The Pittsburg State University men's basketball team will return home for a pair of MIAA match-ups – Thursday (Jan. 26) against the University of Central Oklahoma and Saturday (Jan. 28) against Northeastern State University. The Gorillas and Bronchos will meet at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at John Lance Arena, while Pitt State and NSU will meet at 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
The Records
Pitt State is 3-15 overall and 1-9 in MIAA play entering Thursday's action. The Gorillas dropped a pair of road games last week, falling 58-51 to Emporia University on Jan. 18 and 82-64 to Washburn University last Saturday (Jan. 21).
UCO is 11-6 overall and 6-3 in the MIAA. The Bronchos defeated NSU, 66-50, in their only action last week on Jan. 21.
NSU is 3-14 overall and 2-7 in the MIAA heading into a Wednesday (Jan. 25) match-up against Missouri Southern State University. The RiverHawks have dropped four straight games and 10 of their last 11 contests.
Head Coach Kevin Muff
Pittsburg State's Kevin Muff is his seventh season leading the Gorillas. Muff (Kansas State, '86) became the Gorillas' 14th all-time head coach on Apr. 5, 2010, after spending 12 seasons at Cloud County Community College, where he helped the Thunderbirds to an average of 21 wins in each of the last five seasons.
He has a 95-95 (.500) record in his tenure with the Gorillas.
Muff was named the 2015 MIAA Co-Coach of the Year after leading the Gorillas to a 16-11 regular season record and a tie for third-place in the MIAA standings. Pitt State was picked to finish 10th in the 14-team league in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll after posting an 8-18 (4-15 MIAA) mark a year ago.
He then guided the Gorillas to a perfect 4-0 record in the MIAA Postseason Tournament, helping the Gorillas become the first No. 5 seed to claim the championship. Pitt State earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II National Tournament and finished the 2014-15 campaign with a 20-12 overall record.
Thursday's action will be Muff's ninth meeting vs. UCO. He's 3-5 against the Bronchos. Muff has a 7-3 mark against the RiverHawks.
Series History
Pitt State and UCO will meet for the 32nd time Thursday. The Bronchos hold a 17-14 advantage in the series, but the Gorillas have won two of the last three meetings. Pitt State is 10-4 against UCO in Pittsburg.
The Gorillas will meet NSU for the 72nd time Saturday. Pitt State holds a 49-22 advantage in the series, including five straight wins. The Gorillas are 32-9 against the RiverHawks in Pittsburg with six consecutive victories.
Scouting the Gorillas
Pitt State has one player scoring in double figures – junior guard Jaxon Holden (11.0 ppg) – and five more active players scoring six or more points a game: junior guard/forward Isaiah Hicks (9.6 ppg), junior guard Elijah Gaines (9.5 ppg), freshman guard R.J. Pair (8.1 ppg), senior forward Creighton Brinker (7.1 ppg) and freshman guard Brandon Clifford (6.3 ppg).
Holden returned to the Pitt State lineup the past 11 games, after suffering a concussion in Pitt State's exhibition game against Kansas State and missing the Gorillas' first seven games.
Holden (6-1, 180) has averaged 10.6 points and 2.8 rebounds per game on the year. He averaged 7.7 points and 2.0 rebounds per game in his first season for the Gorillas in 2015-16. The Flower Mound, Texas native shot 49.1 percent from the field and made 26 3-point field goals while starting 13 of 23 games played.
Holden played his freshman season at NCAA Division I Stephen F. Austin University in 2014-15, helping the Lumberjacks to a 29-5 record.
Hicks (6-6, 205) joined the Gorillas from Cloud County Community College, where he averaged 6.8 points per game as a sophomore in 2014-15. The Long Beach, Calif., native averaged 12.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game as a freshman at Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria, Calif., in 2013-14.
In addition to his 9.6-point scoring average, Hicks also averages 4.7 rebounds per game.
Gaines (6-2, 175) averaged 11.8 points and 4.1 rebounds per game while helping Long Beach (Calif.) Community College to a second straight South Coast Conference championship in 2015-16. He is averaging 9.5points and 4.3 rebounds per game to date.
Gaines has averaged 13.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in Pitt State's last nine games. He scored a season-high 22 points vs. Lindenwood on Dec. 8 and posted a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds vs. Avila on Jan. 2.
Brinker (6-7, 215) broke out with a career-high scoring performance against SCSU on Nov. 12. The Seneca, Kan., native scored 18 points, connecting on all four of his 3-point field goal attempts.
Brinker bettered that performance with a 26-point, eight-rebound effort vs. UNK on Dec. 1, making 10 of 15 shots from the field.
For the season, Brinker is shooting .465 from the field (46-99) including .442 from 3-point range (23-52). He's also averaging a team-leading 5.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocked shots per game to date.
Pair (5-10, 175) scored a season-best 20 points against MWSU on Jan. 5 on nine of 13 shooting and he added 14 points against FHSU on Dec. 3.
He signed with the Gorillas out of The Colony High School in The Colony, Texas. A two-time first-team All-District selection, Pair averaged 15 points, five assists and 4.5 rebounds per game his senior season. He compiled 1,143 points, 273 assists, 145 3-point field goals and 194 steals during his prep career.
Pair has grabbed 2.2 rebounds per game and dished out a team-leading 34 assists to go along with his 8.1-point scoring average.
Clifford (6-3, 190) scored a team-leading 24 points in his Pitt State debut on Nov. 11 against Minnesota State. The Paragould, Ark., native made eight of 11 shots from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers. He added nine points against SCSU the next night.
Clifford was a two-time Arkansas Class 5A All-State selection at Paragould High School. He averaged 28 points, six rebounds and four assists as a senior, helping the Rams to a 20-5 finish.
Additionally, senior guard Jordan Phelps has averaged 4.2 points per game. Phelps (6-3, 180) transferred to Pitt State from Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) University.
Freshman forward Christian Edmondson has averaged 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. Edmondson (6-6, 215) posted a double-double with 12 points and 15 rebounds in the Gorillas' home win over Newman on Nov. 15
Edmondson joined the Gorillas from Flower Mound (Texas) High School where he was a first-team Texas Class 6A All-District selection in 201516. He averaged a double-double for the season, generating 14.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game for the Jaguars.
Senior guard Josiah Gustafson averaged 3.3 points per game in limited action after returning from an off-season shoulder surgery. He has missed the Gorillas' last 10 games and is not expected to return to the Pitt State lineup.
Gustafson, a two-time All-MIAA performer, started 60 games the previous two seasons. The Omaha, Neb., native averaged 15.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per game during his junior campaign, garnering second-team All-MIAA honors.
Gustafson scored in double figures 22 times during the 2015-16 campaign with six games of 20 points or more. He earned first-team All-MIAA honors as a sophomore in 2014-15 when he averaged a team-leading 15.5 points per game as well as 3.6 rebounds per game.
Gustafson has scored 1,150 points in 90 career games (79 starts), averaging 12.8 points per game.
Junior guard Dakota Jones has averaged 9.4 points per game, but he has missed the last 10 contests due to injury. He's not expected to return to the Pitt State lineup.
Jones (5-11, 175) poured in 22 points in the season-opening loss to MSU on Nov. 11 and he added 20 points in a home win vs. Newman on Nov. 15. He has missed the last three games due to injury.
The Warrensburg, Mo., native averaged 11.7 points per game last season, and Jones has compiled 656 points in 69 career games (9.5 ppg).
As a team, Pitt State is shooting 42.1 percent from the field (420-997), 34.8 percent from 3-point range (132-379) and 64.6 percent from the free throw line (188-291). The Gorillas are averaging 64.4 points per game.
Pitt State's opponents are shooting 46.2 percent from the field (462-999), 38.4 percent from 3-point range (138-359) and 73.3 percent from the free throw line (266-363) while averaging 73.8 points per game.
Pitt State Probable Starters
F 1 Isaiah Hicks, 6-6, 205, Jr., Long Beach, Calif.
F 15 Lucas Wilson, 6-6, 190, So., Paola, Kan.
G 3 Elijah Gaines, 6-2, 175, Jr., San Pedro, Calif.
G 10 R.J. Pair, 5-10, 175, Fr., The Colony, Texas
G 21 Jaxon Holden, 6-1, 180, Jr., Flower Mound, Texas
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