ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Missouri Western men's basketball (13-7, 5-5 MIAA) will wrap up a four-game home stand at the MWSU Fieldhouse beginning on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. against Haskell before rematching rival Northwest Missouri State in the "Battle of Highway 71" on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
 
The SAAC theme for Saturday night's game against the Bearcats is "Neon." The first 100 students to arrive at the game will receive glow-stick necklaces.
 
Both contests will be broadcast live on the Varsity Network App and at GoGriffons.com/listen, with Tommy Rezac providing commentary. Pregame coverage will start 30 minutes before the women's game tip-off at 1:00 p.m.
 
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 Network 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
#1 Washburn	10-0	1.000	19-0	1.000	W19
Fort Hays State	6-3	.667	13-5	.722	L1
Pittsburg State	6-3	.667	10-8	.556	W1
Rogers State	6-4	.600	15-7	.682	W1
Northeastern State	5-4	.556	11-7	.611	L2
Missouri Western	5-5	.500	13-7	.650	L1
Newman	5-5	.500	12-7	.632	W2
Central Oklahoma	5-5	.500	11-8	.579	W3
Central Missouri	5-5	.500	10-9	.526	W1
Missouri Southern	4-5	.444	9-9	.500	L2
Nebraska Kearney	3-5	.375	5-11	.312	L3
Emporia State	3-6	.333	6-12	.333	W2
Northwest Missouri	2-8	.200	4-15	.211	L5
Arkansas-Fort Smith	1-8	.111	7-11	.389	L3

 
TOP GRIFFON PERFORMERS
Zane Nelson has become an essential contributor to the Griffon offense this season after transferring in from Arkansas Monticello. The senior leads the team with 313 points and boasts an impressive shooting percentage of 44% (111-for-251) from the floor. With an average of 15.7 points per game, he is currently ranks seventh in the conference in scoring, and his 87 assists place him third in the league.
 
Zion Swader has enjoyed a productive senior year, averaging 11.5 points per game with a shooting percentage of 46% (80-for-175). He has tallied 36 steals on the defensive end, placing him fifth in the MIAA rankings. He has also gathered a total of 82 rebounds and distributed 45 assists.
 
Senior Julius Dixon is leading the Griffs with a total of 130 rebounds, placing him 4th in the MIAA. Additionally, senior Kiani Saxon tops the team with 27 blocks, which is the third-highest count in the MIAA. Completing the projected starting lineup, senior Justin Bubak has tallied 191 points (averaging 9.6 points per game), along with 74 rebounds, 16 steals and 11 blocks.
 
HISTORY AGAINST HASKELL
Wednesday's contest against Haskell Indian Nations will mark the third all-time meeting between the two schools. Western has won both previous matchups, taking the first game 72-61 in 2005 and the second game 88-69 in 2016. Both games were held in St. Joseph.
 
ABOUT THE FIGHTING INDIANS
The Fighting Indians are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).
 
In the 2024-25 campaign, they currently hold a record of 6-17. Two of their losses were against MIAA members Northeastern State (103-68) and Rogers State (85-56) back in November.
 
A player to watch for Haskell is DK Middleton. The senior is averaging 10.5 points per game on 72-of-178 (40%) shooting this season. He has also tallied 81 rebounds, 57 assists and 50 steals.
 
HISTORY AGAINST NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE
Saturday's game against Northwest Missouri State will be the 105th all-time meeting between the two rival teams, with Northwest holding the edge in the series at 67-37.
 
Western claimed the latest meeting in Maryville on December 3, winning 70-66, largely in part to Nelson's impressive 21-point performance. Furthermore, last season's victory in St. Joseph ended a 24-game losing streak after the Griffons knocked off the 14th-ranked Bearcats 76-70.
 
Missouri Western will secure its first regular season sweep over Northwest since the 1998-99 season with a win this weekend.
 
ABOUT THE BEARCATS
The Bearcats have hit a setback in head coach Matt Keeley's first season at the helm of the four-time NCAA Division II Champions. The defending conference champs were picked to finish fourth in the 2024-25 MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll with 125 points and one first-place vote.
 
Northwest (4-15, 2-8) heads into the week on a five-game losing skid, which is the most consecutively since the 2011 season. Last weekend, they fell to No. 1 Washburn (80-69) and Central Missouri (70-53) at home. Their lone wins in MIAA play have come against Emporia State (65-54) and Central Missouri (63-62) on the road.
 
The Bearcat player to watch is senior guard Emorie Knox. The Myrtle Beach, South Carolina native leads the team in scoring with 251 points (13.2 AVG/G) on 89-of-227 (39%) shooting. He has also recorded 70 assists, 45 rebounds and 22 assists.