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MACOMB, Ill. - Following a full week of practice, the IUPUI basketball team will return to game action on Saturday (Jan. 28) night when the Jaguars take on Western Illinois on Waste Management Court at Western Hall at 8:00 p.m.. The game can be heard on 1260 WNDE in the Indianapolis-area as Scott McCauley (pbp) calls the action from courtside. His call can also be heard on WNDE.com and through the free iHeartRadio app available on smartphones.

The Jaguars won the earlier meeting between the two schools with a 75-68 victory in Indianapolis on Dec. 30. 

IUPUI (8-14, 2-8 Summit) enters Saturday's game looking to snap a six-game slide with four of the six losses coming on the road. Last Saturday, the Jaguars dropped a 64-62 decision at UMKC despite a game-high 26 points from senior Alex Young. IUPUI trailed by nine with 6:05 to play, but rallied with an 8-0 run to make it a one-point game but never got over the hump. Trailing by two with under 90 seconds to play, the Jaguars missed a key opportunity when senior Stephen Thomas hit classmate Christian Siakam after he slipped a screen and cut to the bucket. Instead of looking at the rim, the 6-foot-7 Cameroon-native tried to kick the ball out for a go-ahead three, but saw his pass slide just side of Young. 

UMKC took advantage at the other end with a pair of free throws with 29 seconds remaining to help seal the win. Trinity Hall and Thomas Staton teamed to hit 10-of-15 shots and tally 33 points for the Kangaroos in the victory. Thomas hit 5-of-8 shots and had 12 points for the Jaguars and sophomore Ian Chiles contributed 10 in the defeat. For Chiles, it was his ninth double-digit scoring effort in IUPUI's last 10 games. 

Young continues to lead the Jaguars in virtually every category including scoring (20.5 ppg), rebounding (6.2 rpg), steals (29), blocked shots (23) and threes made (39). The 6-foot-6 lefty continues to lead all of Division I basketball in active career scoring with 2,085 points to his credit. He's climbed to No. 3 on IUPUI's all-time scoring list and No. 7 in Summit League history. Thomas (11.1 ppg) and Chiles (10.0 ppg) also average double-figures in the scoring column while Siakam has climbed to No. 2 on the team in rebounding at 5.4 rpg. Since returning to the starting lineup four games ago, Siakam is netting 9.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game while hitting 61.5 percent from the field.

Thomas led four Jaguars in double-digits with 18 points in the earlier win over WIU (11-8, 5-5 Summit) while Young and Chiles added 15 each. WIU's Terrell Parks led all players with 19 points and nine boards in the loss. IUPUI led by four at halftime and extended out to an 18-point lead midway though the second half before the Fighting Leathernecks closed within six late. However, freshman Lyonell Gaines came up with some key putbacks to help secure the victory.

6-foot-3 freshman Obi Emegano leads WIU in scoring (14.4 ppg) while Parks is almost averaging a double-double at 12.3 points and 9.1 boards per game. Fifth-year senior guard Ceola Clark is head coach Jim Molinari's top marksman, hitting 48.5 percent from three and tallying 13.5 points a night. Clark, a former Summit League Defensive Player of the Year, is also averaging 5.0 assists and nearly two steals per game. WIU is among the elite defensive teams in The Summit, allowing opponents just 60.3 points per game and 43.5 percent shooting from the field.

IUPUI has dominated the all-time series with the Leathernecks, leading 27-8 all-time and winning seven straight over WIU. Since moving to the Division I ranks, IUPUI is 26-3 against WIU and won 10 straight in Macomb.