. Findlay led by eight points at halftime (40-32) on 45.2 percent shooting from the floor, including four three-pointers. In the second half, the Warriors had the hot hand, shooting 63.3 percent from the floor (19-30) and 76.6 percent from the free throw line (12-17), but fell short in their comeback.
Junior Justin Chapman (Toledo, Ohio/Rogers) led Warriors in scoring and rebounding with 21 points and seven rebounds. Chapman also shot 90 percent from the field for the game (9-10). Also scoring in double-digits for Wayne State was senior Kendall LeSure (Detroit/Pershing) with 15 points, senior Reggie Kirkland (Detroit/Romulus) had 13 points, junior Brandon Gray (River Rouge) chipped in 12 points and sophomore Nick Dyer (Dexter) added 10 points.
WSU Head Coach David Greer
WSU head coach David Greer, who is the 10th head coach in school history, is in his first season with the Warriors. Greer spent the last six seasons at Detroit Mercy, the last three as the Titans associate head men’s basketball coach. First as an assistant coach and then after his promotion to associate in 1998, he coordinated the Titans’ recruiting, with focus on Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, and junior colleges. He also handled coaching and practice planning for offenses and defenses, and scheduled the Titans’ games. This is Greer’s second appointment as a head coach on the collegiate level. In 1986-87 Greer was head coach of Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio. He led the Dragons to a 17-12 overall record that season.
A complete copy of this week's game notes is also available in PDF.
