SCOUTING ORAL ROBERTS - The Golden Eagles (2-4), who dropped an 86-82 decision at Texas Tech Tuesday night, collected back-to-back wins over UALR and Utah after an 0-3 start. Oral Roberts, picked second in the annual Summit League preseason poll, is in the middle of a nine-game road trip and will not return home until Dec. 28. Head coach Scott Sutton, the son of legendary coach Eddie Sutton, is in his 12th season at the helm of the program. ORU has been without preseason first-team All-Summit selection Michael Craion after the 2010 Newcomer of the Year re-aggravated his surgically repaired right foot in an exhibition game. Craion could make his season debut tonight. Junior forward Dominique Morrison, a preseason second-team selection, averages a team-high 16.5 points per contest. Freshman forward Steven Roundtree has started each game so far and averages 11.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest. Sophomore Warren Niles has averaged 21.0 points off the bench over the last three contests.

SCOUTING CENTENARY - The Gentlemen (0-7) dropped an 82-55 decision at Northwestern State Tuesday night and play at IUPUI Thursday night before coming to Macomb Saturday. Centenary is in its last year in the Summit League after announcing its transition to NCAA Division III next season. The College will join the American Southwest Conference in 2011-12. The Gents are under the guidance of first-year head coach Adam Walsh, who spent the last three seasons as an assistant to the program. Junior Maxx Nakwaasah paces the scoring with 10.6 points per game and senior Roman Tubner follows with 8.3 ppg, but logs a team-best 3.5 assists per contest.

LAST TIME OUT - Sophomore forward Jack Houpt hit five three-pointers for a career-high 16 points, senior guard Matt Lander added 19 and Western Illinois drained 12 three-pointers in a 69-63 win over Prairie View A&M Wednesday (Nov. 24) afternoon at the Aventura Palace Convention Center. The Fighting Leathernecks placed third in the Mayan Division with the victory.

The Leathernecks shot 51 percent (21-of-41) from the field, including 50 percent from beyond the arc (12-of-24). Western delivered a strong defensive effort as the Leathernecks held the Panthers (1-6) to 34 percent (22-of-63) shooting and collected seven steals and four blocks.

LANDER NAMED ALL-TOURNAMENT AT CANCUN CHALLENGE - Western Illinois senior guard Matt Lander was named to the Mayan Division all-tournament team. The squad was voted on by media members and announced by the tournament's organizer, Triple Crown Sports.

Lander averaged 17.3 points per contest and shot 57.8 percent from the floor in Western's games against No. 14 Missouri, Wyoming, Morgan State and Prairie View A&M. He also hit on 63.6 percent of his three-point attempts (7-for-11) and sank 20 free throws.

Lander has recorded double-digit outings in every game and been Western's top scorer five times.

HOUPT SETS CAREER-HIGH - Sophomore forward Jack Houpt hit five three-pointers for a career-high 16 points in Western's 69-63 win over Prairie View A&M on Nov. 24. Houpt, who was 5-of-9 from three-point land, also picked up four rebounds and the first two blocks of his career in 34 minutes. Houpt scored seven straight points, including back-to-back three-pointers, to put Western up nine with under five minutes to go.

ACCURACY FROM SMITH - Senior Brandon Smith has been one of Western's most accurate shooters this season. The Plainfield, Ill. native is hitting on 50 percent (8-of-16) of his field goals, including 55.6 percent (5-of-9) from beyond the arc. Smith is also a perfect 10-for-10 this season from the free throw line.

JOHNSON CRASHES THE GLASS - Sophomore Jelani Johnson collected 13 rebounds over the last two contests and led the squad in both games. Johnson recorded a career-high seven boards against Prairie View A&M.

BEYOND THE ARC ADVANTAGE - Western drained a season-high 12 three-pointers in the win over Prairie View A&M on Nov. 24 and shot 50 percent from beyond the arc. Western Illinois has shot 41.9 percent (39-of-93) from three-point land this season and is limiting the opposition to 27.6 percent (27-of-98) from beyond the arc.

WESTERN IN NCAA RANKINGS - The first NCAA national rankings were released this week and the Fighting Leathernecks rank in the top 50 of two categories. Western is 22nd in the nation in three-point field-goal percentage (41.9) and and 50th in three-point field-goal defense (27.6). In addition, Matt Lander ranks 45th in field-goal percentage (60.3), and Ceola Clark III is 45th in assists per game (5.0) and 28th in steals per contest (2.6).

NATIONALLY-RANKED DEFENSE - Last year Western finished with the 16th best scoring defense in the nation and the No. 1 scoring defense in the Summit League. The 2010 Leathernecks are picking up where they left off. Through the first six games Western ranks first in the conference in points allowed (60.7 per game) and field-goal percentage defense (40.1 percent). Opponents are shooting just 27.6 percent from beyond the arc and Western is tied for third place in the conference with 3.3 blocks per contest.

PRICE IS NOW - Junior transfer Kaimarr Price is averaging 25.0 minutes per game this season and has appeared in every game. The 6-foot-8, 235-pound forward leads the squad in rebounds (5.5 per game), offensive rebounds (15) and blocked shots (8) and is in the top 10 of the Summit League rankings in all three categories. Price, who has started the last four contests, recorded his first career double-double (15 points, 12 rebounds) at Missouri on Nov. 18.

STEALS RECORD WATCH - Ceola Clark III came off the bench against Prairie View A&M to collect 11 points, eight assists, five rebounds and two steals. Through six games, Clark leads the Summit League with 2.6 steals per contest. Last season, Clark ranked fifth in the nation in 2009 for steals per game (2.7) and finished the season with 72 steals, the second-highest total in Western history. Named the 2009-10 Summit League 'Defensive Player of the Year', he was just three steals shy of breaking the program record for season steals. With 135 career steals, Clark ranks third in the Leatherneck steals record book, 33 steals away from breaking the record.

MEN'S BASKETBALL SIGNS REMY ROBERTS-BURNETT AND OBI EMEGANO - Head coach Jim Molinari announced the signings of Remy Roberts-Burnett (Joliet/West) and Obi Emegano (Edmond, OK/Memorial) to National Letters of Intent.

A 6-foot point guard, Roberts-Burnett averaged 8.0 points, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals for Joliet West his junior year. He earned All-Area honors by the Joliet Herald-News. Emegano - listed at 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds - averaged 17.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.7 steals during his junior year. The Mid-State Conference 'Player of the Year' and Oklahoma Basketball Coaches Association All-Region selection last year (Class 6A), he earned Preseason All-State selection by the Daily Oklahoman heading into his senior year.

PRESEASON ALL-SUMMIT - Junior guard Ceola Clark III was selected as First Team preseason All-Summit League in a vote by the head coaches, sports information directors and media members... Clark led Western in overall scoring and in conference-only games... He was top scorer in 16 games last year, and nine times led in rebounding.

LEATHERNECKS PICKED SEVENTH IN PRESEASON POLL - Western Illinois was picked to finish seventh in the preseason poll, as announced by the league office... Defending regular season champion Oakland was picked to win again, receiving 29 first-place votes and 504 points. Oral Roberts (455) and IUPUI (423) received three and two first-place votes, respectively... North Dakota State (315), South Dakota State (315) and IPFW (284) were picked ahead of Western (232). UMKC (177), Southern Utah (167) and Centenary (87) rounded out the poll.

NEW LOOK SUMMIT LEAGUE COMING - The 2010-11 look of the Summit League basketball standings will soon be changing... This season marks the finale for Centenary in the league... Southern Utah announced it is leaving for the Big Sky Conference in July 2012... In return, the University of South Dakota will officially join the Summit League next academic year in all sports.

MOLINARI SECOND YEAR WINS - Surpassing the 2008-09 win total (9) with 13 in the 2009-10 season, Jim Molinari recorded the most wins in his first two years as a head coach since Jack Margenthaler's second season in 1978-79... Molinari closed out his second season with a 22-37 record, while Margenthaler had a 28-25 record in his second season. Derek Thomas was head coach from 2003-08, having recorded a 14-39 record in his second season.