IUPUI (16-15) at Wright State (19-12)
Tuesday, Mar. 5, 2019 - 8:00 p.m.
Live Video:	ESPN+
Live Stats:	Click Here
Series:	WSU leads 12-3
Last Meeting:	Feb. 3, 2019
Game Notes:	Click Here

Horizon League Championship Central (.pdf) I Horizon League Tournament Bracket (.pdf)

DAYTON, Ohio - The IUPUI basketball team will officially open the postseason on Tuesday night (Mar. 5) when the Jaguars take on top-seeded Wright State in the quarterfinals rounds of the Horizon League Tournament inside WSU's Nutter Center. The game will tip-off at 8:00 p.m. and be broadcast on ESPN+. The winner will move on to the semifinals round of the Horizon League Tournament and play at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, Mar. 11 inside Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, while the loser will await a call from a possible postseason tournament.

IUPUI (16-15) comes in trying to avenge a pair of regular season losses to Wright State while the Raiders earned a share of the league's regular season title by winning 11 of its final 13 games of the regular season to finish at 13-5 in league play. The Jags will serve as the No. 8 seed in a postseason tournament for the first time since 2014. 

The Jaguars have played more than their share of close games in league play with six games decided by a single possession in Horizon League action. IUPUI missed either a game tying or potential go-ahead attempt in the final seconds of four of those games, all resulting in Jaguar defeats. 

Junior guard Camron Justice leads the IUPUI offense at 18.9 points per game and 86 3's made while sophomore Jaylen Minnett chimes in at 11.9 points and 73 3's made, exclusively off the Jaguars' bench. Senior forward Evan Hall is averaging 9.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game and center Ahmed Ismail has made a steady ascent up the Jaguars' scoring ranks, sitting at 8.0 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 61.1 percent from the floor. 

SENIOR FEATURES
Evan Hall - "I'm a coal miner's son..." (by DeSherion McBroom)
D.J. McCall - A Leader by Example" (by Taylor Grayson)
Ahmed Ismail - There's NO traffic on the Extra Mile (by Tyler Locke)

FINAL HL STANDINGS:
1. Wright State (13-5)
2. Northern Kentucky (13-5)
3. Oakland (11-7)
4. Green Bay (10-8)
5. UIC (10-8)
6. Youngstown State (8-10)
7. Detroit Mercy (8-10)                    
8. IUPUI (8-10)                        
x. Cleveland State (5-13)
x. Milwaukee (4-14)

QUOTABLE: "It was a really physical, prototypical-type Horizon League game. I thought our guys did a good job of staying in the fight and scrapping all 40 minutes. It was a tough game both ways. They made shots in the second half and we kind of went cold, especially with Cam on the bench. More than anything, we just have to regroup now and have a quick turnaround on the road against another good team. That's what the postseason is all about," head coach Jason Gardner said. 

QUICK NOTES (click here to access the full notes for Tuesday's game): 
    JAGS DROP ANOTHER CLOSE AFFAIR, THIS TIME AT DETROIT MERCY
    The IUPUI men's basketball team capped the regular season with a 72-63 loss at Oakland University on Saturday (Mar. 2) as the Golden Grizzlies roared past the Jags in the second half. Oakland shot 52 percent in the second half and 56 percent from three-point range to roll to a fourth straight win heading into the Horizon League Tournament. 
    Senior center Ahmed Ismail recorded his second career double-double with 15 points and 10 boards and both Camron Justice and Jaylen Minnett pumped in 15 each also in the loss. Senior Evan Hall chipped in with 12 points, five rebounds and four assists, becoming the ninth player in school history to grab 600 career boards in the process. 
    "It was a really physical, prototypical-type Horizon League game," head coach Jason Gardner said. "I thought our guys did a good job of staying in the fight and scrapping all 40 minutes. It was a tough game both ways. 
    "They made shots in the second half and we kind of went cold, especially with Cam on the bench. More than anything, we just have to regroup now and have a quick turnaround on the road against another good team. That's what the postseason is all about."
    Justice missed a significant stretch of the second half after sustaining a gash on his forehead on a drive to the bucket, as he left a trail of blood heading to end of the bench. With the Jags' top scorer sidelined, Oakland extended a one-point lead early in the second half to an eight-point margin by the time he returned. 
    IUPUI (16-15, 8-10 HL) shot just 41 percent for the game as a whistle free second half finally pushed Gardner to a boiling point late in the contest. After Oakland was only called for two personal fouls in more than 16 minutes in the second half, Gardner was assessed a technical foul heading into the day's final media timeout and his team trailing by eight. Oakland cashed in on all four ensuing free throws to end any suspense. 
    Xavier Hill-Mais led five Oakland players in double-digits with 14 points and seven boards and Brad Brechting chipped in 13 points. Braden Norris closed with 12 points and nine assists in 38 minutes and Jaevin Cumberland finished with 12 points. 

    8 SEED
    IUPUI will have to avenge a pair of regular season losses as the Jags enter the postseason as the No. 8 seed and will face Wright State on Tuesday (Mar. 5). WSU won the first meeting, 72-64 on Dec. 30 inside the Nutter Center, and then won in Indianapolis, 79-74 on Feb. 3. 
    The last time IUPUI was a No. 8 seed in the league tournament, they bowed out of the Summit League Tourney to No. 1 seed Fort Wayne, 85-47 in Sioux Falls, S.D., in 2014. 

    CLOSE, BUT NO CIGAR
    IUPUI's margin of error was razor thin during league play as seven games were decided by five points or less with the Jags going 2-5 in those games. Six of those seven were decided by a single possession (3 or less) and IUPUI had a shot to either win or tie in regulation in four of those contests. 
    Only four of IUPUI's Horizon League games were decided by double-digits with the Jags going 3-1 in those contests. 

    3 NOTES
    Junior Camron Justice has hit 86 treys this season, putting him fourth on the program's single-season record list. Sophomore Jaylen Minnett moved into tenth on the list, upping his total to 72 in the regular season finale at Oakland. 
    Their combined 159 treys this season is the third-highest single-season mark in school history, 10 shy of the school record of 169, set in 2003-04 by Akeem Clark (109) and Brandon Cole (60). This season is just the fourth season in school history in which two different IUPUI players have each made 70 treys. 

    MILESTONES
    -The UIC game marked the 150th game of Jason Gardner's IUPUI career. 
    -Senior Evan Hall became the 15th player in IUPUI history to grab 500 career rebounds at UIC (Jan. 4) and the 9th player in school history to grab 600 career rebounds in the regular season finale at Oakland (Mar. 2). 
    -Fellow senior D.J. McCall followed in line as the 16th in school history to hit 500 career rebounds against Wright State (Feb. 3).
    -Senior D.J. McCall delivered his 200th career assist against UIC (Feb. 9).
    -Sophomore Jaylen Minnett hit his 100th career three in the win over Detroit Mercy (Jan. 26). He tallied his 500th career point against UIC (Feb. 9).
    -The game at Green Bay was Evan Hall's 100th career game played. 
    -Elyjah Goss grabbed his 250th career rebound at Milwaukee.
    -Fifth-year senior D.J. McCall played his 2,500th career minute at NKU. 

    STREAKS
    -Minnett has made a three in an IUPUI D1 record 34 straight games, dating back to last season. His streak is the eighth longest active streak in D1 college basketball.   
    -Senior D.J. McCall has started 57 straight games, dating back to last season.      

    NEW FIVE
    For just the third time this season, IUPUI used a new starting five at Youngstown State on Feb. 14 due to an injury to Elyjah Goss. 
    Senior center Ahmed Ismail (12.3 pts, 8.2 reb, 71 FG%) has filled in admirably in his six most recent starts, getting the nod in Goss' stead. Ismail also started the season opener in place of an injured Evan Hall. 
    Otherwise, the quintet of Camron Justice, D.J. McCall, Grant Weatherford, Goss and Hall has started 23 times this year. 

    INDICATORS
    As the season wears on, three trends have become indicators as to how IUPUI will fare.  
    1.) IUPUI is 14-2 this season when shooting a higher percentage than their opponent. That number has been consistent under Gardner as IUPUI is 58-10 (.853) in his five seasons when shooting a higher percentage than their opponent. 
    2.) IUPUI is now 11-1 this season when holding opponents to 70 points or less. In IUPUI wins, IUPUI holds foes to 41 percent and an average of 67.7 points per game. In IUPUI losses, foes are shooting 49 percent and scoring 80 points per game. 
    3.) IUPUI is 15-6 this season when outrebounding opponents and 1-9 when being outrebounded or rebounds are equal. 

    GLASS EATERS
    IUPUI has been strong on the glass all year long, outrebounding foes by a league-high 5.1 rebounds per game to rank 34th in the nation. However, the Jags have been particularly impressive on the glass in league play with a league best +6.5  margin in Horizon League games. 
    IUPUI has outrebounded its opponent by 10 or more boards 11 times this season, including eight times in Horizon League play. 

    DO IT INSIDE
    Bucking the national trend, IUPUI relies heavily on the interior for points this season. The Jags average 34.5 points per game in the paint and also rank among the nation's leaders in free throws made and attempted. 
    In league play, IUPUI is hitting a league-low 7.0 treys per game while four Horizon League teams hit 9-or-more 3's per game in league play. 

    HE GO, WE GO - JUSTICE NOTES
    In this instance, 'he' being Camron Justice. IUPUI is 9-5 this season when Justice scores 20-or-better. Justice was the first IUPUI player to score 20-or-more in four straight games since Jan. 14-28, 2012 when Alex Young went for 27-27-26-22 in a four-game span.
    -The Kentucky-native has led IUPUI in scoring in 20 of 31 games and scored in double-digits in 29 of the Jaguars' 31 games. 

    TURN BACK THE CLOCK
    IUPUI got a skosh younger over the holiday break in terms of years of eligibility remaining. Grant Weatherford was awarded a clock extension from the NCAA in December, allowing him a sixth year in which to complete his four playing seasons - thus making him a sophomore eligibility-wise. IUPUI Associate AD for Compliance Laura Hue took the lead on applying for the successful waiver. 

    CLASS ACTS
    Nine Jaguars were named to the department's Academic Advisor's List for the fall semester for earning a 3.0 GPA or better - Daniel Alston, Elyjah Goss, Jack Hansen, Jamil Jackson, Trevor Johnson, Jakoby Kemp, Brandon Kenyon, D.J. McCall and Grant Weatherford. Hansen notched a perfect 4.0 GPA during the fall semester. 
    McCall and Weatherford were also named to the Horizon League's Academic Honor Roll.  

    ROLLING ON DUBS
    IUPUI has points-rebounds double-doubles from three different players this season as Elyjah Goss, Evan Hall and Ahmed Ismail have all pulled the trick. For perspective, IUPUI hasn't had three different players get double-doubles in a season since 2013-14 when four different players registered at least one (Marcellus Barksdale, Donovan Gibbs, Khufu Najee & Mitch Patton).  

    BLOW OUT THE CANDLES
    Head coach Jason Gardner celebrated his 38th birthday in style, collecting his 50th career head coaching win at Boston College on November 14. The win was the Jaguars' first over an ACC opponent since 2001 and first over a Power 5 school since winning at Seton Hall in 2009. 
    Gardner is third on the program's all-time wins list at 60, but is a far cry from the top two in program history. Current Georgia State head coach Ron Hunter (275) and IUPUI Hall of Famer Bob Lovell (195) own the top two spots in program history. 

    SHARING THE WEALTH
    IUPUI has had nine different players have hit for 10-or-more points at least once this season. Nick Rogers became the most recent player to tally double-digits, joining a group that includes Elyjah Goss, Evan Hall, Jack Hansen, Ahmed Ismail, Camron Justice, D.J. McCall, Jaylen Minnett and Grant Weatherford.   

    HOT BENCH
    A staple under head coach Jason Gardner has been his teams' bench scoring as the IUPUI leader likes to play 9-10 players and use his bench frequently. Gardner's teams have matched or outscored the opposition's bench in 115 of 155 games (74.2 percent), including 23 of 30 games this season. All total, the IUPUI bench is averaging almost 27 points per game this season and outscoring opponents' benches by 6.5 points per game. The Jags' bench scored a season-high 66 points in the win over IU Northwest.