MACOMB, Ill. - The Western Illinois Fighting Leatherneck men's basketball team travels to Conway, Ark., for a 7 p.m. tipoff against Central Arkansas, Saturday, before playing Savannah State in Savannah, Ga., Tuesday at 7 p.m.

The Bears (1-2) host the Leathernecks (1-2) after suffering a 94-44 defeat at No. 1 Kansas, Friday. The Bears’ leading scorers are Jared Rehmel, averaging 11.0 ppg, and Mike Pouncy, averaging 10.7 ppg. With 7.7 rebounds per game, Mitch Rueter pulls down the boards.

Savannah State holds a 2-1 record with a Saturday game scheduled against Georgetown University. The Tigers have picked up wins over Webber International and Central Connecticut State, but dropped its last outing at North Florida. Guard Tracy Rankins led the scoring efforts in the game with 17 points, while Arnold Louis grabbed eight rebounds.

The Games
Who: Western Illinois at Central Arkansas
Date: Saturday, Nov. 21, 2009
Tipoff: 7 p.m.
Location: Conway, Ark.
Arena: Farris Center (5,000)

Who: Western Illinois at Savannah State
Date: Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009
Tipoff: 7 p.m.
Location: Savannah, Ga.
Arena: Tiger Arena (6,000)

The Leatherneck Sports Network Broadcast
Radio • WIUS (88.3 FM, Macomb) Flagship station
Kyle Schassburger, play by play
Derek Diesner, color analyst

Web • wiuathletics.com
Live WIUS radio broadcast (Free)

Game Notes (Complete PDF game notes)

Lander Puts Up the Points
Junior-transfer Matt Lander came to Western Illinois from John A. Logan Community College and didn’t waste any time putting up the points for the Leathernecks. Lander led all scorers in two-straight games to open the season with a career-high 20 points at Arizona State. Helping fill the void of guard Ceola Clark, who was out with an injury in the last three games, Lander averages 14.3 points per game, the 10th-best average in The Summit League.

Pulling Down the Boards
The Leathernecks’ rebounding efforts are led by 6-foot-3 junior Arsenio Mims, averaging 5.3 rebounds per game with 16 total this season. Averaging 2.0 offensive rebounds per game, Mims ranks in the top-10 (No. 10) of the Summit League statistics with six total. Mims has led Western off the boards in the past two games with a career-high eight rebounds last game against Truman State.

With the Block
James Granstra led Western’s blocking efforts last season and continues the trend into the 2009-10 season. The 6-foot-10 center tallied a career-high four blocks last game against Truman State. Averaging 2.3 blocks per game with seven total this season, Granstra holds the second-most number of blocked shots in The Summit League, behind Keith Benson from Oakland with nine blocks.

Take it Away
Mims’ career-best four steals last game totals him at seven so far this season. Averaging 2.3 steals per game, Mims is ranked as No. 3 in league statistics for his steal average. Mims fills the void of Ceola Clark, who led Western last season with 50 steals.

Western From the Line
David Nurse is perfect from the charity stripe as he has made all six free throw attempts this season and Quenton Kirby has been sent to the line the most with 17 attempts this season. Three games into the regular season, Western Illinois has made 68.5% (37-of-54) of its free throws.

Last Game Career Highs
Against Truman State, Arsenio Mims had a pair of career highs in rebounds (8) and steals (4), Kirby recorded a career-best in points (18), Granstra saw his best in blocks (4) and Jeremy Felton recorded double figures in the point column for a career-best 12.

Looking Ahead
After this week’s games at Central Arkansas and Savannah State, the Leathernecks open a six-game home stand, Nov. 28, against Greenville College. The entire month of December will be played on Western’s home court with Summit League play opening against North Dakota State to open the month (Dec. 3).  The Leathernecks will bring in the new year at Oakland, Dec. 31 at noon.