LAST TIME OUT: Three Leathernecks finished in double-figures on Jan. 20, stamped by a career-high 19 points from Isaac Johnson, but it wasn't enough as the Western Illinois University men's basketball team fell 98-70 to the two-time reigning Summit League champions South Dakota State.Kobe Webster recorded 17 points and C.J. Duff added 16 while Brandon Gilbeck finished the evening with eight points and eight rebounds.

IMPRESSIVE RUN, YOUNGIN': 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 15.8 points, 4.2 assists and 3.6 rebounds while shooting above 40 percent from 3-point land. If continued 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. According to College Basketball Reference, he has 2.3 wins shares this season, which ranks 12th in The Summit League.

FROM DEEP: Against South Dakota State, WIU went 7-15 (46.7 percent) from behind the arc, the highest percentage the Leathernecks have shot since December 9 against Milwaukee (61.5)

BY HIMSELF: Brandon Gilbeck is the only player in the NCAA who averages at least 12.9 points, 8.1 and 2.9 blocks while shooting 66 percent from the field.

ASSISTS O'PLENTY: Kobe Webster ranks third in The Summit League in assists per game this season, dishing out 4.3 assists per contest. He is only .1 assist behind league-leader Sam Kearns. This figure ranks 12th around the country among freshman players.

PROTECTING YOUR GLASS: Although impressive on the defensive glass, the Leathernecks have struggled getting offensive rebounds. WIU ranks 350 out of 351 in offensive rebounds percentage this season, pulling down only 18.7 percent of misses, over 10 percent less than the NCAA average (29.1 percent).

SHEEEEESSHHH: Junior center Brandon Gilbeck is shooting 67.5 percent this seaon, which leads the Summit League and ranks seventh in the country.

NEXT UP: After seeing Jeremiah Usiosefe go down with an injury earlier this season, Isaac Johnson saw 27 minutes of playing time against South Dakota State on Jan. 20, Johnson's career high in minutes played. In the contest, Johnson led the team with 19 points.

BRINGING 'EM DOWN: The Leathernecks crash the boards on defense, averaging 29.47 defensive rebounds per contest, a figure that ranks seventh in country. On the offensive glass, the Leathernecks rank 324th with only 7.72 per game.

BOTH ENDS OF THE COURT: Western Illinois is in the Top-45 nationally in both field goal percentage (34th, 48.4) and field goal percentage defense (41st, 40.5). The Leathernecks are one of nine teams in the land, and the only Summit League program, to shoot above 48.4 percent and hold opponents below 40.5 percent.

GET IT OUT OF HERE: The Leathernecks lead The Summit League in blocks per contest by swatting 4.3 blocks per games. Individually, Brandon Gilbeck is leading the way with 2.9 blocks per game (13th nationally, first in The Summit League) blocks per game and is rejecting 11.0 percent of opponents' attempts. Out of 2,167 ranked players in the country, Gilbeck is 24th in the NCAA in defensive block percentage.

SHOW YOUR HANDS, MOVE YOUR FEET: Out of all 351 teams in D-I, WIU has committed the second-fewest personal fouls of any team in the land. The Leathernecks have only fouled opponents 257 times through 18 games this season. On the offensive end, WIU does not get many of its points from the free throw line, as only 15.4 percent of its points are from the stripe. 

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS: Denver comes into the contest after beating Oral Roberts on the road 73-67. The Pioneers are led by Daniel Amigo, who leads the team in points (15.8) and rebounds (6.9). Denver is 8-12 overall and 2-4 in league play.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Leathernecks complete their road trip in Fargo, N.D. against North Dakota State before returning home against South Dakota on Feb. 1.

Tip-ins

-This will be the 11th meeting between Western Illinois and Denver, with the Pioneers claiming a 8-2 advantage in the all-time series.

-Last season, the Leathernecks fell twice to Denver. In the first matchup of the season in Denver, the Pioneers took the contest 84-70. Brandon Gilbeck recorded 12 points and six rebounds, while Delo Bruster added 10 points.

-Isaac Johnson is coming off his best game of the season against South Dakota State. The freshman poured in a team-high 19 points and pulled down five rebounds.

-C.J. Duff knocked down four 3-pointers against South Dakota State, the most buckets he has made from behind the arc this season.

-WIU has struggled from the free throw line during Summit League play this season. The Leathernecks have only shot above 68 percent as a team once in a Jan. 6 matchup against Oral Roberts (87.5 percent).

-The Leathernecks have already scored at least 90 points six times this season through eighteen games. The last time WIU surpassed that mark was 1995-96 with seven such performances.