GAME SEVENTEEN 
MEN'S BASKETBALL: WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS VS FORT WAYNE MASTODONS
Jan. 17, 2018  •  7:00 p.m. (CT)  •  Macomb, Ill.  •  Western Hall 
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MACOMB, Ill.- The Leathernecks look to win their first Summit League contest of the year tomorrow (Jan. 17) against Fort Wayne at 7 p.m. inside Western Hall.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Heading into the thick of its Summit League schedule, the Western Illinois University men's basketball team (9-7) took a break from conference play Saturday to play host to Oak Hills Christian (2-14). The contest ended 107-45 in favor of WIU, marking the second time this season Western has eclipsed 100 points in a game. Five Leathernecks scored in double figures with two notching double-doubles. Brandon Gilbeck recorded 18 points and 10 rebounds while Lynrick Moxey, coming off of the bench, added 17 and 10, respectively.
 
PAVE YOUR OWN PATH, YOUNG MAN: Kobe Webster ranks among one of the best freshman in the country and best in many statistical categories. Webster is only one of 13 players, including only three freshman, in the country to average at least 15.3 points, 4.6 assists and 3.4 rebounds while shooting above 39.8 percent from three-point land. If continued for the entire season, he will end as the only freshman (seventh player, regardless of class) to post these numbers in The Summit League since 1992-93.
 
THE LONE WOLF: Brandon Gilbeck is the only player in the NCAA who averages 13.1 points, 8.1 and 2.9 blocks while shooting 66 percent from the field.
 
GIVING SZN: Kobe Webster leads The Summit League in assists per game this season, dishing out 4.7 assists per contest. This figure ranks 10th around the country among freshman players.
 
A "NUGGET": Lynrick Moxey, nicknamed "nuggy" because of his obsession with eating chicken nuggets, recorded his first career double-double against Oak Hills Christian by adding 17 points and 10 rebounds. He also celebrated his 22nd birthday on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
 
BOTH ENDS OF THE COURT: Western Illinois is in the Top-30 nationally in both field goal percentage (30th, 49.0) and field goal percentage defense (28th, 39.9). The Leathernecks are one of nine teams in the land, and the only Summit League program, to shoot above 48.5 percent and hold opponents below 41 percent.
 
GET IT OUT OF HERE: The Leathernecks lead The Summit League in blocks per contest by swatting 4.4 blocks per games. Individually, Brandon Gilbeck is leading the way with 2.9 blocks per game (15th nationally, first in The Summit League) blocks per game and is rejecting 11.7 percent of opponents' attempts. Out of 2,167 ranked players in the country, Gilbeck is 18th in the NCAA in defensive block percentage.

TRENDING DOWN: The Leathernecks look to keep their turnovers to a minimum against Fort, as WIU has taken better care of the ball in league play. The Leathernecks only committed 12 turnovers against Oral Roberts, their fewest against a Division I opponent this season. The Leathernecks followed up the performance with a 10 turnover game against Omaha and nine versus Oak Hills Christian.
 
SHHHHHHHHHHH: Out of all 351 teams in Division I, WIU has committed the second-fewest personal fouls of any team in the land. The Leathernecks have only fouled opponents 228 times through sixteen games this season. On the offensive end, WIU does not get many of its points from the free throw line, as only 15.2 percent of its points are from the stripe. This is 326th in the country out of 351 squads. The 145 made Leatherneck free throws place WIU 347th.
 
SCOUTING THE MASTODONS: Fort Wayne comes into the contest 2-2 in the Summit League and is led by Bryson Scott (23 points per game) and John Konchar (12.4 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 4.4 apg). The Mastodons are coming off of a win against Omaha, 82-78.
 
LOOKING AHEAD: Tonight's game is the third of a four-game home stand with the Leathernecks finishing with South Dakota State (Jan. 20) before heading to Denver on Jan. 25.
 
Tip-Ins
 - This will be the 25th meeting meeting between Western Illinois and Fort Wayne, with the Mastodons claiming a 16-8 advantage in the all-time series.

- Last season, the Leathernecks beat Fort Wayne 93-91 in Fort Wayne to open up conference play. The Mastodons won in Macomb in the final regular season league game, 96-92.

- In its last three contests, WIU has committed only 31 combined giveaways, including turning in only nine against Oak Hills Christian College, the second lowest mark of the year.

- Against Oak Hills Christian, Western Illinois shot 6-for-10 from beyond the arc, the second-highest three-point percentage in a game this season (61.5 percent vs. Milwaukee).

- After not grabbing more than 34 rebounds since the start of the new year, WIU exploded for a season-high 59 rebounds against Oak Hills Christian.

- The Leathernecks have already scored at least 90 points six times this season through sixteen games. The last time WIU surpassed that mark was 1995-96, a season that saw seven 90+ performances.

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