Men's Basketball Notes vs. PSU

Missouri Southern Lions (8-3, 1-1) vs. Pittsburg State Gorillas (9-2, 1-1)

Game 12 • Jan. 7, 2003 • 7:30 pm • Joplin, Mo. • Leggett & Platt Athletic Center (3,240)

Officials: J.R. Reid, Bill Titcomb, Kelly Holt

On the Air: Missouri Southern Lions action can be heard on Oldies 103.5 FM. Kevin Greim will handle the play-by-play, along with former Lion Jeff Starkweather, color commentary. The pregame show tips off 20 minutes before the game. The Lions broadcasts are also available on the internet, courtesy of Joplin.com. Just go to the Missouri Southern Athletics web site (www.mssu.edu/athletics) and click on the link for live broadcasts. Southern fans can see both the women's and men's game on KGCS this Sunday evening beginning at 7 p.m. KGCS-TV may be seen over the air on channel 57 and on cable channel 7 in Joplin.

The Coaches: Head coach Robert Corn is in his 15th season at the helm of the Lions, and he has posted a 232-173 record for a winning percentage of .573. A 1978 graduate of Southern and the all-time winningest coach in Lions basketball history, he has led Southern to four consecutive 20-win seasons and six overall. Corn was honored as 1999-2000 MIAA Coach of the Year, NABC South Central Regional Coach of the Year, and Division II Bulletin National Coach of the Year following a 30-3 season in which the Lions advanced to the NCAA-II Elite Eight semifinals. He’s 16-15 vs. Pitt State.

Gene Iba is in his ninth year as the head coach at Pittsburg State, where he has compiled a record of 165-79. Now in the 24rd year of his collegiate head coaching career, Iba is closing in on 400 victories with a 391-282 mark. He is 8-9 vs. Missouri Southern.

The Series: The Lions lead 37-34 in the all-time series with seven wins in their last 10 tries vs. the Gorillas. Southern holds a 24-12 advantage in games played in Joplin, including 4-1 vs. Pitt at the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center. The Lions swept PSU last year with a pair of five-point wins. Southern won 74-69 on Jan. 15 in Pittsburg and 80-75 on Feb. 12 in Joplin. The Gorillas last won in Joplin on Feb. 14, 2001.

The Lions

Missouri Southern comes in at 8-3 overall and 1-1 in the MIAA after a much-needed victory on Saturday over Missouri Western. Southern had lost its conference opener at Truman on Tuesday and needed a victory to avoid falling two games back of the conference leaders.

Southern won behind a 17-2 run that stretched over both halves and outscored the Griffons 34-11 at the free throw line to grab the 78-63 win.

MSSU outscored MWSC 7-1 to end the first half after the two teams were tied at 30 with 4:17 left. Then to start the second, Southern hit four of its first five shots and outscored Western 10-1. That pushed the lead to 47-32 with just 2:36 gone after intermission. The Lions went on to lead by as many as 20 and Western could draw no closer than 10 points.

Junior Orestus Cavness scored a career-high 22 points, including 10 at the foul line in a game that saw the two teams combine for 67 free throws. Senior Ameer Watts added 21 points.

Southern made 34-of-47 at the charity stripe, compared to 11-of-20 shooting for Western. A total of 51 fouls were called in the game.

Lions in the MIAA

Four different Missouri Southern players rank among the MIAA leaders in various categories. As a team, the Lions average 12.5 steals to lead the MIAA.

Guards Hiram Ocasio, a junior, and Ameer Watts, a senior, are two big reasons for Southern’s high ranking in steals. Ocasio is tops in the conference with 3.82 steals a game, while Watts is second with 2.45 an outing.

Watts also ranks fifth in the MIAA in assists (4.55 pg), tied for seventh in scoring (15.9 ppg), seventh in free throw accuracy (.796) and tied for third in threes made (2.36).

The defensive-minded Ocasio is also eighth in the MIAA in blocks (1.09 pg), ninth in free throw percentage (.764) and is tied for 18th in scoring average (12.4 ppg).

Junior forward Orestus “O.C.” Cavness is also among the league’s top 10 in scoring, ranking ninth with 15.2 points per game. He’s also seventh in field goal shooting (.542).

Senior forward Darrell Redmond is tied for 14th in rebounding, at 5.6 per game.

The Lions are also in the top five in the MIAA in offensive rebounds (T-third, 13.64 pg), rebounding margin (fourth, +2.5 rpg), scoring offense (fifth, 82.0 ppg), rebounding defense (fifth, 34.8 ppg) and turnover margin (fifth, +3.27 pg).

The first NCAA Division II statistics report is not yet available.

Watts’ eight threes made vs. St. Gregory’s (Okla.) is the most by an MIAA player in the single game this year, and his 14 attempts from three-point distance is tied for the most. Ocasio’s nine steals against Paul Quinn (Texas) is also an MIAA single game high.

Threes Starting to Fall

The long ball didn’t appear to be a strength for Missouri Southern early in the year. The team shot 23.2 percent (22-of-95) from three-point range over its first five games, but came on strong as December began. Over their last five games, the Lions have made 41.7 percent (58-of-139) from beyond the arc. Three players have played a key role in that resurgence. Ameer Watts, thanks in large part to his school record 8-of-14 three-point shooting vs. St. Gregory’s on Dec. 6, has made 21 of his last 47 threes, or 44.7 percent. Watts was last year’s MIAA champion in three-point accuracy. Senior guard MacKenzie Sherrel has connected on 8-of-16 triples (50 percent) over the last five games, and scored in double figures in back-to-back games on Dec. 5-6. Orestus Cavness is shooting 47.8 percent (11-of-23) from long distance over his last five.

Ocasio Causes Havoc

Hiram Ocasio, the Lions’ 6-1 junior guard, has scored in double figures in 13 of his last 16 games, dating back to last year, and is averaging 13 points over that span. This year, he has already collected 42 steals after garnering 61 all of last year. He leads the team and the MIAA in steals (3.82 pg) and is also Southern’s top shot-blocker at 1.09 per game. Ocasio has twice notched career-high 23-point scoring efforts this season and is now up to fourth on MSSU’s career steals list with 147. He should end his career as Southern’s second-most prolific steal artist, behind only Eddin Santiago (1998-02). Ocasio needs just seven more blocks to take over fifth place on that Lions’ career list.

Nice Touch

Despite their early troubles from three-point range, the Lions have had good luck shooting so far in 2003-04. In five of its last nine games, Missouri Southern has made 50 percent or better of its shots. MSSU hit on 50 percent of its shots over a four-game stretch from Nov. 22-29.

Three Lion opponents have managed to connect on 50 percent or better from the field. On all three occasions, MSSU suffered a loss.

MSSU has also converted no worse than 72 percent of its foul shots over the last four.

Matt Making a Mark

True freshman Matt Habermehl is getting more work on the court in competitive situations. Since missing the Quincy game with the flu, he has played some significant minutes in each of the last seven games. Thus far on the year, he’s made 12-of-22 field goal attempts, 4-of-4 free throws and is averaging 3.1 points and 2.7 rebounds in 10.8 minutes of play. The 6-foot-8 Habermehl sat out last year, electing to instead play baseball at Crowder College.

History Chase

Senior Ameer Watts needs just 83 more assists to take over fifth place on the Lions’ career assists list ... Watts and junior Caleb Engelken are both on pace to earn the top two spots on MSSU’s career three-point shooting list ... Watts’ 78.5 career free throw percentage has him on pace to challenge for a place on that top-five chart at the end of the season.

Lions at Home

Missouri Southern is in its fifth year in the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center. Amazingly, Southern has lost only seven times at home since moving into Leggett & Platt. The Lions are 59-7 (.894) in the new facility and have a 347-146 (.704) mark at home all-time. Southern is currently riding a 12-game home winning streak, a figure that’s tied for the 10th longest current streak in the nation.

A Streak of 20s

Southern’s four straight 20-win seasons coming into this year is unprecedented in team history. The 2002-03 team’s 20-win campaign marked the 13th such season in team history and the sixth under coach Corn’s watch.

Scouting the Gorillas

Pittsburg State raised its record to 9-2 overall and 1-1 in the MIAA on Saturday in bouncing back from a loss to Central Missouri State. On Saturday, Pitt won 84-65 at Truman behind 24 points and 10 rebounds from junior guard Jason Taylor.

Taylor, PSU’s leading scorer at 17 points per game, is one of three Gorillas averaging double figures. Guard Eddie Jackson is second at 16.3 points and senior forward Jamey Richardson is third with 13.5 points per game. Taylor and Jackson are two of the MIAA’s top six scorers, ranking fourth and sixth, respectively. Richardson is close to averaging a double-double (9.5 rpg) and leads the conference with 3.27 blocks per game.

Junior guard Ryan Odaffer leads the conference with a 55.6 three-point percentage.

Wednesday’s game will pit the MIAA’s top three performers in steals. With the Lions’ Ocasio and Watts ranking 1-2 in the league, they’ll meet Taylor, who is third in the conference at 2.36 steals per game.

Pitt State has defended the three well this year, evident by its No. 2 MIAA ranking in three-point field goal defense (opponents shooting 29.9 percent). The Gorillas are also second in the MIAA in turnover margin (+6.45 pg).

At Truman on Saturday, all five PSU starters topped out in double figures as the Gorillas ended the game by outscoring TSU 22-10. Pitt led 35-32 at the half. Richardson had 12 points, nine rebounds and five blocks and Jackson also added five points.

Last Year’s Games

Lions 74, @ Pittsburg State 69 -- Jan. 15, 2003

PITTSBURG, Kan. ––�The Lions got out to a strong start and limited Pittsburg State to just over 20 percent shooting in the game’s first 15 minutes in a victory over their border rival, the No. 23-ranked Gorillas.

Jamahr Warren and Deon Rose combined for 24 second-half points, including all 17 in a stretch of 4:32 of the second half, just after PSU took its only lead.

Hiram Ocasio’s steal and layup thwarted a 6-0 Gorilla spurt and the Lions made eight of 10 free throws in the final 1:06 to preserve the win in the series’ 70th game.

Warren scored a then-career hig 20 points and Ocasio added 15..

@ Lions 80, Pittsburg State 75 -- Feb. 12, 2003

JOPLIN ––�Missouri Southern outscored Pittsburg State 17-5 over the last five minutes of the first half and withstood an 11-3 Gorilla run to start the second in sweeping the regular season series from their border rival.

Pittsburg State got within three points twice in the second half, including with 1:26 to play, but missed two threes that would’ve tied the score with under a minute left.

Two Lions had double-doubles in points and rebounds for the first time since Nov. 27, 2001. Jamahr Warren finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Deon Rose added 11 points and 11 boards. Hiram Ocasio’s 19 points led the Lions, while Oliver Vogt put in 20 for PSU.

Up Next: Southern is off to Maryville for a 3:30 p.m. clash on Saturday with No. 4 Northwest Missouri State. The Lions will remain on the road for their Wednesday encounter at Central Missouri.