Complete Game Notes in .pdf format here

Storyline
The Lindenwood Lions start off their 2011-12 season with a pair of games at the McKendree Classic. First up for the Lions will be a contest against Union and they will close out the weekend with a game against Logan Chiropractic.

The Lindenwood men's basketball team is coming off a spectacular season. It was a season that saw the team finish with a record of 29-6, compile a 16-game winning streak, make it to the conference tournament final for the second straight season, qualify for the NAIA Division I National Tournament for the first time in school history, and a trip to the second round of nationals. To say the least the Lions lived up to a lot of high expectations and this year those expectations are just as high.

With the university's move to the NCAA Division II level there will be no postseason tournaments for Lindenwood but the coaching staff has put together a top-of-the-line schedule for the 2011-12 season.

The Lions will play 11 NCAA Division II and Division III schools plus a good mix of some top-level NAIA schools. Early in the season, the Lions will earn a lot of frequent flyer miles. The team plays its first eight games on the road. The opening eight games feature a trip to Alaska, where the Lions will play three NCAA Division II schools in the Alaska Invitational.

After the grueling eight game stretch, Lindenwood will play two out of its next three games at home, before travelling to Las Vegas, Nev. for the Las Vegas Invitational. After that trip, the team will get a chance to play in front of its home crowd. For the next 11 out of 13 games the team will be at home. To end the season, Lindenwood will travel to Spearfish, S.D. for the Independent National Championship.

Even though the team will have a difficult schedule the Lions bring back a lot of talent from last year's squad.

Returning Starters
The Lions return two of last year's starters in Kramer Soderberg and Alex Bazzell. Soderberg started all 35 games last year and Bazzell started 33.

Defense is the Key
Since Brad Soderberg took over at the helm of the Lions, defense has been the name of the game. Last year's team gave up just 66.3 points a game. During the season, the Lions surrendered 60 points or fewer a total of 16 times.

Road Warriors
Lindenwood will earn a lot of frequent flyer miles to start the season. The Lions will play their first eight games of the season on the road and their first 12 out of 14 away from St. Charles.

The team's longest trip will come just a week into the season when it travels to Alaska for the Alaska Invitational.

National Tourney
In the team's final season in the NAIA the Lions were selected to play in the Division I National Tournament for the first time in school history.

The Lions won their opening game against St. Catherine and then fell to Mountain State in round two.

Streaking
In 2010-11, Lindenwood had two long winning streaks. The first was when the team won 16 straight games. Later, the put together a string of six straight wins.

Soderberg Leading the Way
Back for his senior season is Kramer Soderberg. Last season the St. Charles, Mo. native led the team in scoring with 17 points, assists (147), starts (35), and free-throw percentage (.877).

In 17 games last season he led the team in scoring, and 23 times he was the leader in assists.
He was also named to the first team All-HAAC, the conference newcomer of the year, and third-team All-American.

Home Court Advantage
The Hyland Arena Floor has been very good to the Lions since Brad Soderberg took over. In his two seasons at the helm, the team has compiled a record of 28-4 at home. In 2009-10 Lindenwood was 13-1, followed by a 15-3 record last season. 

Lots of Depth
The 2011-12 version of the Lindenwood Lions will be very deep at the point guard position. Back from last year's team is Soderberg, Bazzell, and sophomore Michael Boos. Joinig the threesome is freshman Darris Smith, junior college transfer Richie Thompson, and Missouri Southern transfer Tyler Ressel.
All the guards will see significant time at what will be the deepest position on the roster.  

Opponents
With this season being a transistion year, the team will be taking on a wide range of opponents. Lindenwood will play nine NCAA Division II teams, seven NAIA teams, and one NCAA Division III teams.

St. Charles West Connection
Once again there is a local flair with the Lions this season. For the second straight year Soderberg and Bazzell will be in the starting lineup and assistant coach Terry Hollander will be on the bench. Both Soderberg and Bazzell are alums of St. Charles West and were coached by Hollander. The threesome won three district championships and a second-place finish in the state championship in 2008.

Alaska Bound
For the first time in school history the men's basketball team will play games in Alaska. The Lions will play in the Alaska Invitational against three NCAA Division II schools.

About Union
Union enters the game against the Lions with a record of 2-0. The Tigers beat Central Baptist College to start off the season, and then upended Bellhaven in its second game. In the team's two wins, Union has averaged 93 points a game.

Union's defense has also been stellar in the early going, giving up just 66.5 ppg.

In the team's first two games the Tigers have had five guys averaging over 10 points a contest. David Lane leads the team with an average of 15.5 points and six rebounds. Leventrice Gray is second on the team with 14 points and five rebounds. Dani Martin, Skyler Vaden, and Antoine Hall are the final three players averaging over 10 points.

David Nieven is the head coach of the TIgers and is in his third season.

About Logan Chiropratic
Logan will be taking on the Lions after facing McKendree in the opening game of the tournament.
The head coach of Logan is Matt Palm.