ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Griffon Men's Basketball (11-4, 3-1 MIAA) returns home to open a four-game homestand on Wednesday night against No. 1 ranked Washburn (14-0, 4-0 MIAA) at 7:30 p.m.
 
The Griffons then welcome in a resurgent Central Missouri (12-4, 3-1 MIAA) on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. Both games will be broadcast live on the Griffon Sports Network (Varsity Network App, GoGriffons.com/listen) and available to watch on the MIAA Network with a subscription.
 
Voice of the Griffons Tommy Rezac will have the call for both games, with former Griffon men's basketball coach and Hall of Famer Tom Smith as the analyst.
 
MoWest has had strong home court advantage so far this season with a 6-0 record inside the MWSU Fieldhouse. Since the start of the 2023-24 season, Griffon Men's Basketball holds a combined 28-9 record (.757) at home.

A Quick Recap
Griffon Men's Basketball dropped a close game at Fort Hays State (10–3, 2–2 MIAA), falling 67–65 on Saturday at Gross Memorial Coliseum.
 
MoWest built a 45-31 lead in the second half with 14 minutes to play, but FHSU answered and grabbed their first lead of the second half at 56–55 with 4:39 remaining.
 
The closing minutes saw six lead changes, as the entire game had 14 total lead changes. Free throws by Gavin Hershberger gave the Griffons a 65–63 lead with just over a minute remaining.
 
FHSU's Lucas Hammeke, however, finished a layup at the basket with four seconds remaining to put Hays ahead, 67–65. MWSU's final three-point attempt at the buzzer was blocked.
 
Marko Pavlovic led the way with 16 points on 6-of-14 shooting from the field and 4-of-9 at the free-throw line, while adding 10 rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Pavlovic has now logged five double-doubles on the season.
 
Hershberger followed with 15 points on 4-of-7 shooting, knocking down 3-of-6 from three-point range and going 4-of-5 at the free-throw line, to go with two rebounds, an assist and two steals.
 
Noah King chipped in 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the floor and five rebounds. Ty Henry contributed 8 points on 3-of-6 shooting, while adding two rebounds, one block and a steal.
 
MWSU shot 42.3% from the field (22-of-52), 27.8% from three (5-of-18) and 66.7% at the free-throw line (16-of-24).

Offensive Glass
MoWest ranks No. 3 in the MIAA with 11.9 offensive rebounds per game, collecting 179 total through the first 15 games. The 179 total O-boards ranks No. 2 in the MIAA and tied for No. 23 in NCAA Division II.

Takin' Care of Basketball Business
The Griffs' 1.46 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks No. 2 in the MIAA and No. 19 in NCAA Division II. Their turnover margin of +3.4 ranks No. 4 in the MIAA as well. MoWest ranks No. 1 in the MIAA and No. 4 in NCAA Division II with only 9.7 giveaways per game.

King-Sized Career
Noah King is averaging 17.6 points per game (8th MIAA). King has scored at least 20 points in seven different games this season, including a career-best 31 in a 90-72 win over Arkansas Tech on November 28, 2025. King is up to 2,014 career points as a college basketball player, including 749 points at Kirkwood CC and 1,001 in two seasons at Upper Iowa. He owns 127 career starts as well.

Marko's Mark
Freshman forward Marko Pavlovic ranks No. 3 in the MIAA in rebounds per game (8.6), No. 5 in field goal percentage (58.8%), and No. 2 in blocked shots (21). His 21 blocks is tied for No. 15 in NCAA Division II. Pavlovic leads the MIAA with 49 offensive rebounds – tied for No. 8 in NCAA Division II. His 129 total rebounds is good for No. 2 in the MIAA and No. 10 in NCAA D2.
 
Gavin's Game
Sophomore Gavin Hershberger ranks No. 3 in the MIAA with 36 made three-pointers, averaging 2.4 made triples per game.
 
Ty on the Line
Senior Ty Henry ranks No. 2 in the MIAA and No. 15 in NCAA D2 in free throw percentage at 91.1% (41-of-45).
 
Opponents at a Glance
No. 1 Washburn (14-0, 4-0 MIAA) has picked up right where they left off after making it to the Final Four this past March. Beating teams this season by an average margin of 89.6 - 60.6, the Ichabods already own wins over No. 3 Dallas Baptist, No. 4 Lubbock Christian and No. 4 West Texas A&M.
 
The Ichabods rank No. 2 in the MIAA and No. 18 in NCAA D2 with 89.6 points per game, while also sitting No. 2 in the league and No. 5 in the nation in scoring defense (60.6). Washburn also leads the league in field goal percentage (51.6% - No. 7 nation), scoring margin (+29 - No. 1 nation), rebounding margin (+11.6 - No. 1 nation), turnover margin (+7.57 - No. 5 nation), takeaways per game (19.3 - No. 9 nation), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.62 - No. 6 nation), assists per game (19 - No. 6 nation) and steals per game (12.2 - No. 8 nation).
 
Sophomore forward Dillon Claussen has emerged as the lead scorer and rebounder for Washburn with 16.6 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, while shooting a league best 67.5% from the field (No. 8 nation).
 
Junior guard and all-MIAA pick Jack Bachelor is averaging 16.1 points per game, while shooting 39.6% from three (No. 4 MIAA) and 90.5% from the foul line (No. 3 MIAA). Bachelor's 4.1 assist-to-turnover ratio is the best in the MIAA and No. 2 best in NCAA D2.
 
Series History
Wednesday marks the 109th all-time meeting with Washburn. The Ichabods lead the series at 64-44, having won each of the last four contests. Washburn has won nine of the last 11 games in the series dating back to March 2021.
 
Central Missouri (12-4, 3-1 MIAA) is off to its best start in some time under third-year head coach Adam Bohac. The Mules, receiving 22 votes in the latest Coaches' Poll, own wins over No. 10 Colorado School of Mines, Upper Iowa (10-2), No. 4 West Texas A&M and Fort Hays State (10-3).
 
UCM will face Northwest on Wednesday evening before coming to St. Joseph. The Mules sit No. 1 in the MIAA and No. 6 in NCAA D2 with a three-point percentage of 40.7% (177-of-435). The 177 made threes are most in the league and the D2 nation as well, as UCM averages 11.1 made three-pointers per game (No. 1 MIAA, No. 9 nation).
 
UCM is led in scoring by true freshman Lazarek Houston, who ranks No. 4 in the MIAA with 19.7 points per game. Meanwhile, UCM's Jevon Hill, a South Dakota transfer, leads the MIAA with a 46.3% success rate from long range (56-of-121). His 56 made three-pointers is more than any player in the league as well.
 
Series History
Saturday marks the 79th all-time meeting with UCM. The Mules lead the all-time series 44-34, but MoWest swept UCM in the regular season last season. These teams have split the last 12 meetings dating back to February 2019.