STORYLINES
Wayne State will begin 2018 facing two nationally-ranked opponents as the Warriors visit No. 10 Ferris State on Thursday (5:30 p.m.), before entertaining No. 24 Lake Superior State on Saturday (3 p.m.).  WSU had a key 65-62 GLIAC South Division win at Davenport on Dec. 16 to end the first half at 4-1 in league play.  Wayne State's defense will need to be at its best this week as both opponents enter the week averaging over 83 points per contest.

THE SERIES
Wayne State trails 39-45 in the all-time series against Ferris State, including a 15-26 mark in Big Rapids.  The Bulldogs have won the last five meetings.  Head coach David Greer has compiled a 12-12 record against FSU in his first 16 seasons.  The teams began playing in 1966 and first met as conference counterparts in 1977.  WSU is 30-36 in GLIAC games against Ferris State.  Wayne State's last series victory was a 79-62 triumph on Jan. 30, 2014, in Detroit and the last road victory for the Warriors was the 2011 GLIAC Championship game (73-71).

The Green & Gold lead 44-27 in the all-time series versus Lake Superior State, including a 26-10 mark in Detroit.  The teams began playing in 1969 and WSU won 14 of the first 21 matchups.  Coach Greer is 12-11 vs. the Lakers in his time at the helm.  LSSU has taken six of the last eight contests.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Ferris State won 12 consecutive games to the start the year before a 79-74 loss at Lake Superior State on Dec. 16.  Drew Cushingberry is one of three Bulldogs averaging in doubles figures at 13.7 points per contest.  He also leads the squad in three-pointers made (52) and assists (89).  Zach Hankins has team-high totals of 130 rebounds (8.7 RPG) and 46 blocks, while averaging 12.5 PPG.  Hankins is second in the GLIAC in both rebounding and field goal percentage (.603 / 79-of-131).  Noah King is averaging 11.7 points per game.

Lake Superior State had an eight-game winning streak snapped with a 94-77 setback at Southern Indiana on Dec. 30.  The Lakers host Davenport on Thursday before making the trip to the Motor City.  Akaemji Williams leads LSSU in scoring at 19.4 points per game, including a 26-point effort at USI.  He also leads the GLIAC in both assists (6.9 APG) and steals (2.7 SPG).  Michael Nicholson has team-high totals of 94 rebounds (7.2 RPG) and 11 blocks, while ranking second in scoring (12.7 PPG).  He also leads the GLIAC in field goal percentage (.714).  Blake Marquardt has made a team-best 39 triples and averages 10.8 ppg.  He is third in the GLIAC shooting 49.4 percent from beyond the arc.

LAST TIME OUT
Wayne State made its first-ever trip to Davenport on Dec. 16th in the final contest of 2017.  The Warriors led by as many as nine in the second half and held on to win 65-62.  The game featured the top two teams in the GLIAC South Division and with the victory WSU is alone atop the division standings at 4-1.  Latin Davis, Jr. finished with a game-high and a career-best 20 points, connecting on a season-high four triples.  Ronald Booth tallied 15 points, while both Marcus Moore and George Spencer chipped in with 10 points each.  Moore was also solid on the glass, collecting nine rebounds for the second straight game and the third time this season.

STARTING FIVE
Wayne State has introduced the same starting five in all 10 games this season and those five have carried the team through the first part of the season.  The quintet have all scored in double-digits on two occasions, first against Kentucky Wesleyan and then in the league-opening win over GVSU.  Four of the five accomplished the feat at Purdue Northwest and at Davenport.

DEFENSE WINNING GAMES
Wayne State ranks third in the GLIAC in scoring defense, allowing 66.4 points per game.  The Warriors have not allowed more than 73 points in a game this season.  Last season, WSU started strong on defense, not allowing more than 71 until January 14th as the Green & Gold won nine of its first 12 games.

RAINING THREES
Ronald Booth's six triples at Purdue Northwest on Dec. 2nd, tied for the fourth most in a game in program history.  The record of 11 is held by Kris Krzyminski (2006) and the Hall of Famer also has the second most (7), which he and Kendall LeSure (2003) both accomplished.    Booth joins six others to connect on six three-pointers.  Booth has 119 career three-pointers, and ranks ninth all-time.  With 21 more triples, he would be in the top five.

HISTORICAL VICTORY
Earlier this season, the men's basketball program won its 800th game (76-73 over GVSU) as Wayne State University (1956-present).  In the 100 years of basketball, WSU has won 1,219 games (first 60 as Detroit Junior College [1918-23], 120 as College of the City of Detroit/CCD [1924-34], and 235 as Wayne University [1934-56]).

NCAA STATISTICAL RANKINGS
In the latest NCAA stat release, Wayne State ranks 23rd in fewest turnovers (121), 25th in scoring defense (66.4 PPG), 51st in three-point defense (32.2%) and 61st in turnovers per game (12.1).

800-CLUB
A trio of Warriors have surpassed the 800-point plateau this season, as senior Ronald Booth enters 2018 with 930 career points, while classmate Chuck Key reached this milestone in December (825 points).  Fellow senior Marcus Moore reached the milestone at Davenport to end the first-half of the season with 803 career points.

REBOUNDING EDGE
When Tristan Wilson went down before the season with an injury, the Warriors knew they would be undersized in a league where several teams roll out forwards and centers 6-8 or taller.  However, Wayne State has done a nice job of cleaning the glass, winning the rebounding battle in five of the 10 games and only being out-rebounded 346 to 330 overall.

MOST IMPROVED TEAMS
Wayne State was one of the most improved teams in the country last season, adding nine wins to its 2015-16 win total and subtracting eight losses.

COMCAST/XFINITY
Every home men's basketball game in 2018 will be aired live throughout the state of Michigan on Comcast/CN 900.  Sean Baligian (play-by-play), Rod Beard (analyst) and Joe Abramson (sideline) will call the action.

LIVE ON WDTK
Kevin Brechmacher will call every contest live on WDTK - The Patriot (1400 AM / 101.5 FM).  Fans can also stream the action online at PatriotDetroit.com.  WSU alum Kendall LeSure, who played at Wayne State from 2000-04 and scored 1,068 points during his career, joins Brechmacher for home games.