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Old Friends
For their first of two exhibitions this season, Western Illinois will renew an old rivalry with MacMurray, Thursday at 7 p.m. at Western Hall. The teams played at least once a season for 13 years, from 1959-71.
Last Time
Western Illinois' last battle with MacMurray came early on in the 1971-72 season, when the Leathernecks put triple-digits on the scoreboard with a 107-81 victory over the Highlanders.
Leathernecks Tabbed Sixth
Western Illinois was picked to finish sixth in the Mid-Con by the conference's coaches, sports information directors and selected media members. Voters chose Oral Roberts to finish first in the league, followed by IUPUI, UMKC, Valparaiso and Oakland at fifth. Southern Utah and Centenary filled in the seventh and eighth spots, respectively.
“Jack”-ed Up
Junior guard David Jackson was voted onto the Mid-Con's preseason all-conference first-team after leading the Leathernecks in nine statistical categories in 2005-06, most notably points per game and minutes per game. Jackson also started every contest, and has now started in 54 of the 55 games in his career.
Three-in-a-Row
The exhibition match-up against the Highlanders will be and early tip-off to the Leathernecks' campaign for a third-straight berth to the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament.
Western Illinois lost to IUPUI in 2005, and fell to eventual conference champion Oral Roberts in 2006 by a combined 15 points.
Still Coaching Pros
Leatherneck head coach Derek Thomas has continued to coach professional basketball players, five years removed from his job as a player personnel scout.
Three Western Illinois basketball players have signed professional contracts after time under Thomas. The first was Eulis Baez, who signed with Club Basket Vic in Spain after the 2004-05 season. Since the 2005-06 season Eliz Cepeda has signed with a professional club in Puerto Rico, while Eze Samuel is on the roster of American Basketball Association's Buffalo Silverbacks.
10x10
The 2005-06 Leathernecks lost 10 games by 10 points or fewer. Head coach Derek Thomas believes another year of experience will be a major factor in winning more close games this season.
“I have a couple guys that have played here for two-plus years, and understand the system, and the league, and what it takes to win,” Thomas said, adding that maintaining a healthy roster will also play an important role, as now-senior Troy Okeson sat out the final 13 games of 2005-06 with a quadricep injury.
30-point Club
David Jackson became the 18th player in Western's division-I era history to score more than 30 points in a game, and the second player to do so since 2002, when he poured-in 32, Nov. 29, 2005 against Eastern Illinois.
Thomas to Help Select Tourney Teams
Head coach Derek Thomas will serve as the Mid-Continent Conference's delegate to the Midwest Regional Advising Committee of the 2007 Division I Men's Basketball Championships.
As a member of the committee, Thomas will vote for the top-15 teams in the midwest region on three occasions during the season. His votes, along with the votes of the 30 other committee members, will be one factor in the head Division I Men's Basketball Committee's decision of what team's receive at-large bids to the NCAA Tournament.
Top of the Class No More
Derek Thomas' third recruiting class was ranked just that, third in the Mid-Con by recruiting service HoopScoop.com. His first two recruiting classes were placed at the top of the conference, but Thomas is far from discouraged by the low ranking.
“I think this class is the best we've had,” he said of his six newcomers. “This last year and a half, we've got guys who have a good mixture of all the qualities we're looking for.”
Career-Year
In 2005-06, non-first year players had 49 career-highs. Players who are on the 2006-07 roster accounted for 26 of those personal bests.
Macomb Native Returns Home
Leathernecks assistant coach Kelly Nichols rejoined the Western Illinois coaching staff this season after a two-year hiatus, in which he coached at Quincy High School. Prior to his stint there, Nichols was the senior manager for the Western Illinois basketball team, and before that, he played four years of basketball at Macomb High School.
“Beck” in the Saddle Again
New assistant coach Trent Becker comes to Western Illinois from Tennessee-Martin, where he spent the last five years as an assistant coach. Becker helped guide the Skyhawks to the most wins in program history in 2001. He coached four All-Ohio Valley Conference players, as well as the Ohio Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year. Becker has also spent time at coaching Morningside, Wooodbury Central High School and Buena Vista.
