---

SBU Classic SWOSU Game Notes (pdf) SWOSU (0-0) at Southwest Baptist (0-0) Friday, November 14, 7:30 pm Bolivar, Mo. (Meyer Sports Center) Live Stats  |  Watch Live ($) SWOSU (0-0) vs. Lincoln (0-0) Saturday, November 15, 2:00 pm Bolivar, Mo. (Meyer Sports Center) Live Stats

Setting the Stage
- SWOSU Basketball opens up the 2014-15 season this weekend at the SBU Classic in Bolivar, Mo., where they will face Southwest Baptist and Lincoln, both in-region opponents and members of the MIAA
- It will be the first meeting between the Bulldogs and SBU since 2008, a 106-82 victory by the Bearcats in Bolivar, and the first between SWOSU and Lincoln since a 71-46 win by the Bulldogs in the SWOSU Classic in 2011
- SWOSU returns two starters and four letterwinners of a team that finished 17-10 (14-6 GAC) in 2013-14 and earned a second-place finish in the Great American Conference
 
The Opponents
Southwest Baptist (0-0)
- NCAA Division II school from Bolivar, Mo., and a member of the Central Region and Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA)
- Picked to finish 13th in the 14-team MIAA in 2014-15 by the conference coaches
- Finished 14-15 last season with a victory over eventual GAC Champion Arkansas Tech
- Leading returner is point guard Derrick Stewart, who made six starts and averaged 8.4 points and better than two assists per game last year
- Hung tough with Southern Illinois in a 79-63 defeat in their lone exhibition contest
 
Lincoln (0-0)
- NCAA Division II school from Jefferson City, Mo., and also a member of the MIAA
- Picked to finish last in the MIAA in 2014-15 after finishing 3-24 (1-18 MIAA) last season
- Enter the year with a small roster of just 10 players, but they welcome back their top two scorers from last season in Mike Smith (15.8 points per game) and Joshua Buie (15.3), both of whom were named All-MIAA honorable mention as juniors
- Welcome six newcomers to the squad, including D1 transfers Blake Rallings (Mississippi Valley State) and Victor Scott (Chicago State)
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Bob Battisti (17-10, 2nd season)
- Bob Battisti was named the 14th head men's basketball coach in SWOSU history prior to last season after spending two seasons as an assistant coach at Oklahoma Christian University
- Battisti led the Bulldogs to a 17-10 record in his first season, marking a five-win improvement from the previous season
- Three players earned All-GAC distinction in Battisti's first season at SWOSU, including GAC Player of the Year Rod Camphor and Defensive Player of the Year Michael Bradley
- SWOSU committed the fewest turnovers in NCAA Division II in Battisti's first season with 243, an average of just 9.0 per game
- Previously spent 25 years at Northwestern Oklahoma State, coaching the men's basketball team for 21 seasons before taking over as the school's athletic director
- In 25 years as a head coach, Battisti has a career record of 426-306 (.582)
 
Southwest Baptist: Clark Sheehy (0-0, 1st season)
- Named the 13th head men's basketball coach at Southwest Baptist on May 20, 2014
- Spent the last seven seasons as the head men's basketball coach at John Brown University, where he accumulated a record of 182-106
- Also spent time as an assistant at Fresno Pacific, Texas State and Texas A&M-Commerce after playing at John Brown for his father, John Sheehy
 
Lincoln: John Moseley (0-0, 1st season)
- Enters his first season as the head coach at Lincoln with a wealth of NCAA Division I experience after spending the past four years as an assistant coach at North Carolina Central University
- Helped lead NCCU to a MEAC Conference championship and NCAA Tournament berth last season
- First-time head coach in 2014-15 with previous stops as an assistant at East Carolina, Winston-Salem State and Wright State
 
Exhibition Action
- SWOSU finished 1-2 in their three exhibition contests with a 93-73 victory over Mid-America Christian before suffering defeats against in-state NCAA Division I foes Tulsa and Oklahoma
- Martell Collins led the Bulldogs with 10.0 points per game in exhibition play, including a team-best 15 against Tulsa
- Featuring a more balanced attack this season, the Bulldogs also had six other players average more than 6.0 points per game in the exhibition season
- Returning guards Trent Washington and Kenyan Borders each scored 26 points in exhibition play for an average of 8.7 ppg
- Borders, however, was limited to just eight points in the final two games combined after scoring a team-best 18 in the opener against Mid-America Christian
 
GAC Preseason Poll
- SWOSU earned one first-place vote and is picked to finish third in the GAC this season by the conference head coaches
- Arkansas Tech is the favorite to repeat as GAC Champions this season, receiving eight first-place votes to finish with 96 total points
- Harding earned two first-place votes and came in second, seven points ahead of SWOSU
- Poll rounded out with (in order): East Central, Henderson State, Southern Nazarene, Ouachita Baptist, Southeastern Oklahoma State, Southern Arkansas, Northwestern Oklahoma State and Arkansas-Monticello
 
SWOSU Notes
- Three different players - Kenyan Borders, Martell Collins and Richard McCalop - led the Bulldogs in scoring during the three exhibition games
- McCalop and Emeche Wells were the leading rebounders for SWOSU, averaging 5.0 per game during exhibition
- Trent Washington hit a team-best five three-pointers during exhibition action but connected on just 22% (5-of-22) from long range
- As a team, SWOSU shot just 25% (16-of-63) from three-point range and 35% (61-of-171) from the field
- Washington also led the Dawgs with 5 steals in exhibition action
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU hosts Southwestern Christian next Tuesday for non-conference action before heading on the road to begin GAC play at Harding next Saturday