TV/Radio: ESPN3, 106.5-FM
Series: Tied 33-33
Coaches: Scott Nagy is 10-5 at Wright State and 420-245 in 22 seasons overall. Gary Waters is 190-159 with six postseason appearances in 11 years at Cleveland State. He’s 361-294 overall, including four years at Kent State and five at Rutgers.
Probable Wright State starters
Parker Ernsthausen 6-11 So. C 4.6
Steven Davis 6-8 Sr. F 15.6
Mark Alstork 6-5 Jr. G 19.7
Justin Mitchell 6-4 Jr. G 10.3
Grant Benzinger 6-3 Jr. G 11.1
Probable Cleveland State starters
Anthony Wright 6-7 Jr. F
Demonte Flannigan 6-8 Sr. F
Rob Edwards 6-4 So. G
Kasheem Thomas 6-0 Fr. G
Bobby Word 6-4 Jr. G
About Wright State: Sub guard Mike LaTulip is averaging 8.2 points and is shooting 50 percent on 3-pointers (31-of-62). Among the eight players in the regular rotation, Alstork has the second-best mark at 39.5. … Although Nagy isn't totally pleased, the Raiders' defensive numbers actually have improved. They're third in the league in points allowed per game (70.4) and tied for third in field-goal-percentage defense (42.5) and 3-point-percentage defense (32.9). … Ball-handling has been a season-long issue. They're tied for eighth in the conference in assist-turnover ratio at plus-0.8 per game, ahead of only Detroit (plus-0.7). … Alstork is third in the league in scoring and second in foul shooting at 86.1 percent. Mitchell is third in rebounding at 7.2 per game.
About Cleveland State: The Vikings were picked eighth in the conference preseason poll. … They're next-to-last in the league in scoring at 67.7 points per game and last in field-goal percentage (41.3) and 3-point percentage (30.5). … Edwards was named to the preseason all-league second team and is ninth in scoring. He made the conference's all-freshman team last season. … Word is tied for fifth in the league in 3-pointers per game with 2.3. … Thomas, a Canadian, has been a steady backcourt player with a 2-1 assist-turnover ratio. That's the fourth-best mark in the league. … Evan Clayborne, a 6-8, 240-pound freshman from Thurgood Marshall, has appeared in 12 games and is averaging 1.4 points and 1.9 rebounds.
Raider Rowdies: Wright State leads the league in home attendance at 3,325 per game. UIC is second at 2,806.
Coming up: The Raiders, who have played seven of their last eight games on the road, host Youngstown State at 4 p.m. Saturday before traveling to Green Bay and Milwaukee next week. Their next home game is Friday, Jan. 20, against Detroit.
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