Game Notes

Date: January 20, 2020
Time: 7:30 PM
Location: Bolivar, Mo. 

Bolivar, Mo. - Southwest Baptist (12-3, 5-2 GLVC) breaks up their long road trip with one home game against Highway 13 rival Drury on Monday.

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
The Bearcats are coming off a two-win road trip to improve to 12-3 (5-2 GLVC) this season. One of their biggest wins came against #12 Southern Indiana on the road. Damian Prgomet was recently named GLVC Player of the Week. He ranks 3rd in blocks in SBU history, and currently holds the highest field goal percentage in SBU history. All 5 Bearcats in the starting lineup are averaging 10+ points per game.

In their most recent competition, the Bearcats had their way with Maryville, beating the Saints by 17. In that game four Bearcats had 14+ points, and Damian Prgomet sealed his 4th double-double of the year with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Quinn Nelson also had 16 points with 6 assists. The team had trouble missing, shooting 58.9% from the field.

The Bearcats come into the 2019-20 season following an appearance in the MIAA Tournament last season. Finishing with a 13-15 (7-12 MIAA) regular season record, the Bearcats received the #10 seed in the conference tournament. In the first round, SBU edged out #7 Lindenwood 76-75, becoming the first #10 seed to win a game in the MIAA Tournament and picking up their first conference tournament win since 2006. Washburn put an end to SBU's run in the second round with a 77-58 final score. The Bearcats are now full-time member of the Great Lakes Valley Conference which consists of 16 teams. Lindenwood is also making the move from the MIAA to the GLVC. Three starters return for SBU, Godfrey Rolle, Damian Prgomet, and Quinn Nelson. In addition to those three starters, Tyler Williams and Lucas Brueggemann also return from last year's roster. This year's roster consists of 16 total players, 11 of those being new faces. The breakdown of the roster is 2 seniors, 5 juniors, 4 sophomores, and 5 freshmen. 

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
The Drury Panthers (Springfield, MO) head into Tuesday's matchup with an 11-4 (4-3 GLVC) record this season. The Panthers began the season almost identically to SBU, playing in the Trevecca Classic. Drury went 2-0 in that tournament, defeating Lake Superior State and Trevecca Nazarene. Being SBU's travel partner, the Panthers have played the same competition as SBU. Unlike SBU, Drury lost to both Southern Indiana and McKendree. The Panthers are led by Conley Garrison, a Bolivar native, averaging 15.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per contest. Drury also added another Bolivar native and former UCM Mule, Brandon Emmert.

THE COACHES
SBU head coach Clark Sheehy begins his sixth season on the SBU bench after compiling a 62-83 (32-66 MIAA) record while at SBU. Coach Sheehy holds a career coaching record of 244-189 across fourteen seasons while coaching six different All-Americans and over 22 athletes that have moved on to play professional basketball.

Steve Hesser returns as the head coach for Drury, his 16th season in the position. Hesser is currently the program's all-time wins leader with a career coaching record of 323-126 and 191-75 in conference play. In his tenure at Drury, Hesser has led Drury to 9 regular season conference titles and an NCAA DII National Championship in 2013. Last season, Hesser led the Panthers to a 21-12 (13-5 GLVC) record, good for 5th in the conference.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Southwest Baptist trails the all-time series against Drury 22-36. The teams met on December 3 in Springfield where SBU fell 70-76. That game was decided in the last minute on free throws. Brady Smith and Damian Prgomet combined for 31 points and 16 rebounds and 4 blocks.