BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team begins the final week of the regular season with a stop at North Park University Wednesday night, Feb. 19, for a midweek College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin matchup. Tipoff inside NPU's Gymnasium is scheduled for 7 p.m.
    Illinois Wesleyan (15-8, 9-5 CCIW) enters the contest on the heels of a heartbreaking, 80-79, setback at Wheaton, Feb. 15, that saw the Titans topped by a 33-footer at the buzzer. North Park is coming off a bye following an 89-77 loss at Carthage, Feb. 12. The Vikings, who hold a 4-19 record and 2-12 CCIW mark, are amid a four-game losing skid and have dropped 11 of their past 13 games dating back to Jan. 2.
    Fans can tune into the game via live stats or live stream. Links on how to follow along can be found on the men's basketball schedule page of IWUsports.com.

BAIR GOES BEAST MODE: Junior Charlie Bair put together a career day at Wheaton, Feb. 15, scoring a career-high 26 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Bair also added a career-best four three-pointers, while contributing seven rebounds, two assists, a block, and a steal. 
    His 26 points gave him his first 20-point game of his career, topping his previous career-high point total by 11, and tied for the second-most by a Titan this season. 

IF THE CCIW TOURNAMENT BEGAN TODAY...: Illinois Wesleyan would hold the No. 4 seed in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament if it began today. IWU would host fifth-seeded Wheaton in a quarterfinals matchup Tuesday, Feb. 25, while third-place Elmhurst would host No. 6 Carthage in the other first round tilt.
    North Central would hold the top seed and play host to semifinal and championship games Saturday, Feb. 29, while Augustana would enter the tournament as the No. 2 seed.

20-POINT EFFORTS ALL AROUND: With 26 points at Wheaton, Feb. 15, Charlie Bair became the eighth Titan to turn in a 20-point game this season, joining Keondre Schumacher, Grant Wolfe, Doug Wallen, Peter Lambesis, Luke Yoder, Cory Noe, and Matthew Leritz. Moreoever, IWU's eight different 20-point scorers as the team's most in at least two decades. According to records, which date back to the 1999-00 season, the most Illinois Wesleyan has seen since then is six as Dylan Overstreet, Jordan Nelson, Bryce Dolan, Pat Sodemann, Ryan Coyle, and Trevor Seibring notched 20-point performances during the 2014-15 season.

SERVING HIS ROLE, WHATEVER IT MAY BE: With injuries to Grant Wolfe and Luke Yoder, Peter Lambesis has been thrust into the role of point guard. In his past two games orchestrating the IWU offense, Lambesis has tied a career-high with five assists in back-to-back games. He has also averaged nine points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.5 steals, and has committed just three turnovers.

AGAINST NORTH PARK ALL-TIME: Illinois Wesleyan holds an 86-33 advantage in the 119-game history between IWU and North Park, dating back to the 1962-63 campaign. The Titans have won the past five meetings.
    In the team's initial tilt, Jan. 15, in Bloomington, the Titans came out victorious, 70-56. Doug Wallen scored a team-high 16 points, with Keondre Schumacher and Luke Yoder added 15 points each in the winning effort. Charlie Bair chipped in a near-double-double with eight points and a 11 rebounds.

SCOUTING REPORT - NORTH PARK: North Park hosts Illinois Wesleyan in its home finale Wednesday night, Feb. 19, with hopes of snapping four-game losing streak. The Vikings have lost 11 of their last 13 games, and carry a 4-19 overall record (2-12 CCIW) into the midweek matchup.
    Karl Polk Jr. highlights a pair of double-digit scorers for the Vikings, as he averages 11.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Toby Marek is the team's top scorer at 14.3 points per game, and leads North Park in assists (66). Matt Szuba ranks second the team with 33 three-pointers and leads the Vikings in rebounding at 6.3 board per game.
    As a team, North Park is averaging just 66.0 points per game. The Vikings are shooting 41.6 percent from the floor and 32.7 percent from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, NPU is giving up 77.7 points a game and has seen opponents shoot 47.6 percent. 

FINDING HIS GROOVE: After missing the first month of the season due to injury, sophomore Matthew Leritz has found his groove as of late. The 6-foot-7 forward is averaging 16.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game over the past seven contests. He has also been efficient, converting 45-of-71 (63.3 percent) of his shot attempts over the stretch.

YEAR 111: Illinois Wesleyan has compiled a 1678-917 record in its history, good for a .647 winning percentage. Additionally, the Titans 1678 wins are the fourth-most all-time in NCAA Division III. Meanwhile, IWU's 746 CCIW wins are by-far-and-above the most in the league. In fact, the Titans have more than 100 conference wins than any other school in the CCIW.

KEEPIN' IT CLEAN: The Titans are averaging just 12.2 turnovers per game, the third-best mark in the CCIW and the 63rd-best nationally. IWU is forcing an average of 15.09 turnovers per game, the second-most in the league, and hold the league's second-best turnover margin at +2.9 (49th nationally).

ROAD RECORD: Illinois Wesleyan owns an 82-52 away from the Shirk Center over the past 10 seasons, good for a .612 win percentage on the road over that span. IWU is 6-4 away from home this season. 

ON THE HORIZON: Illinois Wesleyan's roadtrip continues with a midweek tilt against North Park Wednesday, Feb. 19. Tipoff between the Titans and Vikings is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the North Park Gymnasium.