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Series: Wright State leads 18-3
Coaches: Scott Nagy is 118-57 in his sixth year at Wright State and 528-297 in his 27th year overall. Matt Crenshaw, a former star player at IUPUI, is in his first season with the Jaguars. He was an assistant at Ball State the previous three years and spent 12 years on the staff at his alma mater.
Probable Wright State starters
Name Ht. Class Pos. Avg.
A.J. Braun 6-7 Jr. F 7.4
Grant Basile 6-9 Jr. F 18.3
Tanner Holden 6-6 Jr. G 20.3
Tim Finke 6-6 Jr. G 9.6
Trey Calvin 6-0 Jr. G 13.9
Probable IUPUI starters
Jonah Carrasco 6-9 Sr. F 3.7
Mike DePersia 5-11 Jr G 4.5
B.J. Maxwell 6-5 Sr. G 11.1
Boston Stanton III 6-5 Fr. G 4.4
Nathan McClure 6-4 Jr. G 4.4
About Wright State: The Raiders have won eight straight games against IUPUI, including a 72-58 victory on Jan. 8 at the Nutter Center. Holden had 20 points and Calvin 16, while Azariah Seay had a team-high 16 points in defeat. IUPUI was coming off three straight cancellations because of Covid-19 and was playing short-handed. … The Raiders dominated the two meetings last year on the road, winning 93-65 and 100-72. … Holden leads the Raiders in scoring, 3-point shooting (38.1%), foul shooting (82%), assists (3.1 per game) and steals (1.2). The 2020-21 first-team All-Horizon League pick was challenged by Nagy to hit the boards harder after a slow start, and Holden has responded with 43 rebounds in the last five games, including a season-high 11 against Youngstown State on Saturday. He’s second on the team with a 6.5 average. … Braun is shooting a team-best 66.7% from the field. … Sophomore guard Alex Huibregtse, who played extensively in the first three games with one start, has been out since then with a back issue. Asked if the injury is season-ending, Nagy said, “That’s how I’m looking at it at this point.”
About IUPUI: The Jaguars are the second-worst team nationally, according to the NET computer rankings. They’re 357th, ahead of only Delaware State. ... They were picked last in the preseason league poll, and their only win this season was against Division-III Spaulding University on Nov. 23. They’ve lost 10 straight games, including an 83-37 setback at Ohio State on Tuesday. … They’ve had only one close conference game, falling to UIC, 67-65, at home. … Their travails are no surprise since they graduated two-time all-league guard Marcus Burk and double-double machine Elyjah Goss, who averaged 11.1 points and 11.6 rebounds last season. Burk is playing in the G League, and Goss is playing professionally in Sweden. They also lost career 3-point leader Jaylen Minnett, who transferred to Missouri State. Their leading returning scorer was Azariah Seay with a 5.7 average. … They did go 8-10 overall and 7-9 in the league last year. But previous coach Byron Rimm II was let go after posting a 15-35 record in two seasons and is now an assistant at Houston Baptist. He took over for Jason Gardner, who was fired in 2019 after an offseason OVI charge. He’s now on the staff at Arizona.
Looking ahead: The Raiders will play three road games in a six-day span, traveling to UIC and Northern Kentucky after facing IUPUI. The NKU game Tuesday was originally scheduled for Jan. 10, but the Norse had to cancel because of COVID-19 issues in the program.
After the road trip, the league race really heats up. The Raiders (6-2) trail Oakland (7-0) and Cleveland State (7-1) in the standings but will face both teams during a four-game homestand. They’ll host CSU at 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 28, and Oakland at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 5.
The Raiders (6-2) trail Oakland (7-0) and Cleveland State (7-1) in the Horizon League but will face both teams in a four-game homestand. They’ll host CSU at 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 28 and Oakland at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 5.
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