complete game notes in .pdf format
Storyline
The No. 11 Lindenwood men's basketball season is coming down the home stretch with just six regular season games remaining. Starting Thursday, the Lions will play five of those games in a ten-day span, starting with contests against Missouri Valley, Graceland, and Avila.
The Lions are in a tight race for the conference regular season championship. Both Lindenwood and William Jewell have two conference losses, while Evangel is close behind with three losses.
The next three opponents for Lindenwood are all fighting for the fifth spot in the conference standings. The Lions have victories over each of the trio earlier in the year, but each contest was a hard fought victory.
Lindenwood went 1-1 last week, losing to Evangel and defeating Benedictine.
Last Week
Lindenwood suffered a rare home loss under Brad Soderberg when it fell in overtime to Evangel by a 76-74 score. The Lions had a three-point try in both regulation and overtime to win the contest, but both were off the mark.
Richard Rose led Lindenwood with 26 points, and Brett Thompson had 11 points and eight rebounds.
Lindenwood rebounded by allowing a season-low 45 points in a 61-45 victory over Benedictine. The Lions allowed Benedictine to shoot just 37.3 percent from the field for the game, and just three players scored over four points.
The Lions received a game-high 23 points from Kramer Soderberg. He hit five three-pointers, four more than the entire Raven team. Garrett Reeg had 11 points and seven rebounds, and Alex Bazzell had 11 points and seven assists.
Wins Record
Lindenwood is currently tied for fifth for most wins in a season in program history. It needs one win to move into a tie for fourth, and two victories to move into a tie for second place on the all-time list.
The Lions are just five wins shy of the school record. The Lions set the record of 26 during the 2005-06 season.
1,500 Points
Richard Rose needs just four points for 1,500 for his career. He will become the fourth Lion to reach that mark, joining Earl Austin Jr., Dustin Bevard, and Justin Shrake.
High Scorer
Kramer Soderberg leads the team and is fifth in the HAAC with 16.7 points a game. Soderberg is on pace to have the highest scoring average for a Lion since the 2004-05 season.
Soderberg does a lot more than scoring for the Lions. He also ranks first in the HAAC in assist-to-turnover ratio (among players with at least one assist a game), is second in assists per game and free throw percentage, and fourth in field goal percentage.
Defending the Three
Three-point defense will be key for Lindenwood coming up as it faces two of the top three-point shooting teams in the HAAC. For the season, the Lions are allowing 6.1 three-pointers a game and opponents are shooting 35.9 percent from long range. Over the last five games, Lindenwood has allowed four three-pointers a game and opponents are shooting 29 percent from beyond the arc.
Shooting the Three
Lindenwood is currently third in the NAIA with a .407 three-point percentage and 21st with 7.7 made three-pointers a game. The team has been hot from three-point range of late, averaging over 10 a game the last three games. In that span, it is shooting 47 percent from long distance.
Richard Rose is second in the NAIA with a .521 three-point percentage and is 21st by making 2.6 a game. Michael Boos, Kramer Soderberg, and Alex Bazzell also average over one make a game.
Three-Point Streak
Alex Bazzell has hit at least one three-pointer in 11 straight contests.
Defense Wins Games
In its last four victories, Lindenwood has held each opponent under 40 percent shooting from the field. In those contests, the Lions are allowing 49.5 points a game and opponents are shooting just 33.6 percent from the field.
HAAC Leaders
Lindenwood leads the HAAC in scoring offense, scoring margin, free throw percentage, and three-point percentage.
Balanced Scoring
Seven different players have led the team in scoring this season, ten different players have scored in double-figures at least once, and four players have 20-point contests.
Kramer Soderberg leads the team in all those categories with 11 games leading the team in scoring, 20 double-figure scoring games, and eight games with 20 or more points.
Scouting the Vikings
Missouri Valley is 11-11 overall on the season and 5-7 in conference play. The team, which is in a difficult part of its schedule, has lost three out of its last four games.
The Vikings are fourth in the HAAC in scoring defense and third in field goal percentage defense. Missouri Valley allows under 66 points a game.
Chris Hortman leads the team in scoring, rebounding, three-pointers, assists, and steals. He is the only player averaging double-figure points and he averages 15.2 points and 7.4 rebounds a game.
Head coach of the Vikings is Chad Lance. Lance is in his seventh season at the school and he has a career record of 121-112.
Scouting the 'jackets
Graceland is 11-13 overall and 6-8 in the HAAC. It has won twice in its last six games, and hosts MidAmerica Nazarene on Thursday.
The Yellowjackets are among the HAAC leaders in free throw shooting and three-pointers per game. However, it is last by allowing nearly 78 points a game.
Four players average double-figure points for Graceland, led by Jake Smith with 17.5 points a game. Smith also leads the team with 8.2 rebounds a contest. Brad Burgus averages 15.3 points a game and is in the HAAC race for most three-pointers.
Jeff Hamilton is in his third season as head coach of Graceland. He has a record of 30-44 at the school.
Scouting the Eagles
Avila is 10-13 overall and 6-8 in conference action. The Eagles have won three out of its four games and have already matched last year's win total.
Avila is one of the top three-point shooting teams in the nation, averaging nearly 10 three-pointers a game and shooting 39.2 percent from beyond the arc.
Quinton Branch leads the team with 18.8 points a game and he has hit 57 three-pointers. The leading rebounder is Kevin Booker with six rebounds a game.
Rodney Perry is in his first year as the head coach of Avila.
Earlier This Year
Lindenwood's three starting guards scored 65 of the team's 77 points during a 77-66 win over Missouri Valley. Kramer Soderberg had 24 points, Alex Bazzell scored 22, and Richard Rose finished with 19.
The Lions nearly blew a double-digit lead against Graceland, but Soderberg hit a game-winning jumper in the final seconds of an 86-84 victory. Soderberg had 27 points, two more than Rose.
Lindenwood went on a 23-1 run in the second half to propel it to a 79-71 win over Avila. Soderberg led with 18 points.
Up Next
Lindenwood has a dangerous two-game road trip when it travels to Central Methodist on Feb. 17 and MidAmerica Nazarene on Feb. 19.
