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	Ichabods host Missouri Western in early MIAA matchup Washburn (3-3, 0-0 MIAA) vs Missouri Western State (6-1, 0-0 MIAA) Complete Notes in PDF WIBW Radio Webstream Video Webstream Live Statistics Ichabods Basketball Website Griffons Basketball Website Date: Saturday, December 9 Time: 7:30 p.m. Site: Lee Arena (3,904); Topeka, Kan. Rankings: Both teams are unranked, MWSU receiving votes WU Coach Bob Chipman: 623-224 in 28th year at WU (.736); 623-224 in 28th year overall (.736); 32-24 vs MWSU MWSU Coach Tom Smith: 370-169 in 19th year at MWSU (.686); 540-353 in 32nd year overall (.605); 23-20 vs WU Ichabods host Missouri Western Saturday in early MIAA matchup Washburn will take its 3-3 record into the start of MIAA action when it hosts Missouri Western State Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Lee Arena. The Ichabods, led by senior forward Frank Phifer’s 16.2 points a game, will be looking for a strong start to the conference season against a team they split with last year. The Ichabods are coming off an 82-72 loss at Central Oklahoma Tuesday while the Griffons (6-1) have won five straight following an 80-55 win against York November 29. Following their second earliest start to the MIAA season, the Ichabods will make a return trip to Cameron December 16 and then play two more non-conference games before returning to league play with a December 30 game at Central Missouri. Last Time Out for Washburn Central Oklahoma 82, Washburn 72 Ichabods fall by 10 against Bronchos December 5, 2006 EDMOND, Okla.- Senior forward Frank Phifer had a team season-high 25 points but the Ichabods fell short, 82-72 Tuesday night at Central Oklahoma in their first game after a 10-day break. UCO scored first but the Ichabods then went on a 10-0 run, featuring two straight 3-pointers from senior guard Mike Williams to take a 10-2 lead. Washburn’s hot shooting early in the game slowed down and the Bronchos fought back and regained the lead 17-15. The Ichabods hit five of their first seven 3-pointers but finished the first half missing seven of their last eight to shoot 6-of-15 from beyond the line. Williams led WU with nine points in the opening half off 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point range. Phifer scored six of Washburn’s first points but spent most of the half on the bench after picking up his third foul at the 10:54 mark. UCO took a 35-30 lead into halftime and then came out on fire in the second half shooting 57 percent. The Ichabods shot 11-for-31 in both halves for a 35.5 percent effort while UCO shot 45 percent for the game. Phifer added 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. Junior guard Andrew Miele had 15 points and Williams and junior forward Brady Sisk each had nine points. Meile just missed a double-double with nine rebounds. Last Time Out for Missouri Western MWSU 80, York 55 Three Griffons reach double figures in win over York November 29, 2006 ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Missouri Western improved to 6-1 on the year with a 80-55 win over York College. The Griffons had three players in double digit scoring, led by junior guard Joe Manthe with a team-high 17 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting from behind the 3-point line. Junior center Jay McFarland had 13 points and four rebounds while senior guard J.R. Reed added 12 points including two 3-pointers. The Griffons held a 10-point lead at intermission, 39-29 and expanded the lead to as many as 20 in the 2nd half, 51-31 at the 16:00 minute mark of the 2nd period. The Griffons shot 55.6 pct. from the field (14-of-29) and hit 14 three-pointers in the game. The Griffons have hit 10 or more 3-point field goals in five of its first seven games this season. Last Time Against Missouri Western Washburn 67, MWSU 61 Ichabods pick up MIAA win over Griffons February 1, 2006 TOPEKA – The Ichabods stepped up with four players scoring in double figures and shot 57 percent as a team to escape with a 67-61 win over Missouri Western State. Leading scorer Brady Sisk missed the game with an injury but the Ichabods responded with their highest shooting percentage in 11 games. Kris Milburn shot 8 of 14 and finished with 18 points while Kyle Fisher was 4 for 5 with three 3s for 13 points. Andrew Meile also had three 3-pointers and 13 points and Dylan Channel put in 10 points. The Ichabods made their final six free throws down the stretch with Meile making four and Fisher making two to preserve the win. They finished the half shooting 61 percent from the floor.For the game they were 9 of 16 from 3-point range and 10 of 13 from the foul line. Channel pulled in nine rebounds. About the Missouri Western Griffons The Griffons are 6-1 and bring a five-game winning streak into Saturday’s game. J.R. Reed leads Missouri Western and the MIAA in scoring with 19.6 points a game and Joe Manthe is second on the team with 15.1 after leading the Griffons with 17 off the bench in an 80-55 win against York November 29, their last time out. As a team, MWSU is out-scoring its opponents 83.4 points a game to 67.4 points a game. Missouri Western head coach Tom Smith is in his 19th year with the Griffons and 32nd season overall. He is 370-169 (.686) with the Griffons and 540-353 (.605) overall. Counting five seasons with Central Missouri, Smith is 23-20 against Washburn. WU-MWSU series notes • These two teams split their games last year with each team winning at home. • Washburn leads the overall series 39-29 and is 15-8 against the Griffons in Lee Arena. In MIAA regular season games, WU leads 16-14. In the last 10 meetings the two are 5-5. • Washburn won the first meeting between the two, 77-71 on 01/07/70. • Junior forward Brady Sisk had 22 points last year at MWSU, one of his six games with 20 or more points. • MWSU is 4-3 against Washburn in overtime. The Griffons won, 79-77 in double overtime 03/03/99 in the last extra-period matchup between the two. Chipman second in the MIAA in wins as a league coach Chipman’s win over Kansas Wesleyan gave him his 380th win, making him the second winningest coach while coaching in the MIAA. He now has 383. He entered the year tied with Boyd King, the coach at Truman from 1946-71 who compiled 379 wins while there. Tom Smith, the Missouri Western coach, has over 400 wins under his belt as an MIAA coach to lead all league coaches. A winning history • The Ichabods are 1,332-909 (.594 in 2,241 games) and are in their 103rd season of basketball. • Starting their 23rd season in Lee Arena, the Ichabods are 305-49 (.862). The Ichabods are 2-0 this year at home and they finished the 2005-06 slate 7-6. The Ichabods are 119-18 in Lee Arena since the 1997-98 season. • In 17 seasons as an NCAA II school, the Ichabods have 10 NCAA tournament appearances and nine MIAA titles. Last year snapped a streak of three straight conference championships. • Washburn won the 1986-87 NAIA national championship with a 35-4 record under head coach Bob Chipman in his eighth year as coach. • Washburn was fourth in the nation last year among NCAA II schools in attendance, averaging 2,750 fans a game. WU was the highest ranked MIAA team. As a conference, the MIAA had the second highest attendance with an average of 1,851 fans per game. • The Ichabods suffered their first losing season last year since 1976-77 and first of head coach Bob Chipman’s career. They also failed to advance to the MIAA tournament for the first time since joining the league in 1989-90. Up next for the Ichabods Washburn will make a return trip to Cameron December 16 after hosting and defeating the Aggies November 24. Following that, the Ichabods will play their final non-conference games December 20-21 at a tournament at Lynn. Ichabods need offensive boost Washburn was last in the MIAA averaging 65.6 points per game and a .409 field goal percentage coming into the week. After scoring 72 points at UCO, the Ichabods are averaging 66.7 a game. Senior forward Frank Phifer, Washburn’s leading scorer, was 12th in the MIAA with 14.4 points per game. He was tied for seventh in free throw shooting with a .769 percentage (12-for-16) and the Ichabods were second in the league as a team with a .755 mark. Phifer gives Ichabods inside presence, leads team in scoring Senior forward Frank Phifer leads the team with 16.2 points a game and has reached double figures in all six games. He had his first double-double at Washburn after scoring a team season-high 25 points at Central Oklahoma with 10 rebounds. Phifer is shooting 49 percent from the field and is 78 percent from the free throw line, leading the ’Bods with 31 made free throws and 40 attempts. He was 11-of-14 from the free throw line at UCO. He also leads the team with nine blocks and is second with 40 rebounds. Phifer was 4th in the MIAA in blocked shots with 1.6 per game coming into the game. His free throw percentage was seventh best and he was also 11th in rebounding with 6.0 per game. At UNLV he led the team with 12 points and six rebounds. He was named to the Eastern New Mexico all-tournament team after scoring 17 points in each game. He had a double-double in an exhibition against Kansas with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Against K-State he was kept to just eight points but he finished the exhibition season strong with 20 against the Alumni. In three games against DI schools this year he is averaging 14.0 points, counting the two exhibitions. With the 12 points against UNLV, Phifer now has 95 points in six games against DI schools, counting exhibitions. He played two exhibitions this year and three in 2004-05 while at Kentucky Wesleyan. He is averaging 15.8 points a game against DI competition. Snyder leads team in rebounding, second in MIAA Junior forward Kyle Snyder leads Washburn with 8.8 rebounds a game. Coming into the week, he was averaging 9.6 rebounds a game, second best in the league. He had a double-double at Eastern New Mexico with a career-high 17 rebounds. He also had 12 points that game and a career-high four assists. Against both Cameron and Fort Hays State he pulled down nine rebounds. Snyder is scoring 4.7 points a game and shooting 10-of-28 from the field and 7-of-10 from the free throw line. Byers second on the team in scoring Returning for his sophomore season is forward Paul Byers. He has double-digit efforts in four of six games this year, already passing his total of two double-figure games from last year. He has 56 points (9.3/game), tied for second most on the team, off 20-of-46 shooting. He was 11-of-16 during two games in the ENMU Shootout for 31 points. Byers has started all but one game this year. In his only game off the bench he scored 10 points and had six rebounds against Cameron. Last year he played all 26 games with 19 starts and he led the Ichabods with 31 blocks, the seventh highest single-season total at WU and 14th highest career total. Meile leads team in steals, 2nd in free throw percentage Junior Andrew Meile comes back for his third year as the only returning starter at guard. He had his third double-figure game of the year with 15 points at Central Oklahoma. He exploded for 18 points against Fort Hays State off 6-of-11 shooting in the first game of the ENMU shootout. Against UNLV he was 4-of-6 for 10 points. Meile made his first eight free throws of the year and is 15-of-18 (.833) from the line so far. He leads the team with 10 steals and 1.7 steals per game. Meile averaged 8.6 points per game last year with 4.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists. He reached double figures 10 times and had a career-high of 20 against Central Missouri. He led the team with 43 3-pointers and finished second shooting .426 from behind the arc. He finished the season strong, averaging 17.3 points per game in the final four games. Williams giving WU senior leadership as starting guard Senior Michael Williams has started all six games as Washburn’s point guard. He is averaging 8.8 points a game, 2.2 assists and 1.0 steals. He transferred to WU last year after playing a season at Northern Iowa. Williams led Washburn with 14 points against Cameron and also threw in double digits with 16 in the season opener against Kansas Wesleyan. He leads the team with 15.0 points per game in the two home contests. Williams played in 19 games for UNI last year and scored 12 points with six rebounds and five assists. Prior to that, he played two years at Hutchinson Community College. Sisk leading Ichabods off the bench Junior forward Brady Sisk leads the Washburn non-starters with 54 points off the bench. He is fourth on the team with 9.0 points a game and second with 22 field goals and third with 51 attempts. Sisk is averaging 19.3 minutes a game. He led the Ichabods in the season opener with 19 points and scored 10 against Cameron. Last year Sisk led the team with 14.4 points a game. He played in 23 of 26 games with 13 starts. Ichabods looking for a solid starting five Last year the Ichabods started 11 different players and used nine different starting lineups. Their best combination managed just three wins. Guard Andrew Meile started 24 of the 26 games, the most for any returner, and the team picked up nine of its 10 wins when he started. Washburn returns seven letterwinners, including four with a lot of starting experience. Forward Paul Byers returns after starting 19 games and going 8-11 when starting. This year Washburn’s Williams, Meile, Byers, Snyder and Phifer have started five of the six games and are 2-3. Against Cameron junior guard Reed Hein started in place of Byers and that combination has gone 1-0. Ichabods solid from the free throw line The Ichabods were second in the MIAA with a .755 free throw percentage (71-of-94) coming into the week. Against UCO they shot 19-of-28, lowering their percentage to .738. They shot .875 against Cameron with a 14-for-16 effort and were .850 against Eastern New Mexico with a 17-for-20 mark. They are shooting .764 (42-for-55) from the line in the final five minutes of the game and are .789 (15-for-19) in overtime periods (3 games, 4 periods). Washburn looking for second road win The Ichabods are 1-2 on the road this year with the win coming at Eastern New Mexico. Last year’s lone road win came at Missouri Southern in a 60-56 win on 01/21/06. The Ichabods ended the year 1-8 in road contests last year. Final notes on the Central Oklahoma game • Frank Phifer became the first Ichabod this year to score 20 points with a team season-high 25. He also had Washburn’s second double-double of the year with 10 rebounds and his 11 free throws made was a team season-high. • Andrew Meile had a career-high nine rebounds. He had 15 points as he came short of his first double-double. • Washburn made a team season-high nine 3-pointers and 19 free throws. • Paul Byers started again at guard after coming off the bench in the last game, putting WU back at its original starting lineup. That combination is now 2-3. Bods and Ends • The December 9 start to the MIAA season is the second earliest since Washburn joined the league. The Ichabods played on 11/30/96 against Central Missouri State to start MIAA play that year. Last year the Ichabods started league play on 12/10/05 by hosting UCM. • Kyle Snyder’s 17 rebounds against ENMU was the most since Travis Robbins pulled in 17 on 11/30/04 against Mid-American Nazarene. • Washburn’s 48 rebounds against ENMU was the most since 2004-05 for the Ichabods. They doubled up the Greyhounds 48-24 on rebounds and held a 17-1 advantage on offensive rebounds. • With WU’s win over ENMU ending in regulation, the Ichabods avoided going into overtime for the third straight time, something WU has never done. The Ichabods opened the year with a pair of OTs, marking the sixth time they have played consecutive overtimes and first to start a season. • WU’s 55 points scored against UNLV is the fourth lowest total in a game since joining DII and lowest against a DI team. • UNLV is the first team to shoot 50 percent against WU this year and the first in the last 15 games. Southwest Baptist was the last team to shoot at least 50 percent, hitting 52 percent of its shots on 01/14/06. • The Ichabods are 29-23 all-time in overtimes with the two wins and one loss this year. Washburn is now 6-6 all-time in 12 games that went into at least double-overtime.