[Men's Basketball] MBB Gameday Preview: Falcons Host No. 8 Southwestern Tomorrow in Key KCAC Matchup

The Lowdown: No. 8 Southwestern College at Friends University

Location: Garvey PE Gymnasium

When: Saturday, Jan. 6 @ 7 pm

Broadcast and Live Stats: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/friends/

Flying with the Falcons: The Friends University Falcons created a five-way tie for second place in the KCAC with an 83-72 victory at Sterling College last Wednesday night (Jan. 3).  The Falcons are now 8-8 overall and 6-3 in the league, tied with  Kansas Wesleyan University, University of Saint Mary, Ottawa University and Tabor College.

Friends, leading most of the way, pulled away for good as threes from Atir Cherne (JR/Wichita, Kan.) and Zion Fralin (FR/Wichita, Kan. ) sparked an 8-1 run that extended a five-point lead all the way up to 77-65 with just 2:35 remaining.

After the Warriors crept within seven, EJ Garnes (JR/Wichita, Kan. ) and Cherne each hit two free throws during the final 20 seconds to ice the win for the Falcons.

Jordan Murdock (JR/Wichita, Kan.) fueled the Falcons with 30 points and 11 rebounds for his league-leading ninth double-double of the season.

Cherne scored 15 and Fralin added 13 points for the Falcons (8-8, 6-3 KCAC).

Garnes dished out five dimes along with 11 points.

Murdock, a three-time KCAC Player of the Week, leads the nation in scoring with 29.4 points per game while also leading the KCAC and ranking sixth in the NAIA with 10.1 rebounds per game.

Cherne is second on the team in scoring at 9.8 ppg and Garnes is tops on the Falcons and the KCAC with 5.6 assists per game.  

Scouting the Moundbuilders: The No. 8-ranked and conference-leading Southwestern College Moundbuilders enter with a record of 15-2 overall and 8-1 in the KCAC.

The Moundbuilders are led by Cameron Hunt, who paces the team in both scoring (24.3 ppg) and assists (3.8 apg). Southwestern is also getting double-digit scoring production from DJ Wallace (16.2 ppg), LaJuan Hardy (14.0 ppg) and Jacob Horsch (10.5 ppg), with Brent Smith pulling down a team-high 8.4 rebounds per game.

Offensive Showcase: Two of the country's most prolific scorers will be featured when the Falcons and Moundbuilders square off. Friends' Jordan Murdock and the Moundbuilders' Cameron Hunt rank 1-2 in the KCAC in points per game, with Murdock leading the league at 29.4 ppg, followed by Hunt's 24.3 ppg.  Both players are also in the top five in the NAIA in scoring, as Murdock is tops and Hunt ranks fifth.  

The Series: The Falcons are 5-5 vs. Southwestern in the past 10 meetings between the schools. The recent matchups have presented wild swings, as the Moundbuilders currently have a five-game winning streak against Friends that follows the Falcons winning the previous five meetings in the series.

The Coaches:

Dale Faber enters his 15th season leading the Friends University men's basketball program.

Overall, Faber is 244-204, with a 160-100 mark in KCAC play in his tenure at Friends. He has been named the KCAC Coach of the Year twice (2010, 2014), along with four KCAC Tournament Championships and two KCAC Regular Season Championships.

Faber's philosophy for building and maintaining a successful program is simple: find good student-athletes with strong values who are dedicated, hardworking, loyal and committed to representing Friends University in a positive light at all times. Known for his quick humor, Coach Faber strives to be supportive in all aspects of his player's lives. The philosophy of faith, family, academics and basketball has become a thought process that continues to fuel his teams.

"Entering our 15th year at Friends University our goals remain consistent. We should never lose track of what a blessing it is to be able to grow our relationships within our team and the Friends University community," Faber said. "We will work hard to be a team that pursues success on the court but also strives to be well thought of because of our efforts academically and growing our participation in the NAIA Champions of Character Program.

"With only one returning starter, we obviously have plenty of holes to fill. We have transfers and freshmen who are very capable and they will have to be ready for the grind immediately. Players who did not have much of a role last year will need to step up and compete for the valuable minutes. It will be interesting to see who steps to the front most consistently."

Faber and his wife of 30 years, Stacey, live in Wichita.

Matt O'Brien is in his ninth season as head coach of the Southwestern College Moundbuilders.  O'Brien has guided Southwestern to a winning record in all eight seasons thus far in his tenure, including two straight appearances in the KCAC tournament championship game.

Before arriving at Southwestern, O'Brien was the head coach at Central Christian College and an assistant coach at Friends University for seven seasons.  Three of O'Brien's seasons at Friends came under current Falcon head coach Dale Faber.  

Up Next: The Falcons will play at Ottawa University next Wednesday night (Jan. 10), with tip-off set for 8 pm in Ottawa, Kan.