BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - A top-10 matchup awaits the Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team this weekend, as the third-ranked Titans travel to King Arena to take on No. 8 Wheaton College Saturday, Dec. 11. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. inside King Arena and will serve as the second leg of a doubleheader with the IWU women's basketball team.
    Illinois Wesleyan is out to a 7-0 start, highlighted by a 1-0 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin mark. The Titans most recently defeated Carroll University, 63-44, at the Shirk Center, Dec. 4. Wheaton heads into the weekend 8-1 overall, and 2-1 in the CCIW. The Thunder, who are 4-0 at home, most recently overpowered Carroll, 81-57, on the road.
    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.

STOP ONE ON A LENGTHY ROAD TRIP: The Titans trip to Wheaton marks the start of a five-game road stint for the Green and White. After taking on eighth-ranked Wheaton, IWU will travel to North Central, 18th-ranked WashU, Mt. St. Vincent, and No. 1 Yeshiva.

NO LOVE FROM THE LONG LINE: Wheaton enters Saturday's showdown as the conference's top three-point shooting team, with a league-best 73 three-balls made this season. The Thunder check in with the fourth-best three-point field goal percentage (34.6), but will be challenged by IWU's defense, which has proven to be one of the best at defending the three this season. The Titans are second in the conference and 22nd nationally in three-point field goal percent defense, as opponents are going 26.5 from distance against Illinois Wesleyan this season.
    IWU's lockdown defense from beyond the arc has stymied opponents this season, as the Green and White are giving up just 62.6 points per game - the fewest in the CCIW and the 30th-best in all of Division III.

TAKE YOUR PICK: Illinois Wesleyan has been one of the most balanced teams in the CCIW this season. Led by preseason All-American Matthew Leritz, who ranks sixth in the CCIW in scoring at 17.0 ppg, IWU is the only school in the conference with five players ranked in the conference's top-25 scoring list. Cory Noe checks in at ninth with his 15.6 ppg, while Cody Mitchell is 16th (11.4 ppg). Peter Lambesis' 11.0 points per contest are good for 18th, and Luke Yoder's 10.1 average is 24th.

AGAINST THE THUNDER ALL-TIME: Illinois Wesleyan and Wheaton will battle for the 134th time Saturday night. IWU holds a 83-50 lead in the all-time series, which dates back to the 1946-47 season. Despite the Titans' stronghold on the all-time series, the Thunder have come out victorious in five of the past six meetings.
    The Green and White came out victorious in the last meeting, as IWU downed the Thunder 71-58 to claim the CCIW Tournament title. Matthew Leritz led the way with 17 points and eight rebounds, both of which were team-highs, while Peter Lambesis tallied 16 points, and Cory Noe added 12.
    Illinois Wesleyan is in search of its first regular season win over Wheaton since Dec. 6, 2017 when the Titans took down the Thunder 82-79 at King Arena. Brady Rose led IWU with 26 points, while Alex O'Neill finished just shy of a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds.

TOP-10 MATCHUP: Saturday's clash will be IWU's third top-10 matchup since week two of the 2018-19 season, when the eighth-ranked Titans squared off with No. 3 Augustana inside the Carver Center, Dec. 8, 2018.
    Fourth-ranked IWU took down ninth-ranked North Central 91-77 inside the Shirk Center, Feb. 6, 2021. Illinois Wesleyan, which was ranked No. 8 at the time, then claimed the CCIW Championship with a 71-58 win over third-ranked Wheaton, March 12, 2021. In 2018, the Titans were topped by Augie, 67-60, in Rock Island.

ROAD RECORD: Illinois Wesleyan owns an 90-54 away from the Shirk Center over the past 11 seasons, good for a .625 win percentage on the road over that span.

OUTDOING THEMSELVES: The Titans held Carroll to just 44 points, just days after an 83-50 win over Chicago. Carroll's 44 points  are the fewest the Titan's defense has allowed since Feb. 1, 2020 against Carroll when IWU also held the Pioneers to 44 points.

ON THE HORIZON: Illinois Wesleyan remains on the road for a CCIW clash at North Central Wednesday, Dec. 15. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.