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TRINITY INTERNATIONAL TROJANS (13-16) at HOLY CROSS SAINTS (14-16)
Wednesday, February 18 | 6:00 p.m. Central / 7:00 p.m. Eastern
McKenna Arena | Notre Dame, Ind.
 

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Season Stats: TIU | Holy Cross

Quick Notes
• Trinity International returns to the postseason for the first time in two years Monday night, when they travel to Holy Cross and face the Saints in the CCAC Tournament Opening Round. Tipoff from Notre Dame, Ind. is set for 6:00 p.m. CST.
• TIU earned the first of two wild-card spots, after the top four places from each division punch their tickets to the postseason.
• Three players are averaging double figures for TIU this season, with senior point guard Justin Peeples scoring a team-high 13.6 points per game. Thomas Amrine has scored 12.2 points per game, while Nate Ball has contributed 12.1 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds each night.
• The Trojans were on a ten-game winning streak, before the loss at Roosevelt on Jan. 31. It was the team's longest streak since the 1995-96 season, when the Trojans won 12 straight games en route to an NAIA Tournament appearance and NIIC conference title. Since then, the Trojans dropped five straight before rebounding with last week's home victory over Robert Morris.
• Holy Cross claimed the No. 4 seed out of the South Division, with an 8-11 conference record. The Saints have dropped their last two games, snapping what was a five-game win streak that included a home upset over regular season champs Olivet Nazarene
• On Jan. 27, Trojan guard Thomas Amrine became TIU's second CCAC Player of the Week of the season, after matching a school record with eight three-pointers made in TIU's road win over Olivet Nazarene on Jan. 21. The sophomore earns his first-ever Player of the Week award, and the second for a Trojan this season (Nate Ball, Nov. 5).
• Amrine matched his career high with eight three-pointers again on Feb. 7, scoring 24 points to lead the Trojans in a 80-77 loss to Trinity Christian.
• The Trojans are averaging 75.9 points per game, good for 5th in the CCAC. Holy Cross ranks 11th in the league, with 69.0 points per game.
• Defensively, the Trojans offer up 76.2 points per game to their opponents, ranking 11th in the CCAC. Holy Cross comes in 7th, giving up an average of 69.7 points per game.

Series History with HCC    
• Trinity claimed a 5-4 lead in the series after their home win earlier this season. TIU has won three of the last five meetings with the Saints.
• The Saints won the last time the two sides met in the CCAC Tournament, taking a 90-78 win in the quarterfinals on Feb. 18, 2013.

Last Time Out vs. Holy Cross    
• Trinity International held their opponents to a season-low 47 points, and looked dominant on both ends of the court in a 71-47 Trojan victory over the Saints, on Jan. 10 at Van Dixhorn Arena. 
• Nate Ball gave his team their first double-digit lead with a layup midway through the first half, 21-10 with 9:58 on the clock. TIU would go up by as much as 23 before the break, with a David Chatman layup that made it a 37-14 edge with 4:04 remaining. Justin Peeples knocked down a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Trojans a 42-20 halftime lead.
• The Trojans' lead would never break 20 points in the second half, with the Saints pulling to within that number three times in the opening minutes, but never getting any closer. A quick 8-0 run for the Trojans, highlighted by six points from Dillon Wadsack, would put the game away for good.
• All nine players who saw the floor for TIU scored, with the Trojan bench picking up a combined 25 points in the win. Wadsack led the group with eight points, while Sean Smith went 3-for-3 from the field to finish with seven.

1,000 Point Club    
• With his game-high 19 points against Cardinal Stritch on Nov. 25, Nate Ball recorded his 1,000th career point during his TIU career. The senior enters play this week with 1,265 career points.
• Ball becomes the second active Trojan to join the 1,000-point club, joining fellow senior Dillon Wadsack, who has tallied 1,161 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 two of the three players averaging double figures, with Peeples collecting a team-leading 13.6 points per game, and Ball contributing 12.1 points and 8.3 rebounds each night.
• Dillon Wadsack, who returns after missing all of last season to injury, has been the Trojans sixth man, averaging 5.8 points per game off the bench.
• Sam Salem has averaged 2.8 assists per game, and has added in 8.6 points per game while shooting 42.4% from the field.
• Paul Badgley has seen action in 22 of 29 games for Trinity International this season, and had his career-best game, against St. Xavier on Dec. 3. The Rushville, Ind. native scored a career-high 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, also setting new career bests in field goals made and field goals attempted.

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.