The Malone University men's basketball team is set to take on Walsh University on Saturday afternoon in the Mayors' Cup. The Pioneer men have won seven straight games, ten out of their last eleven, and could benefit greatly by keeping that winning streak alive in their final two contests of the regular season. Malone is currently third in the conference standings, but a win over Walsh would allow the Pioneers to surpass the Cavaliers and take over the second seed. The Pioneers are currently ranked 8th in the NCAA Division II Midwest Region. The top eight teams in the region (three conference champions and five at-large selections) will move on to play in the NCAA Championship tournament.

Conference Standings: http://greatmidwestsports.com/standings.aspx?path=mbball

GameDay

2/17 Malone @ Walsh - 1:00pm

For Live Video Broadcast, go to https://portal.stretchinternet.com/malone/

To listen live, go to http://www.espn990.com/listen.php

Series History

The Cavaliers hold a 76-40 advantage all-time against the Pioneers and have won twelve straight contests against Malone. Malone's last victory came on November 29th, 2011. The Pioneers came up just short of breaking that losing streak a few weeks ago in a 70-68 loss to the Cavaliers at home. The two-point loss to Walsh is the last time Malone has lost this season, winning the last seven straight games. Saturday's contest is shaping up to be one of the great classics in the cross-town rivalry. There is much at stake for each team as they face off for the 117th time since 1964 and battle for positioning near the top of the conference standings and in the Midwest Region. The Pioneers look to extend their current win streak and the Cavaliers are looking to continue their recent record of success in the series.

Malone Team Notes

Record: 19-7 (12-6)

• The Pioneers are averaging 78.8 points per game, third best in the conference. The team is 11-1 on the season when they have scored higher than that average. Malone is outscoring opponents by nine points per game on the season, which is also third best in the conference.

• Malone has made a league-leading 276 three-pointers this season on 39.1% shooting from beyond the arc. The team also leads the conference with 16.8 assists per game.

• Ty Jordan is third in the conference in scoring, averaging 19.8 points per game. Jordan is fourth in assists (4.2 APG), fourth in free-throw percentage (81.3%), fourth in steals (1.5 SPG), and first in three-point percentage (42%).

• Nate Sheppard is seventh in the G-MAC in scoring, averaging 15.8 points per game. Sheppard is shooting 45.2% from the field, which is twelfth in the conference. Sheppard has made 57 threes on the year.

• Both Djuro Pantos and Mitchell Spotleson are in the top ten in rebounds in the G-MAC, averaging 6.9 rebounds per game.

Walsh Team Notes Schedule | Roster | Statistics

Record: 18-6 (13-5)

• The Cavaliers have won three straight games, scoring 102 against Kentucky Wesleyan and 96 against Ohio Valley in their past two games.

• Walsh has the highest scoring margin in the conference, outscoring opponents by 15.8 points per game. The Cavaliers score 83.4 points per game and give up 67.6 points per game. The team holds teams to 40.6 points per game while shooting 48.6% on the offensive side of the floor.

• Bo Furcon and  Chandler Vaudrin each are scoring over 15 points per game. Vaudrin is third in the conference in rebounds (9.6 RPG), first in assists (7.7 APG), first in steals (2.3 SPG), and first in field-goal percentage (56.6%).

• Sterling Christy is second in the conference with 1.8 blocked shots per game. He also is fifth in the conference in rebounds, grabbing 7.3 rebounds per game.