BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team closes out the calendar year, and the decade, at the Concordia Texas Classic Sunday-Monday, Dec. 29-30, in Austin, Texas. IWU begins the tournament with a 5:30 p.m. game against Concordia Texas Sunday, Dec. 29, before tangling with Sul Ross State University at 2 p.m. Monday, Dec. 30.
IWU travels to Texas with a 7-3 overall record after a 97-88 setback to No. 10 WashU, Dec. 19. Meanwhile, Concordia and Sul Ross State each enter the tournament sitting even on the year at 4-4. Concordia is looking to bounce back from a 102-93 loss at Mary Hardin-Baylor, Dec. 16, while SRS notched a 97-80 win at Howard Payne, Dec. 21.
Fans can tune into the games via live stats or live stream, while Eric Stock will have the call on 98.3 FM WEXG. Links on how to follow along can be found on the men's basketball schedule page of IWUsports.com.
IWU IN THE LONESTAR STATE: Illinois Wesleyan will travel to Texas for the first time since the 2015-16 season when IWU heads to the Concordia Classic, Dec. 29-30. In the Titans' last trip to the Lonestar State, they won the Trinity Classic with wins over Southwestern (85-77) and Texas Lutheran (92-86), Dec. 18-19, 2015, in San Antonio.
Furthermore, IWU holds a 4-0 record in the state of Texas since the 2009-10 season. The Titans also won the Trinity Classic in 2009. That year, Illinois Wesleyan thumped Trinity 96-67 and toppled Southwestern 91-75 en route to the tournament title.
THE TITANS AND THE IN-SEASON TOURNAMENT: The Titans travel to their last in-season tournament of the decade looking to improve upon a 34-6 record in regular season tournaments since the 2010-11 season. Over that span, Illinois Wesleyan has won 15 of the 19 in-season tournaments it has partaken in.
Last season the Titans went 0-2 at the Cal Lutheran Holiday Classic after winning the Webster Gorlok Tournament with wins over Westminster (95-64) and Webster (77-62).
FIRST FOR EVERYTHING: Illinois Wesleyan will take on Concordia Texas and Sul Ross State for the first time in program history this weekend. Additionally, it will be IWU's first game against an American Southwest Conference institution all-time.
WHAT A DECADE IT HAS BEEN: IWU has compiled a 201-84 record in the current decade, good for a .705 win percentage since the calendar turned to 2010. The Titans have won four CCIW Championships, posted five 20-win seasons, and appeared in seven NCAA Tournaments, including two runs to the Final Four, over that span.
QUITE THE MATCHUP(S): The Concordia Classic will pit one of the most disciplined teams in the country against two of the most ferocious defense in the nation as IWU will square off with Concordia Texas and Sul Ross State. The Titans enter the tournament ranked inside Division III's top-50 with an average of just 11.8 turnovers per game. Illinois Wesleyan's clean play will be put to the test when it tackles two of the nation's top-50 teams in terms of turnovers forced and steals. Concordia is slotted fourth nationally in forced miscues (25.75) and fifth in steals per game at 13.0, while Sul Ross State checks in at 46th in turnovers forced and 48th in steals per game.
SCOUTING REPORT - CONCORDIA TEXAS: Tournament host Concordia Texas welcomes IWU, North Central, and Sul Ross State to Austin, Texas for the three-day tournament. The Tornados, who are 4-4 on the year, will begin the classic against North Central, Dec. 28, with hopes of getting of the schneid. Concordia has dropped three of its last four contests, including an American Southwest Conference clash at Mary Hardin-Baylor, 102-93, Dec. 16.
Phillip Meikle leads a trio of players who score in double figures for the Tornados at 16.4 points per game, while also pacing the team in assists (24) and steals (19). Antoine Henderson and Greg Harbor average 11.0 and 10.0 points per game,respectively, with Harbor appearing in just two games. On the glass, Tommy Holiday grabs a team-best 6.1 boards per game and adds 8.9 points per contest.
As a team Concordia Texas is one of the more prolific offense in all of Division III. The Tornados scored 90.8 points per game, the 15th-highest mark in the country, and hold the 66th-best field goal percentage (47.4) in the nation. On the defensive end, Concordia has caused opponents trouble all season long. The Tornados force 25.75 turnovers a game, the fourth-most nationally, while tallying 13.0 steals per contest. CC's swipes are fifth-most in the country, while its 104 total steals are 19th-most among Division III.
SCOUTING REPORT - SUL ROSS STATE: Sul Ross State enters the Concordia Classic with a 4-4 record with hopes of building off of a 97-80 win at Howard Payne, Dec. 21. The win snapped a two-game losing skid. SRS, which will open the end of year tournament against North Central Dec. 29, will wrap up a 10-game season-opening against the Titans, Dec. 30.
Four players average 10-or-more points for the Lobos, led by the duo of Logan Dixon and Tristen Licon. Dixon averages a team-best 18.5 points per game, while tying for Licon for the team lead with 5.4 rebounds a contest. Meanwhile, Licon scores 16.8 points per contest and contributes 3.5 assists and 2.1 steals a game.
SRS has converted 46.0 percent of its shots over its first eight games of the season, and averages 85.6 points a game. The Lobos are fierce on the offensive glass, grabbing 12.5 offensive rebounds a game. Defensively, Sul Ross State is turning opponents over 18.25 times a game and averaging 9.5 steals a contest.
PICKING UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF: Since returning to the floor against Augustana, Dec. 15, Grant Wolfe has picked up right where he left off. Wolfe missed three games spanning nearly a month due to injury before returning to the starting lineup against Augie. Since then, Wolfe is averaging 21 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.0 steals per contest.
Moreover, the Titans shoot 47.8 percent (225-of-471) from the floor with him, including 41.1 (62-of-151) from three-point range, compared to a field goal percentage of 43.1 and a 30.9 mark from distance without him. Illinois Wesleyan averages nearly 10 points per game better with Wolfe (85.9 to 76.3) than without him. Six of IWU's seven wins have come with Wolfe in the lineup.
BAIR'S BOARDS: Junior Charlie Bair has owned the glass this season, pulling down 9.7 rebounds per game. Bair ranks second in the conference and 49th nationally in rebounding average, while his 4.1 offensive boards per contest are 14th-most nationally and lead the CCIW. Additionally, Bair is one of two players in the conference with four-or-more double-doubles this season.
YEAR 111: Illinois Wesleyan has compiled a 1670-912 record in its history, good for a .645 winning percentage. Additionally, the Titans 1670 wins are the fourth-most all-time in NCAA Division III. Meanwhile, IWU's 740 CCIW wins are by-far-and-above the most in the league. In fact, the Titans have 118 more conference wins than any other school in the CCIW.
ON THE HORIZON: After a trip to the Lonestar State, Illinois Wesleyan zeroes in on College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin play. IWU will open a string of 13 straight league tilts Saturday, Jan. 4, against Millikin. Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will serve as the second leg of a doubleheader with the IWU women's basketball team.
