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TRINITY INTERNATIONAL TROJANS (2-9, 1-4 CCAC) at No. 17 ROBERT MORRIS EAGLES (9-5, 3-1 CCAC)
Friday, December 19 | 7:30 p.m.
RMU Athletic Center | Arlington Heights, Ill.
 

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TRINITY INTERNATIONAL TROJANS (2-9) at INDIANA-NORTHWEST REDHAWKS (6-7)
Saturday, December 20 | 3:00 p.m.
Savannah Center | Gary, Ill.

Game Notes | Twitter Updates | Live Audio (RMU) | Live Video (IU-NW)
Season Stats: TIU | Robert Morris | Indiana-Northwest

Quick Notes
• Wrapping up their current road swing, Trinity International will finish up 2014 with back-to-back matchups. The Trojans will take on No. 17 Robert Morris in CCAC action on Friday, December 19, before stepping out of conference play to battle the Indiana-Northwest Redhawks on Saturday, December 20.
• Robert Morris will provide a live audio broadcast, online at EagleSportsNetwork.com. Saturday's game will also be available online, at IUNRedhawkAthletics.com.
• Trinity ended a nine-game slide last weekend, with their 70-64 win on the road at Judson. TIU will look for its first winning streak of the season with a victory over the Eagles on Friday night.
• Senior Justin Peeples and sophomore Thomas Amrine led the way against Judson, scoring 19 points each. Amrine scored 15 points in the first half, leading the Trojans to a 35-34 halftime advantage, while Peeples scored the majority of his points after the halftime break, as TIU held on to their lead in the closing minutes.
• 17th-ranked Robert Morris is coming off a 115-101 loss to No. 15 St. Xavier last Saturday, the Eagles' first loss in conference play.
• The Trojans are averaging 70.4 points per game, good for 9th in the CCAC. Robert Morris ranks 2nd in the league, with 76.3 points per game. Defensively, the Trojans offer up a conference-high 81.4 points per game to their opponents, compared to the Eagles' 74.4, good for the 8th-best defense in the CCAC.
• Senior center Nate Ball was named CCAC Player of the Week on Nov. 5, after leading the Trojans with 16.0 points and 8.5 rebounds over two games at the Judson Classic. On Nov. 25, Ball recorded the team's first double-double of the season, with 19 points and 12 rebounds against No. 2 Cardinal Stritch.
• Senior Paul Badgley had a career night against No. 19 St. Xavier on Dec. 3; the Rushville, Ind. native scored a career-high 13 points off the bench, while also setting career highs in field goals, field goal percentage, rebounds, assists, and minutes.

Series History with RMU & IUNW    
• Trinity International is still looking for their first-ever win over Robert Morris, having dropped the first six matchups dating back to 2008.
• The closest margin of victory in the series came in a 90-76 loss for Trinity, in Nov. 20, 2012.
• The Trojans have won all five previous meetings with Indiana-Northwest, but have not met up with the Redhawks since the 2006-07 season.

Last Time Out vs. Robert Morris    
•  Trailing by just two points at the half, Trinity International looked poised to have a shot at an upset win over a nationally-ranked opponent, but the No. 16 Eagles stretched their lead in the second half, defeating TIU 99-80 on Feb. 3, inside the Meyer Sports Complex last season. Junior Sam Salem led Trinity with 21 points on the night as one of three Trojans in double figures.
• Trinity International were unable to take a second-half lead, twice closing the deficit to two points following RMU scores. Nate Ball's jumper at the 18:16 mark made it a 47-45 game, but seven unanswered points stretched the Eagles' lead to 54-45 in under a minute due to a pair of TIU turnovers.
• Along with Salem, Ball and Sean Smith both reached double figures, scoring 18 and 11 points, respectively. Ball also had four blocked shots on the night, matching his season high.
• In the second meeting with RMU last season, freshman Andy Stauffer led TIU for the second time in three games, picking up 10 points in a 82-63 road loss to the 22nd-ranked Eagles. TIU held a narrow lead in the early minutes of the first half, but a 23.3% shooting performance in the first half led to a 12-point deficit at the break.
• Stauffer finished as the lone Trojan in double figures on the night, while James Glass posted nine points to lead the TIU bench. Sam Salem and Blake Mann each collected eight points, and Nate Ball posted seven points and seven rebounds.

League Leaders    
• Nate Ball is one of the nation's leaders in blocked shots this season, with an average of 2.18 blocks per game, good for 8th in the NAIA. Ball also ranks 11th nationally in total blocks (24), 26th in offensive rebounds per game (3.09), and 47th in total rebounding (7.64).
• Trinity ranks third in the CCAC with 7.6 steals per game, and fourth in blocks, with 3.1 per game. Nationally, the Trojans are 47th in blocks per game.
• The Trojans hold one of the best turnover margins in the CCAC this season, averaging 1.75 fewer turnovers than their opponents, good for 3rd in the conference, and 35th in the NAIA.
• Senior Justin Peeples leads the Trojans with 13.7 points per game; Peeples currently sits 20th on the CCAC's scoring list, and is 8th among conference seniors.
• Senior Nate Ball is among the CCAC's best in multiple categories; Ball is second in the CCAC in blocked shots (2.0), ranks 6th in rebounding (7.5 per game), 5th in offensive boards (2.8), and 12th in field goal percentage (.541).
• Sophomore guard Thomas Amrine is the Trojans' top three-point shooter, with 2.3 made threes each game, which ranks 10th in the conference.

1,000 Point Club    
• With his game-high 19 points Cardinal Stritch, Nate Ball recorded his 1,000th career point during his TIU career. The senior enters play this week with 1,029 career points.
• Ball becomes the second active Trojan to join the 1,000-point club, joining fellow senior Dillon Wadsack, who has tallied 1,071 points as a Trojan.
• Dan Dondit (1979-83) holds TIU's all-time scoring record, having tallied 2,499 points during his Trojan career.

Senior-Heavy Squad    
• The 2014-15 Trojans feature five seniors on the team, all of which are playing significant minutes.
• Seniors Justin Peeples and Nate Ball are currently the two players averaging double figures, with Peeples collecting 13.7 points per game, and Ball contributing 10.5 points each night.
• Dillon Wadsack, who returns after missing all of last season to injury, has been the Trojans sixth man, averaging 6.5 points per game off the bench.
• Sam Salem has led the Trojans in assists, with 2.5 per game, and has added in 5.8 points per game over 23.9 minutes off the bench each night.
• Paul Badgley has seen action in nine of eleven games for Trinity International this season, and recently had a career-best game, against St. Xavier on Dec. 3. The Rushville, Ind. native scored a career-high 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, while also setting new high marks in rebounds (3), assists (2), and minutes played (13).

Trojans in the Polls    
• Trinity International has appeared in the NAIA Division II Coaches Poll 21 times in program history, but not since the 1997-98 campaign.
• TIU's last ranking came on Jan. 6, 1998, when the Trojans came in at No. 20.
• The highest ranking in program history was during the 1995-96 season, when Trinity was at No. 3 in the Jan. 22, 1996 poll.

Van Dixhorn Arena Dedication    
• Friends, family, and alumni of Trinity International University are welcome to attend the dedication of the new Henry Van Dixhorn Arena, during the TIU Men's and Women's Basketball doubleheader on Saturday, Feburary 7.
• The newly refurbished arena, made possible by the generous gifts from several friends across the Trinity family, including board member Henry Van Dixhorn and his family, was officially opened Friday, October 24th in the Meyer Sports Complex.
• The arena is the largest gathering space Trinity's campus has ever held, with a capacity of over 1,700 in the stands that now surround the brand new court on all sides.