Live Stats I Live Video I Live Audio I Game Notes (.pdf)SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Seeking the program's first postseason win since 2011, the IUPUI basketball team will open the 2015 Summit League Tournament against No. 3 Oral Roberts (17-13) on Sunday night (Mar. 8) inside the brand new Denny Sanford PREMIER Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. Eastern and the game will be televised on MidcoSN and ESPN3. In addition, the contest will be heard in Central Indiana on WNDE 1260 AM as Will Flemming (pxp) is on the call.
IUPUI (10-20) will look to avenge a pair of regular season losses to the Golden Eagles as they enter the postseason with the league's No. 6 seed. IUPUI dropped an overtime heartbreaker at Oral Roberts early in the league schedule before later dropping a 10-point decision to ORU inside Indiana Farmers Coliseum later in the year.
The Jaguars closed the regular season with a win over Western Illinois, followed by an overtime loss to Omaha. Barksdale led the Jags to the win over WIU, scoring a career-high 25 points in the victory last Thursday (Feb. 26). Two days later, IUPUI got behind by as many as 15 in the second half before scratching back to force overtime against Omaha on Senior Day. IUPUI put four players in double-digits for the first time this season, including 14 from freshman
Aaron Brennan and 18 from Barksdale.
Barksdale finished the regular on a high note, scoring in double-digits in four straight games, averaging 19.8 points per game during that span. The 6-foot-5 guard was rewarded by being named Honorable Mention All-Summit League as he leads the squad in scoring, steals, minutes and free throws made and ranks second on the team in assists and rebounds.
QUICK HITTERS- Junior
Marcellus Barksdale has scored in double-digits in four straight games, averaging 19.8 points per game and hitting 32-of-56 (57.1 percent) from the floor and 4-of-9 from three-point range.
- IUPUI hasn't won a conference tournament game since 2011 and is 10-4 all-time in the quarterfinals round. IUPUI is just 2-4 in the league tournament against Oral Roberts, but this marks the first time the two have met in the first round.
- IUPUI is 7-1 this season when leading at the half, including going 5-0 in Summit League games.
- IUPUI has surpassed last year's win total (6) and the program's league win total from the last two years combined (2).
- IUPUI has outrebounded eight of its past 10 opponents and won the glass by 4.2 board per game during that span.
- Sophomore
Justus Stanback became the 11th different Jaguar to lead the team in scoring this season with his 10 points against South Dakota State on Feb. 7. IUPUI has had 10 different players score in double-figures in a game and boasts nine players scoring between 4.6 and 9.4 points per game. No IUPUI player has scored in double-digits in more
than 12 of the team's 30 games.
- 45% of IUPUI's points have come from the bench this year as Jags' subs average 27.6 points per game.
-
DavRon Williams has led IUPUI in rebounding 17 times and leads the league in FG percentage (59.4%).
- This marks the 43rd season of IUPUI basketball, beginning with the 1972 campaign.
- IUPUI played every home game at the Indiana Farmers Coliseum this season in year one of a five-year pact. IUPUI last played home games at the Coliseum from 1975-79. The building was home to the Indiana Pacers from 1967-74.
- More than half of IUPUI's 13-man roster is newcomers this season. All total, the Jaguars welcome seven new faces this year with four Division I transfers and three true freshmen.
TOURNEY BITS (Notes specifically about The Summit League Tournament)
SNAPPING THE SKID IUPUI is seeking its first tournament win since 2011 when the Jaguars entered as the No. 3 seed and dominated UMKC in the opener. Since then, IUPUI has made three straight first round exits by an average of 25.3 points per outcome. The Jaguars were the No. 7 seed in 2012 and since been back-to-back No. 8 seeds.
INEXPERIENCED Only five current Jaguars have played in The Summit League tournament and they've contributed a combined six points. Senior
Khufu Najee scored four points in last year's quarterfinals loss to Fort Wayne and junior
Marcellus Barksdale has two points in his two Summit League Tournament appearances.
Josh James,
Elijah Ray and
Justus Stanback have all appeared in games, but haven't scored.
FREQUENT FOE IUPUI's first round opponent, Oral Roberts, is the Jaguars' most frequent foe in postseason play. The Jaguars are just 2-4 against ORU, having eliminated them in 2002 and 2010. ORU eliminated the Jaguars in 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2011. This marks the first time the two schools have played in the quarterfinals round.
IN THE QUARTERS IUPUI comes in at 10-4 all-time in the quarterfinals round, including having won eight straight times from 2001-08.
IN THE FALLS IUPUI is just 3-6 in tournament games in Sioux Falls, although those games were played at Sioux Falls Arena. This marks the first year at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center.
HONORABLE MENTION Junior
Marcellus Barksdale earned Honorable Mention All-Summit League accolades, as voted by the league's coaches, media and sports information personnel.
Barksdale has been IUPUI's Mr. Indispensable, leading the team in scoring (9.7 ppg), steals (51), minutes (32.4 mpg) and free throws made (82) and ranking second on the squad in rebounding (4.7 rpg) and assists (2.4 apg).
Barksdale enters the postseason hot, having scored in double-digits in four straight games, averaging 19.8 points per game during that span.
MEMORABLE 100TH Barksdale made his 100th career game memorable, pumping in a career-high 25 points in the win over Western Illinois. It was the most points by an IUPUI player this season and Barksdale's third straight double-digit game.
PERSPECTIVE Regardless of the postseason outcome, it's hard not to qualify year one of the Jason Gardner-era as a success. The Jaguars surpassed the program's win total from each of the past two years (6) and the program's league win total from the last two seasons combined (2 - 1 each in 2013 & 2014).
IUPUI's No. 6 seed in The Summit League Tournament is the program's best since 2011.
FOURTH GRAD IUPUI gained national publicity earlier this season, entering the season with three players having already completed their degree requirements (
Marcellus Barksdale,
Khufu Najee and
DavRon Williams). That group grew to four at the end of December as fourth-year junior
Mason Archie, II finished his undergraduate course work as the Indianapolis-product is now pursuing his Master's degree.
11 LINEUPS IUPUI has used 11 different starting lineups this season, including a different quintet in five of the past six games. The Jaguars' most frequent five has been
Marcellus Barksdale,
Khufu Najee,
D.J. McCall,
Aaron Brennan and
Justus Stanback as that group started seven games (2-5 overall).
CLASS ACT Senior
Khufu Najee learned just prior to the game against South Dakota that he was among 30 national finalists for the 2015 Senior CLASS Award. The California-native is the second player in school history to be among the 30 finalists, joining John Ashworth (2011).
However, Najee is not being considered among the final 15 candidates as the list was pared on Feb. 10.
UNCOMMON BALANCE Nine different IUPUI players are averaging between 4.6 and 9.7 points per game, led by Marcellus Barksdale's 9.7 scoring average. IUPUI has had 11 different leading scorers (including ties) with P.J. Boutte, Marcellus Barksdale, Leo Svete, D.J. McCall, Khufu Najee, DavRon Williams, Jalen McCallum, Elijah Ray, Mason Archie, Justus Stanback and Aaron Brennan have each led the squad at least once.
IUPUI has 10 players averaging double-digit minutes and an 11th (Stanback) sits at 9.0 minutes per game.
LOW LEADER Barksdale's 9.7 points per game scoring average would easily be the lowest total to lead the Jaguars in a single-season in program history. The lowest scoring output to lead the Jaguars in a season is 12.4 points per game by Charles Price in 2001-02.
LOW OCTANE IUPUI's 60.9 scoring average is on pace to be the lowest in school history. The Jaguars' lowest scoring average in the Division I era is 61.4 ppg in 1999-00.
HITTING 70 IUPUI is 5-1 this season when scoring at least 70 points and 5-19 when failing to reach that number.
SLIM WINS IUPUI is 8-3 in games decided by five points or less this season and have won their 10 games by a combined 46 points. IUPUI's largest margin of victory this season was over South Dakota by 15 points.
GLASS EATERS After being clobbered on the glass during the non-conference season, IUPUI was +3.9 rebounds/game in Summit League play. It was a collective effort as DavRon Williams led the squad at 5.5 boards/game in Summit League play and nine Jags grabbed least two boards per contest.
IUPUI closed the regular season by outrebounding eight of its final 10 foes of the season.
KNOCK DOWN IUPUI is 9-5 this season when shooting a higher field goal percentage than its opponent and 1-15 when being outshot.
The full IUPUI Game Notes can be seen by clicking here
