Weekend Preview – WJU vs Urbana

By: Michael McDonald, Assistant Sports Information Director

Men's Basketball | 1/20/2017 2:55:00 PM

WHEELING, W.Va. - The Urbana Blue Knights travel to Wheeling, West Virginia to take on the nationally ranked Cardinals in a Saturday afternoon contest. Since the forming of the MEC in 2013, WJU holds a 7-0 mark against Urbana, including a 3-0 home-court record.

WJU defeated Urbana, 97-87, in Urbana, Ohio on November 19. In the season's first meeting, Pat Moseh and Kyle Ritz shot a combined 13 of 22 from the field, pumping in 44 of the 97 Cardinal points. Preston Boswell added 16 points and Haywood Highsmith chipped in 14, helping WJU remain unblemished against the Blue Knights. Charles Sweatt-Washington led Urbana with 17 points in the loss.
WJU comes off a double overtime loss to West Liberty, 96-90 Thursday night. Freshman Preston Boswell supplied WJU with a team-high 18 points while Moseh added 15 points and Highsmith 12 points and 17 rebounds. Both Highsmith and Moseh surpassed the 1,000-career points milestone in the past week of action.

On the season, Moseh leads WJU with 15.2 points per outing while collecting 5.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists. Highsmith adds 14.4 points and a team-high 11.1 rebounds per night, ranking second in the league in rebounding. Boswell and Ritz add 13.7 and 13.4 points, respectively, while Jarin Hilson scores 8.6 per outing and Dom Tham and Chase Lawson, 8.2.

As a squad, WJU ranks fourth in the league in scoring offense, averaging 87.7 points per matchup. The WJU defense allows an average of 77.1 points, ranking fourth in scoring defense and third in scoring margin (+10.6). The Cardinals shoot 48 percent from the field, ranking fifth in the league in the category. WJU is the MEC's best rebounding club, averaging 42.8 each time the club takes the court. The Cardinals have won 10 of their last 11 outings, and are 29-4 in MEC play over the past two seasons. On their home court in the McDonough Center, WJU holds a 19-2 mark since the start of last season.

Urbana enters Saturday on a three-game losing streak, with its last win dating back to January 10 at Concord. Urbana has since dropped MEC contests to Shepherd, Fairmont and Notre Dame. The Blue Knights are the leagues sixth-best offense, scoring 83.8 points per contest. Jahmere Howze averages 17.3 points, ranking 12^th in the league.

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