(IUPUI RELEASE)
INDIANAPOLIS - The IUPUI basketball team will have a rare return two-game series with Milwaukee this week when the Jaguars host the Panthers inside Indiana Farmers Coliseum on Friday (Jan. 29) and Saturday (Jan. 30). It'll mark the third and fourth meetings between the two schools this season as Milwaukee swept a two-game set in the Cream City earlier this month. The Panthers dispatched of the Jags 94-70 on Jan. 8 and followed up with a 71-63 victory on Jan. 9.
SInce then, IUPUI (3-6, 2-6 HL) is 2-2 having swept a two-game road trip at Northern Kentucky before dropping a pair of games to Wright State last weekend. Senior Marcus Burk has elevated his game to an entirely new level in the past four contests, averaging 24 points per game during that span and shooting 59 percent from the field. Burk has moved to No. 3 in the Horizon League in scoring (19.0 ppg) and No. 7 in the league in field goal percentage (47.8%).
OPENING TIPS
IUPUI looks to get back to winning ways after being swept by preseason favorite Wright State last weekend. WSU looked every bit the top team in the league, beating the Jaguars by 30 (95-65) and 28 (100-72) in back-to-back games.
Senior Marcus Burk is on a tear, averaging 24.0 points over his past four ballgames, which includes his having to miss the opening half of the first game of the WSU series to COVID-19 protocols. More impressive has been his efficiency as he's hit 58.5 percent (38-of-65) attempts from the field and 58 percent (11-of-19) from three-point range during that span. Burk has since climbed to No. 3 in the Horizon League in scoring (19.0 ppg) and No. 7 in field goal percentage (47.8%).
IUPUI is 8-3 under head coach Byron Rimm when holding opponents to 69 points or fewer.
Senior Elyjah Goss will likely close this two-game series as IUPUI's all-time leading rebounder. Goss enters the two-game set with 759 career rebounds, trailing the program's all-time leader, Don Carlisle, by 10 boards. For the year, Goss ranks No. 2 in the Horizon League in rebounding (9.8 rpg) and is tops in the league in defensive boards (7.44 rpg). Goss already holds IUPUI's single-game (21 reb) and single-season (369 last season) records for rebounding.
The Horizon League announced the postseason tournament format on Thursday as the first round (seeds 5-12) will be played on campus sites on Thursday, Feb. 25, followed by the quarterfinals round on campus sites on Tuesday, Mar. 2. The semifinals and championship game will return to Indianapolis in 2021 at Indiana Farmers Coliseum.
Through nine games, IUPUI has had eight different players start at least one game with sophomore Nathan McClure being the most recent addition to the Jaguars' starting five, just prior to the Northern Kentucky series. Goss and sophomore Mike DePersia are the only players to have started all nine games so far this season.
FOUR!
Only in a COVID campaign would a team play an opponent four times during the regular season. However, that'll be the case this week as the Jaguars lock horns with Milwaukee for the third and fourth times this season. The Panthers captured a pair of games from the Jaguars earlier this season in Milwaukee, winning 94-70 on Jan. 8 and following up with a 71-63 victory on Jan. 9.
This marks the first time in program history that IUPUI has played the same team four times in the same season.
THAT WAS UGLY...
Wright State had their way with the Jaguars last weekend, sweeping the two-game series in Indianapolis. While there were certainly some positives, some numbers jumped out in regards to the losses.
ROLE OF THE BIGS: WSU's front line of Loudon Love and Grant Basile bullied the Jaguars as the Raiders outrebounded the Jaguars by 13.5 rebounds per game and outscored IUPUI in the paint by 18 points per game.
SHOOTING WHOAS: Wright State shot a combined 56.3 percent from the floor for the two games while IUPUI connected on 41 percent from the floor.
FOUL MOOD: IUPUI was whistled for 39 fouls over two games while Wright State was called for just 19 personals. Consequently, the Raiders outscored IUPUI at the free throw line by a 34-15 margin over two games.
69 OR LESS
Through a combination of pace and defense, IUPUI has found that 69 carries weight on the scoreboard. When holding foes to 69 points or less the past two seasons, IUPUI is 8-3 (.727) and 2-28 (.067) when the opposition hits for 70-or-more.
SATURDAYS ARE FOR STEAK (TACOS)
Going through the NBA process this past summer, senior Marcus Burk was afforded three pieces of advice heading into the college campaign. Tighten up his body, become better defensively and show more playmaking ability.
Burk went to a largely vegetarian diet in August 2020 (he allows himself to eat meat on Saturdays - his favorite is steak tacos) and worked tirelessly on his body during the offseason, shedding 10 pounds. His work in the weight room has seen him up his strength and lower his Body Mass Index (BMI). His BMI was at 13.7 at the close of last season and now hovers between 7-8.
Defensively, he currently leads the Horizon League and ranks No. 9 in the country with 2.56 steals per game and has routinely drawn the assignment of guarding the opposition's best wing players.
MARCUS MY WORD
Marcus Burk was one of five players voted to the Horizon League Preseason First Team before the season by the league's coaches, media and sports information personnel. Burk averaged 21.3 points per game last year and drained 93 3's in his first year with the program.
Burk scored in double-digits in 29 of his 32 games last season, including hitting for 20-or-more 19 times. He topped 30 points on four different occasions, highlighted by a career-high 39 points in an overtime win at Oakland last season.
With Burk returning, it marks the first time IUPUI's top scorer from a season ago returned since Darell Combs returned in 2016-17 after leading the Jags in scoring at 16.3 points per game in 2015-16. Combs upped his output to 16.8 points per game as a senior in 2016-17.
Including his two years at Campbell before coming to IUPUI, Burk has totaled 1,629 points (No 21 among active D1 players) and 270 threes made (No. 11 among active D1 players) in his collegiate career.
NOT JUST 3'S
Last year, Burk was far more inclined to fire from three while this year, he's mixing it up more. A season ago, 39% of his field goals came from behind the line and 44% of his attempts were three-point attempts.
This season, teams have chased him off the line as 29% of his made field goals are threes and 38% of his overall attempts have come from behind the arc.
BATMAN & ROBIN, PEANUT BUTTER & JELLY
Marcus Burk and Jaylen Minnett are challenging to be one of the top duos, ranking among the nation's top returning pairs this year. The duo is one of four in the country that returns to school after averaging at least a combined 35 points per game or better last season.
UTSA – Jhivan Jackson (26.8) & Keaton Wallace (18.8) = 45.6
Austin Peay – Terry Taylor (21.8) & Jordyn Adams (17.4) = 39.2
Iowa – Luka Garza (23.7) & Joe Wieskamp (14.0) = 38.0
IUPUI – Marcus Burk (21.3) & Jaylen Minnett (16.6) = 37.9
Burk's 21.3 points per game were the most by an IUPUI player since George Hill averaged 21.5 per game in 2007-08. Minnett connected for a school record 115 3's during the season and became the 24th player in school history to surpass 1,000 career points in an IUPUI uniform.
JAYL3N
Senior Jaylen Minnett became the 24th player in program history to achieve 1,000 career points in an IUPUI uniform against Green Bay on Feb. 6, 2020 as part of a career-high 32-point effort last season. He enters today's game with 1,221 career points, ranking No. 14 on the program's all-time list. He became the 16th player to hit for 1,000 points in three seasons or less in IUPUI history. Given his track record, he should move into the top 10 in career points midway through this unusual season. Below is a snippet of the program's all-time leading scorers and where Minnett sits.
10.) 1,373 Ron Angevine 1979-83
11.) 1,340 Don Carlisle 1997-01
12.) 1,319 Brandon Cole 2002-06
13.) 1,250 Jaylen Minnett 2017-pr.
14.) 1,247 Eric McKay 1982-85
Minnett has also taken over as the program's all-time list in threes made and will continue to add to that total all season long.
1.) Jaylen Minnett 262 2017-pres.
2.) Brandon Cole 238 2002-06
3.) Rodney Thomas 215 1996-00
4.) Carlos Knox 208 1994-98
Finally, Minnett owns the fifth-longest streak of consecutive games with at least one made three in NCAA history at 69 games... Minnett made at least one trey in all 32 games last season and all 33 games of his sophomore campaign. He also hit threes in the final three games of the 2017-18 season.
Here's the list of the longest streaks of threes made in NCAA Division I history:
1.) Mack Smith (Eastern Ill.) ended Jan. 14, 2021 91 straight games / OVC record
Cory Bradford (Illinois) ended Feb. 10, 2001 88 straight games / B10 record
3.) Jordan Howard (Central Ark.) ended 2017 73 straight games / Southland rec.
Wally Lancaster (Va. Tech) ended 1989 73 straight games / ACC record
5.) Jaylen Minnett (IUPUI) ended Jan. 2, 2021 69 straight games / HL record
TWO-HEADED MONSTER
The Jaguars' point guard duo of Mike DePersia (4.4 ppg, 3.6 apg) and Bakari LaStrap (4.1 ppg, 2.0 apg) have been formidable this season, having combined to deliver 50 assists against 27 turnovers (1.85 a/to ratio). The pair combines to play 40.6 minutes per game while averaging 8.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game.
PILING UP
IUPUI has three high achieving seniors on the roster who all rank among all of Division I college basketball's active career leaders in specific categories.
Senior Marcus Burk, who played his first two seasons at Campbell, ranks No. 21 in all of college basketball with 1,629 career points (853 in an IUPUI uniform). Burk also ranks No. 11 among active D1 players, having made 270 three-point field goals (112 in an IUPUI uniform).
Senior Jaylen Minnett ranks 13th among Division I players by having made 262 three-point field goals in his IUPUI career.
Senior Elyjah Goss ranks No. 15 among all active Division I players by having grabbed 759 career rebounds.
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