EVANSVILLE, Ind. – A stretch of four games in eight days comprises the final week of the regular season for the University of Evansville men's basketball team and begins on Saturday with a 1 p.m. home game against Valparaiso. ESPN3 and the Purple Aces Radio Network will have the coverage.
Last Time Out
- Drake hit 9 of its opening 10 attempts on Wednesday and put things out of reach early before taking a 73-51 victory at the Knapp Center in Des Moines
- The Bulldogs took a 19-3 lead just over six minutes into the contest and would lead by 32 at the half and as many as 38 in the second half before the Purple Aces finished the game on a 26-10 run to cut into the deficit
- Blake Sisley paced UE with 14 points, converting six of his 14 field goal tries
- Blaise Beauchamp continued his scoring streak, knocking down four triples on his way to 12 points
In a Zone
- Blaise Beauchamp added his third double figure game in a row on Wednesday at Drake, scoring 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from outside
- Over his last three games, Beauchamp has averaged 20.0 points per game
- After scoring a career-high 29 points in a double overtime game against Indiana State on Feb. 10, he added 19 points in the road game at SIU two days later
- The stretch has seen him hit 13 of his 20 attempts from long range while going 19-for-38 from the field
- Entering the 2/10 game, Beauchamp's season average was 6.0 PPG, but the recent streak has lifted that mark to 7.6 PPG
- His effectiveness has been better when he is in the starting lineup with his scoring average in five starts sitting at 14.8 PPG...in games he comes off the bench, his scoring checks in at 5.9 PPG
Top Tally in Des Moines
- Hitting six field goals in the game at Drake, Blake Sisley led the Aces with 14 points, marking the third time in four games that he has scored 9 or more
- Over the last four outings, Sisley is averaging 10.5 points per game while hitting 54.8% (17/31) of his field goal tries
- In the home-and-home against Indiana State, Sisley averaged 13 points while hitting 10 of his 14 attempts
- He connected on six of his eight shots on Feb. 10 at the Ford Center on his way to a career-high 17 points...his high mark of 5 rebounds also came in that contest
Scouting the Opponent
- Valparaiso has lost five of its last six games to fall to 11-15 on the season and 4-10 in the Valley
- In their last contest, the Beacons dropped a close 71-69 home game to Loyola after falling on the road at Missouri State by a final of 84-66 last weekend
- Ben Krikke is the top scorer for Valpo, averaging 14.7 points
- He is shooting 55.2% from the field and is seccond on the team with 20 blocked shots
- Kobe King averages 13.9 points per game while Kevion Taylor (12.0) and Sheldon Edwards (11.5) round out the double figure scorers
- On the boards, Thomas Kithier is averaging a team-high 6.7 per game
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