ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Missouri Western men's basketball (8-2) will host two games during winter break at home, facing Kansas Christian (5-4) on Wednesday and Truman State (5-4) on Saturday at the MWSU Fieldhouse.
Action will begin tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. against Kansas Christian for the first-ever "Education Day," where over 2,000 local elementary students from 17 area schools will be in attendance to support the Griffons.
The final game of 2024 will occur on Saturday against former conference rival Truman State from the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC). Tip-off at Tom Smith Court is set for 3:30 p.m.
Tommy Rezac will be on the call for both contests. Pregame coverage is slated to begin 30 minutes prior to the game live on the Varsity Network App and at
GoGriffons.com/listen.
WATCH - MIAA NETWORK
All MIAA football, women's soccer, volleyball, men's basketball and women's basketball, baseball and softball regular season conference games will be streamed live on the MIAA Network. The MIAA Network showcased over 1,500 live broadcasts for its 14 member schools last season. For more information, visit
https://www.themiaanetwork.com/.
LISTEN - GRIFFON SPORTS NETWORK (Varsity Nework App & GoGriffons.com/listen)
Live streams of Missouri Western athletics are now available on The Varsity Network app! All home and away football and men's and women's basketball games will be available to listen to for FREE on the Varsity Network App and at
GoGriffons.com/listen. Available on iPhone and Android, fans can access free audio streams for game days on the Varsity Network App. Fans can also receive push notifications as reminders for upcoming games and broadcasts.
Once you download The Varsity Network app, search 'Missouri Western' and select which Griffon teams you want to follow. For more information on The Varsity Network and how to listen to the Griffons,
click here. Audio broadcasts can also be found at
GoGriffons.com/listen. Audio broadcasts will also be archived at
GoGriffons.com/listen in the 'On Demand' section, and on the
Griffon Sports Insider Podcast, which is available on Spotify, Apple and wherever you podcast.
MIAA STANDINGS
| School |
Conf |
CPct. |
Overall |
Pct. |
Streak |
| Washburn |
2-0 |
1.000 |
9-0 |
1.000 |
W9 |
| Newman |
2-0 |
1.000 |
7-2 |
.778 |
W3 |
| Pittsburg State |
2-0 |
1.000 |
6-3 |
.667 |
W4 |
| Missouri Western |
1-1 |
.500 |
8-2 |
.800 |
L1 |
| Rogers State |
1-1 |
.500 |
10-3 |
.769 |
W2 |
| Fort Hays State |
1-1 |
.500 |
6-3 |
.667 |
W2 |
| Northeastern State |
1-1 |
.500 |
6-4 |
.600 |
W1 |
| Central Missouri |
1-1 |
.500 |
5-5 |
.500 |
L1 |
| Missouri Southern |
1-1 |
.500 |
5-5 |
.500 |
W1 |
| Emporia State |
1-1 |
.500 |
3-6 |
.333 |
W1 |
| Northwest Missouri |
1-1 |
.500 |
3-7 |
.300 |
W1 |
| Central Oklahoma |
0-2 |
.000 |
4-4 |
.500 |
L2 |
| Arkansas-Fort Smith |
0-2 |
.000 |
5-5 |
.500 |
W2 |
| Nebraska Kearney |
0-2 |
.000 |
1-7 |
.125 |
L3 |
TOP GRIFFON PERFORMERS
Zane Nelson has been outstanding, scoring in double figures in all 10 games and leading the team with 172 points. The senior is averaging 17.2 points per game with an impressive shooting percentage of 48% (60-for-124). Additionally, he has accumulated 57 rebounds, 42 assists and 15 steals.
Zion Swader has had a remarkable senior season. He is averaging 12.0 points per game and tops the team with 21 steals. Furthermore, he has collected 49 rebounds and contributed 22 assists.
Julius Dixon is at the forefront of the team with 59 rebounds, while
Kiani Saxon leads with 13 blocks for the Griffons. Additionally,
Justin Bubak boasts a shooting percentage of 55%.
HISTORY AGAINST KANSAS CHRISTIAN
Tomorrow's clash with the Kansas Christian Falcons will be the inaugural meeting between the two programs.
ABOUT THE FALCONS
Kansas Christian College is a member of the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) in Overland Park, Kansas.
The Falcons have recently achieved recent success in their league, winning the NCCAA National Championship in 2023 and finishing as runner-up in 2021 and 2024.
This season, Kansas Christian has a record of 5-4 (1-0 NCCAA). They enter the contest having won three of their last four games, with their latest victory against Calvary resulting in a final score of 84-62.
KCC has experience competing against NCAA Division II schools. Tomorrow's game against Western will be their fourth of the season, following losses to Newman, Henderson State and Rockhurst earlier this season.
HISTORY AGAINST TRUMAN STATE
Saturday's game will be the 60th meeting between the two programs since the 1969-70 season and their first matchup since Truman State left the MIAA following the 2012-13 season.
In their last regular-season matchup during the 2012-13 season, MWSU won 74-70 in Kirksville, while TSU won 71-60 in St. Joseph. The two teams have evenly split their last 10 matchups, with each team winning five times.
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
Truman State finished the 2023-24 season with a record of 15-14 (12-8 GLVC) and was picked to win the GLVC with 172 points and six first-place votes.
TSU has a 4-2 record in non-conference play, with wins over Cedarville, Emporia State, Northeastern State and Augustana (S.D.). They will meet with Grand View on Tuesday afternoon before concluding non-conference action against Missouri Western on Saturday.
The Bulldogs are currently 1-2 in GLVC play. They opened conference play with losses to Rockhurst and Southwest Baptist and broke into the win column with a 78-77 road victory over Drury last time out.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Griffons will return from break with two home games against Nebraska Kearney on Thursday, January 2, and Fort Hays State on Saturday, January 4. Following these games, Western will embark on a four-game road trip starting January 8 at No. 2 Washburn.
