#11 SBU BEARCATS (11-2, 2-1 MIAA) at TRUMAN STATE BULLDOGS (3-8, 1-3 MIAA)
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2009 • 7:30 PM
PERSHING ARENA • KIRKSVILLE, MO
LIVE STATS: gobulldogs.truman.edu/livestats/basketball/xlive.htm
RADIO:  KBFL 99.9 FM  (Josh Thompson, play-by-play)
INTERNET AUDIO: www.radiospringfield.com/kbfl.aspx
VIDEO: www.b2livetv.com/partner_members.asp?id=296 (B2 networks pay-per-view)
   
SBU NOTES | TSU NOTES

KIRKSVILLE, Mo. -- The SBU Bearcats return after a 17-day layoff, as they face off against the Truman State Bulldogs Wednesday to finish 2009. While the Bearcats, who are the highest scoring team in the MIAA, match up against the lowest scoring squad, the Bulldogs seem to always play SBU tough. The Bulldogs lone MIAA victory was an upset win over Pittsburg State earlier this month. Truman fell Monday night at Emporia State.
   
Bearcat senior All-American Matt Rogers continues to lead the way for SBU, averaging 23.5 points per game, the most in the MIAA. Rogers is also second on the rebounding list, with 7.6 boards every contest. With 47 blocks on the year, Rogers leads the nation, and has 30 more blocks than anyone else in the league. Rogers is also among the MIAA leaders in field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and defensive rebounds. Junior point guard Tomas Brock leads the MIAA with 71 assists, and is averaging 5.5 a game.
   
While Rogers may be the leading scorer, sophomore Tristan Steele has been coming along as of late. Steele has led the Bearcats in scoring in two of the three conference matchups this season, pitching in with 24 points at Central Missouri, and 22 points against Pittsburg State. Steele has a team-high 27 three-pointers on the season, and is averaging 4.3 rebounds per game as well. Another player who has stepped up of late is junior forward Kurt Koenig. The Minnesota native is averaging 12.8 points per game, 4.4 rebounds per night and is hitting 50% from three-point range.

THE COACHES AND THE ALL-TIME SERIES
Bearcat head coach Jeff Guiot is in his sixth season in Bolivar, where he has lead SBU to a 120-45 (.727) record. Guiot has a 338-138 record overall, and has never had a losing season in any season during his fifteen-year career. Guiot has won 20 games ten times, and has won eight conference titles, including three of the last four MIAA regular season championships while at SBU.
   
Jack Schrader is in his fifteenth season as head coach of the Truman Bulldogs, where he has earned a record of 156-241 (.393) Schrader coached one of the best Bulldog teams in school history, in 1998-99, when Truman won the MIAA Tournament, and made an appearance in the Elite Eight.
   
SBU leads the all-time series over the Bulldogs, 24-17. The Bearcats have won the last three meetings, with the last Truman win in the series coming in the 2007-08 season.
   
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
While Truman State may be sporting a 3-8 record this season, they do have a 3-1 record in Kirksville. The Bulldogs have four players averaging in double figures; center Vesko Filchev (10.9 ppg), and guards  Alex Henderson (12.1), Tom Norton (11.0), and Stefan Garrison (10.5). Filchev also ranks sixth in the MIAA in rebounds, with 6.4 boards per game. Henderson and Norton can get hot from outside; Henderson is shooting 44.4% from beyond the arc, while Norton leads Truman with 2.3 three-pointers per game. Henderson has also led the team in scoring in five games, including two of the three Bulldog victories.
        
NEXT UP FOR THE BEARCATS
The Bearcats will ring in the new year by hosting the Emporia State Hornets, on Saturday, January 2. This will be the second trip to Bolivar that the Hornets will make, after Emporia won two games at the SBU Thanksgiving Classic against Henderson State and Dallas Baptist. Tim Niles is averaging 19.9 points per game, third-most in the MIAA. Junior forward Adam Holthaus is shooting 65% from the field, the highest percentage in the conference. The Hornets hit a bit of a slump at the start of conference play, losing two straight, including defeats at the hands of Missouri Western and Central Missouri. They've responded with two MIAA wins, including Monday night over Truman, and blew out Ottawa University in a non-conference contest last week.