Thursday's Game At A Glance
• The Lindenwood men's basketball team starts a three-game homestand on Thursday night when it welcomes Missouri Western to Hyland Arena. The MIAA game will tipoff at 7:30 p.m.
 
• Lindenwood earned a big road victory last time out, defeating Fort Hays State by a 71-62 margin. The win moved the Lions to 15-9 on the season, and they are in 10th-place in the MIAA with a 5-7 record.
 
• Missouri Western fell in its most recent meeting, losing 74-58 against Northwest Missouri. The Griffons are 7-13 on the season, and they currently hold the final spot in the MIAA Tournament with a 3-8 mark.
 
• Lindenwood leads the all-time series with Missouri Western by a 5-2 record. The two teams have split their regular season series each of the last two years, and the home team has won five straight games. Lindenwood is 3-0 all-time against the Griffons in Hyland Arena.
 
• Last season, Lindenwood won the first meeting with Missouri Western by a 76-62 score. The Griffons took the second meeting by an 88-78 margin. Chandler Diekvoss led the Lions in the first game with 13 points and six rebounds, and LJ McIntosh was one of the top scorers in game two with 12 points, including three three-pointers.
 
Lindenwood Notes
• Lindenwood is fifth in the MIAA with a 69.2 scoring defense. The Lions are 8-1 when holding opponents below 70 points, and 7-8 when opponents score over that mark.
 
• The Lions have done a good job closing out games this season. Lindenwood is 13-0 when leading or tied with five minutes remaining in the game.
 
• Lindenwood has committed more turnovers than its opposition in just three contests this season, It has not committed more in a game since Dec. 8, a span of 13 contests.
 
• Zac Haese had his first double-figure scoring game of the year against Fort Hays State with 14 points. He was four-of-five from three-point range, and his first two free throws of the season gave the Lions the lead for good with 5:44 remaining.
 
• Since the start of 2017, Bakari Triggs is averaging 11.2 points a game, and is shooting 47.5 percent from the field. Triggs is also averaging 2.0 steals and 4.4 rebounds a game in that span.
 
• Lindenwood has two of the top-10 rebounders in the MIAA. Dominique Dobbs is fourth with a 7.9 rebounding average. Chandler Diekvoss is currently 10th in the league by pulling down 6.1 boards a contest.

• Adam Pohlman did a good job directing Lindenwood's offense the last two games, dishing out six assists in both contests. He also had just one turnover on the road trip. Pohlman is now third in the MIAA and 32nd in NCAA Division II in assist-to-turnover ratio with a 2.68 mark.
 
• Dominique Dobbs has averaged 2.0 blocks a game over the last four contests. He ranks seventh in the MIAA with 1.1 blocks on the season.
 
• Chandler Diekvoss has scored in double-figures in each of the last three games. He is averaging 17.0 points in that span.
 
• The Lions rank third in the MIAA with a .752 free-throw percentage. Among its top seven players in terms of playing time, every player is shooting over 71 percent. Four of those players are making over 80 percent, including Bakari Triggs who has not missed a free throw this year in 19 attempts.
 
• The trio of Jackson Price, Brenon Larson-Gulsvig, and LJ McIntosh have all hit over 40 three-pointers this season, and have a combined 134 three-pointers.
 
• In the latest national rankings, the Lions rank in the top-50 in scoring defense (43rd), fewest turnovers per game (34th), and free-throw percentage (45th).
 
A Look At The Griffons
• Missouri Western currently ranks fourth in the MIAA by allowing 69.1 points a game, just ahead of Lindenwood. In each of its victories this season, it has held opponents to under 70 points.
 
• The Griffons are second in the conference by turning the ball over just 10.8 times a contest, and they are fourth with a 2.37 turnover margin.
 
• Missouri Western is led offensively by Cole Clearman, who is averaging 15.6 points a game. Aaron Emmanuel and TJ Evans also average double-figure points.
 
• Other teams leaders include Aaron Emmanuel with 4.4 rebounds a game, Cole Clearman with 67 assists, Seth Bonifas with 17 blocks, and TJ Evans with 33 steals.