The Youngstown State men's basketball team (9-19, 2-15 Horizon League) closes out the regular season and celebrates Senior Day when it hosts Milwaukee (17-12, 12-5 Horizon League), Saturday, Feb. 26. Tipoff is set for 1:05 p.m. at the Beeghly Center.
Tipoff Notes
This is the 29th meeting between Youngstown State and Milwaukee in a series that dates back to 1972. The Panthers own a 23-5 advantage in the all-time series and have won the last three contests. In the last meeting, Milwaukee came away with a 76-67 victory at U.S. Cellular Arena on Dec. 2, 2010. Senior Vytas Sulskis scored a team-high 18 points while junior Devonte Maymon added 16 points against the Panthers. In the last meeting at the Beeghly Center, the Panthers were victorious, 69-59, on Jan. 22, 2010. The last time the Guins defeated the Panthers was a 70-68 win on Feb. 14, 2009.
Youngstown State Head Coach Jerry Slocum is one of 18 active coaches with more than 600 career victories. He currently ranks sixth among active Division I coaches with 638 career wins.
With six 3-pointers made against Green Bay on Feb. 24, the Guins have pushed the school 3-point record to 223 3-pointers made. The Guins have also set the 3-pointers attempted mark at 665. The old record was 578 set in 2005-06.
Over the last 10 games, freshman Kendrick Perry has been one of the Guins' most productive players. Perry is averaging 13 points, 3.9 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game during that span. He has scored in double figures seven times and is shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from 3-point range. He also owns an assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.1.
Senior Vytas Sulskis has played in every game since he arrived at Youngstown State. He currently ranks tied for second with 118 games played. After today's game and the tournament game, Sulskis will tie John Barber (2003-08) for the most games played in a career.
With four blocks against Green Bay on Feb. 24, sophomore Damian Eargle moved into second place on the Youngstown State single-season blocks list with 85. The only other player in school histor to record at least 85 blocks was Ricky Tunstall, who posted 138 in 1982-83. Eargle passed Tunstall for second on the list as well. In 1983-84, Tunstall blocked 83 shots.
Senior Vytas Sulskis continues to move up the Youngstown State all-time 3-point chart. With two 3-pointers against Bowling Green on Feb. 19, Sulskis has 41 3-pointers made this season and ranks second all-time with 167 career 3-pointers. He just surpassed Quin Humphrey (165, 2003-07) and Mike Alcorn (166, 1990-94). Sulskis' season-high for 3-pointers made was 46 in 2007-08.
Junior Ashen Ward scored 23 points with six 3-pointers made against Bowling Green on Feb. 19. He leads the team with 50 3-pointers made this season and ranks sixth in the Horizon League with 1.9 3-pointers made per game. Ward has also surpassed his career total of 47 3-pointers made entering the 2010-11 season. He has 97 career 3-pointers made.
After dishing out a career-high nine assists against Bowling Green, freshman Kendrick Perry pushed his total to 114 assists on the season. He ranks fourth in the Horizon League with 4.1 assists per game and leads the league with a 2.2 assists-to-turnover ratio (114-to-51).This is the third straight season and the fifth time in the last six years a YSU player has tallied at least 100 assists.
The Guins set a single-game record with 35 3-point attempts against Detroit on Feb. 16. The previous record was 33 set earlier this season against Samford on Nov. 12 and tied against Akron on Nov. 20, and Wilberforce on Jan. 11.
Sophomore Damian Eargle tied a career high with 25 points in the 91-79 loss at Detroit on Feb. 16. The last time Eargle scored 25 points in a game was against Appalachian State in 2009 when he played at UNC-Greensboro. Eargle posted 11 rebounds and five blocks against the Titans.
Senior Vytas Sulskis ranks 17th on the YSU all-time scoring list with 1,282 career points and is just the 18th player in school history to score at least 1,200 points in a career. He needsseven more points to move into 16th place on the all-time list. He became the 32nd player in school history to reach 1,000 points in a career after scoring 22 against Saint Francis (Pa.) on Nov. 27.
Senior Vytas Sulskis tied a career high with 26 points against Wright State on Feb. 7. He made nine straight field goals and six consecutive 3-pointers against the Raiders.
With 26 points against Wright State on Feb. 7, senior Vytas Sulskis recorded his sixth 20-point performance of the season.
The Guins' 11 3-pointers made against Bowling Green on Feb. 19 marked the ninth time this season they have made at least 10 3-pointers in a game. The Guins have also tried at least 20 3-pointers in 22 out of 28 games this season.
Against Butler on Jan. 9, Youngstown State tied a single-game record with 14 3-pointers. It marked the fifth time that has been done in school history. The last time YSU made 14 3-pointers was against UIC in 2007.
Junior Ashen Ward set a career-high with 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the floor, including seven 3-pointers, in the Guins' 71-69 win over UIC on Dec. 30.
With its 86-78 overtime loss to Valparaiso on Feb. 5, Youngstown State has now lost 10 straight games that have gone into extra periods.
A Win Will
Improve YSU to 10-19 overall and 3-15 in the Horizon League.
Mark YSU's 10th home of the season and mark the first time YSU won 10 games at home since the 2006-07 season.
Mark the program's sixth win over Milwaukee and the first since 2009.
Snap a three-game losing streak to Milwaukee.
Mark Head Coach Jerry Slocum's 639th career victory and his 59th at Youngstown State.
Mark YSU's 993rd victory in the program's history.
The Milwaukee Series
This is the 29th meeting between Youngstown State and Milwaukee in a series that dates back to 1972. The Panthers own a 23-5 advantage in the all-time series and have won the last three contests. In the last meeting, Milwaukee came away with a 76-67 victory at U.S. Cellular Arena on Dec. 2, 2010. Senior Vytas Sulskis scored a team-high 18 points while junior Devonte Maymon added 16 points against the Panthers. In the last meeting at the Beeghly Center, the Panthers were victorious, 69-59, on Jan. 22, 2010. The last time the Guins defeated the Panthers was a 70-68 win on Feb. 14, 2009.
Tournament Possibilities
The Penguins are currently the ninth-seed in the upcoming 2011 Horizon League Men's Basketball Championship. Below are some pertinent scenarios regarding the Penguins' possible seeding and first-round tournament opponent.
YSU clinches the ninth-seed with a win AND/OR a UIC loss at Valparaiso.
As the ninth seed:
-- the Guins will face Valparaiso IF Cleveland State, Butler, Milwaukee and Valparaiso all win.
-- if Cleveland State loses to Green Bay, Valparaiso defeats UIC and Butler defeats Loyola, YSU will play at Cleveland State.
-- the Guins will visit Butler IF CSU, Milwaukee and Valparaiso win and a Butler loses.
YSU will clinch the 10th seed with a loss to Milwaukee AND a UIC win over Valparaiso.
As the 10th seed:
-- YSU will play Cleveland State if CSU and Butler finish tied or CSU loses to Green Bay or Butler defeats Loyola.
-- YSU will play Butler if CSU defeats Green Bay AND Butler loses to Loyola.
Last Time Out
Sophomore Damian Eargle and freshman Kendrick Perry each scored a game-high 19 points and junior Ashen Ward added 10 points, but the Guins fell to Horizon league foe Green Bay, 71-60, at the Beeghly Center. Eargle and Ward also grabbed seven rebounds each.
Sulskis Moves into Second
Senior Vytas Sulskis continues to move up the Youngstown State all-time 3-point chart. With two 3-pointers against Bowling Green on Feb. 19, Sulskis has 41 3-pointers made this season and moved into second place on that list with 167. Sulskis' season-high for 3-pointers made was 46 in 2007-08.
Scoring Uprise
The Guins are averaging 68.4 points per game this season, which is the most since the 2000-01 campaign. The last time the Guins averaged more than 70 points per game was during the 2000-01 season. The Guins have scored at least 70 points 13 times this season and own a record of 6-7 in those games. It is also the most times scoring at least 70 since the 2000-01 season when they scored at least 70 in 15 games.
3-Point Record Expansion
With six 3-pointers made against Green Bay on Feb. 24, the Guins pushed their 3-point record to 217.
Eargle Ties Career High
Sophomore Damian Eargle tied a career high with 25 points in the 91-79 loss at Detroit on Feb. 16. The last time Eargle scored 25 points in a game was against Appalachian State in 2009 when he played at UNC-Greensboro. Eargle posted 11 rebounds and five blocks against the Titans.
KP3 Charity
Freshman Kendrick Perry dished out a career-high nine assists against Bowling Green on Feb. 16 and now has 112 assists. This is the third straight season and the fifth time in the last six years a YSU player has tallied at least 100 assists. Perry also ranks fourth in the Horizon League with 4.1 assists per game
Ward Taking Aim
Junior Ashen Ward leads the team with 50 3-pointers made this season and ranks sixth in the Horizon League with 1.9 3-pointers made per game. He is the first player to make at least 50 3-pointers in a season since Quin Humphrey in 2006-07. Entering this season, Ward had made 47 3-pointers. He has made 97 3-pointers in his career.
February Close Encounters
In the last 15 games the Guins have played in the month of February, 11 have been decided by eight points or less and seven have been decided by four points or less. Over the last four Februarys, the Guins have played in 12 games that have been decided by four points or less and own a record of 5-7 in those contests.
Close Shaves
Since the Guins' Jan. 9 game at Butler, five of the last 14 games have been decided by five-points or less and nine have been decided by 10 points or less. The Guins own records of 1-4 and 2-7 in those games, respectively.
Slocum In Elite Company
Youngstown State Head Coach Jerry Slocum is one of just 10 active Division I head coaches with at least 600 career victories. Slocum currently ranks sixth on that list with 638 career coaching victories.
To the Point
Youngstown State's two point guards - Blake Allen and Kendrick Perry - are two of the best in the Horizon League at taking care of the ball. The two have combined for 181 assists and committed just 81 turnovers for an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.2.
Sulskis Nearing 16th
Senior Vytas Sulskis ranks 17th on the YSU all-time scoring list with 1,280 career points and is just the 18th player in school history to score at least 1,200 points in a career. He needs seven more points to move into 16th place on the all-time list. He became the 32nd player in school history to reach 1,000 points in a career after scoring 22 against Saint Francis (Pa.) on Nov. 27.
Eargle Climbing Blocks Chart
Sophomore Damian Eargle is quickly climbing the YSU single-season blocks chart. His 85 blocked shots rank second on the single-season list. Only Ricky Tunstall, in 1982-83 and 1983-84, has blocked more shots in a season. He is just the second player in school to post at least 80 blocks in a season.
Penguin Block Party
As a team, the Guins have 139 blocks, almost doubling the 69 by their opponents. It also ranks as the second most in school history - just 28 shy of the school record.
Guins Tied School Mark
With their 14 3-pointers against Butler on Jan. 9, the Guins tied a school record for most 3-pointers in a game. It marked the fifth time in school history that has been accomplished. The last time the Guins made that many 3-pointers was against UIC on Feb. 3, 2007.
Last to Score 30
With 30 points against Loyola on Jan. 9, 2010, DeAndre Mays set a career-high and became the first player to score at least 30 points since Keston Roberts scored 31 against Detroit on Feb. 27, 2007. Mays' performance was the 10th time under Jerry Slocum a player has scored at least 30 points in a game. YSU had just 10 30-point plus performances from Feb. 1988 to Dec. 2005.
