STORM LAKE, Iowa (January 21, 2021) - After having a pair of games postponed earlier this week, the time has finally come for the Buena Vista University men's basketball team to tip-off its adjusted 2020-21 schedule. The Beavers, who were originally set to kick-off their conference schedule this Saturday at home against Loras, will now travel to Wartburg College instead and tip-off with the Knights inside Levick Arena.
THE MATCH-UP
Who: Buena Vista (0-0, 0-0) at Wartburg (1-2, 0-0)
When: Saturday, January 23, 2021 | 2:00 p.m.
Where: Waverly, Iowa (Levick Arena)
MEDIA LINKS
Video: https://livestream.com/wartburgknightvision/mbb21
Stats: https://go-knights.net/sidearmstats/mbball/summary
SERIES HISTORY
Saturday would be the 170th all-time meeting between the two programs with the Knights holding a 93-76 advantage. The first-ever meeting came back in 1936-37 with the Beavers hanging on for a 46-37 victory in Storm Lake. BVU has won the last two contests overall, including a 24-point triumph in Waverly last season which snapped a five-game road losing skid against the Knights.
Last 5 Match-Ups
2/12/20 BVU 91, Wartburg 67 Waverly, Iowa
12/7/19 BVU 89, Wartburg 75, Storm Lake, Iowa
2/13/19 Wartburg 103, Buena Vista 81 Waverly, Iowa
1/16/19 Wartburg 90, Buena Vista 78 Storm Lake, Iowa
1/3/18 Buena Vista 77, Wartburg 66 Storm Lake, Iowa
ABOUT THE KNIGHTS
Wartburg takes the floor on Saturday for the fourth time overall this season and for the third time inside Levick Arena in those games…they fell at home to Edgewood, 71-70, to begin the year on Jan. 3 before bouncing back with a five-point triumph over Simpson on Jan. 12…The Knights hit the road for the first time last Saturday and dropped an 81-77 non-conference contest at the University of Dubuque…As a team, Wartburg is averaging right at 70.0ppg and shooting just shy of 43 percent overall from the field and under 28 percent from long range…Drew Olson leads the way in scoring at 13.0ppg with Mitch Gehling (8.7ppg) and Davis Roquet (8.3ppg) right behind…No player has made more than three shots from beyond the arc thus far…Ryan Stulken is hauling in nearly 6.5rpg.
LAST TIME OUT
Buena Vista has not played a game since falling 86-70 at home to Simpson College last February in the quarterfinal round of the A-R-C Tournament…Timothy Jeffries was the only Beaver to score in double figures by chalking up 27 points in his final collegiate contest.
LOOK WHO'S BACK
Senior Michael Demers is the lone returning starter from last season's team after earning Second Team All-Conference honors…Brendan Gary, Garrett Sittner and Demers are the only three returners who averaged over 10.0 minutes per game….Six total players are back that appeared in at least 12 games…Demers averaged 14.9ppg and made a team-leading 72 three-point buckets as a junior…Gary turned in 7.5ppg and grabbed a team-leading 5.8rpg.
NEW FACES
A total of 14 new players join the program this season
BEAVER NOTES
– Team ranked 18th in DIII last season in total 3-pt attempts (811) and 35th in made 3-pt buckets per game (10.5)
– Team ranked 10th in assists per game (19.0)
– Michael Demers was second in the A-R-C last season with 72 made 3-pt shots
– Team led the A-R-C in scoring last year at 86.6ppg.
– Head coach Trevor Johnson's 18 wins in his first season with the program in 2019-20 are the most by a first-year head coach in program history.
UP NEXT
The Beavers will travel to Benedictine University in Illinois on Tuesday, January 26, for a 5:30 p.m. non-conference tip-off with the Eagles….This game was added to the schedule earlier this week and at this point is the team's only scheduled game for next week….Continue to check back to www.bvuathletics.com for additional schedule updates.
