Quick Notes

• Trinity International will go for eleven straight victories on Saturday afternoon, when they visit the Olivet Nazarene Tigers.
• Streaming video and live stats of Saturday's game can be found at ONUTigers.com.
• The Trojans sit a half-game behind Robert Morris for the top spot of the CCAC standings, as the Eagles remain unbeaten in league play.
• Trinity became the first CCAC team to reach 16 wins this year, after defeating Trinity Christian in overtime, 92-91 at home last Saturday. The Trojans hold the best overall record in the CCAC, at 16-3.
• If the Trojans defeat the Tigers on Saturday, it will be the team's eleventh victory in a row, and would be their longest winning streak since Nov. 28, 1995 - Jan. 24, 1996, when the Trojans won a program-record 12 straight.
• TIU was ranked in the NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 poll on Tuesday, debuting in the poll at No. 20. Trinity earns its first national ranking in nearly two decades (Jan. 6, 1998).
• The Trojans have some of the best defensive statistics in the country this season. Trinity leads the NAIA in blocks (104), ranks 3rd in blocks per game (5.5), 7th in turnover margin ( 4.8 per game), and 8th in total steals (172).
• Trinity is coming off of their first 20-win season in 17 years, and return four of five starters from a year ago.
• Last season, the Trojans reached the NCCAA National Semifinal, in their first NCCAA Tournament appearance since 1999. TIU finished 4th overall in the eight-team tournament after coming in as the No. 6 seed.
• Senior forward Zach Kirschbaum leads all divisions of NCAA or NAIA college basketball in rebounding, collecting a total of 221 rebounds. The Las Vegas, Nev. native is also leads all of NAIA-II with an average of 8.7 defensive rebounds per game.
• Kirschbaum has posted 14 double-doubles this season, most in the NAIA, and three more than any other player in the CCAC. He also leads the league in rebounding (11.6 per game) and blocked shots, (2.7 per game).
• Kirschbaum ranks fourth or better in the NAIA-II, in five different categories. Kirschbaum leads all divisions of college basketball with 221 total rebounds; He also leads the NAIA with 8.7 defensive boards per game, and is 2nd in rebounds per game (11.6), blocks per game (2.7) and is 4th in total blocks (51).
• With two blocks against St. Xavier on Nov. 16, Kirschbaum moved into fourth place on Trinity International's all-time blocked shots list. Kirschbaum surpassed Cameron Burkett's (2003-05) 62 blocks for the No. 4 spot on the list.
• Grant Corsi is also scoring double figures season, with 13.6 points per game. In the Trojans' win over Judson on Nov. 22, Corsi recorded his first career double-double, collecting 19 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.
• Senior guard Luke Mead leads the Trojan bench with 11.7 points per game, the third-highest average on the team. Mead also ranks 2nd on the team in assists, averaging 2.7 per game. He has scored double figures in each of the last eight games.
• Sophomore Jeremy Carlyle is averaging 10.8 points per game, and is shooting 42.0% from three-point range.
• Trinity players earned two CCAC Player of the Week awards during the month of December, in Zach Kirschbaum and Jeremy Carlyle. Kirschbaum was named Player of the Week on Dec. 6, after averaging 20 points and 14.5 rebounds in wins over Roosevelt and Purdue-Northwest. Carlyle was honored after leading the Trojans in scoring during their wins over No. 5 Indiana-East and Calumet St. Joseph.
• Freshman guard Will Davidson is 5th in the NAIA with a 4.00 assist-to-turnover ratio. Davidson has 12 assists to just three turnovers, while averaging just 5.2 minutes on the floor this season. He set a career high with four assists twice, in wins over East-West (Ill.) and Emmaus Bible (Iowa).
• Senior guard Sean Smith will make his 114th career appearance on Saturday, good for 8th on TIU's all-time games played list.
• Senior wing Henry French is averaging 1.4 blocks per game, placing him 6th on the CCAC leaderboard. French has 26 total blocks (26th in NAIA), and is averaging 8.9 points per game.
• Freshman forward T.J. Johnson set a career high with nine rebounds in Saturday's win over Trinity Christian. Johnson has started all 19 games this season, averaging 3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds in just under 14 minutes per game.
• Freshman center Rick Wright made his Trojan debut on Jan. 3 in the win over St. Ambrose. Wright finished with two points and a rebound in four minutes of play.

About Olivet Nazarene

• Saturday marks the 10th meeting between Trinity International and Olivet Nazarene since the 2003-04 season.
• The Tigers lead the series over TIU 7-2, having won the first seven meetings, from 2008-2014. Trinity is 2-0 over Olivet in the Boomer Roberts era.
• Four Trojans finished in double figures, as Trinity used a complete team performance to upset the 14th-ranked Tigers 79-78, at Van Dixhorn Arena on Jan. 16, 2016.
• Junior center Zach Kirschbaum led the way with his fifth double-double in his last five appearances, finishing with 17 points and 13 rebounds in the win. Luke Mead came off the bench to match his career high with four three-pointers, tallying 15 points, while Thomas Amrine and Greg Carlyle each scored 10.
• The Trojans secured their first win over a nationally-ranked opponent since Dec. 7, 2012, an 84-75 victory over No. 23 Indiana-East.
• The Tigers are at risk of their first losing season since 2003-04, with a 5-12 overall record. Olivet is 3-6 in league play, after an 82-50 loss at Roosevelt on Saturday.
• Freshman forward Nic Reed leads the CCAC in scoring, with 20.6 points per game (22nd in NAIA).

Trojans in the Polls

• Trinity earned the No. 20 spot in the latest NAIA Division II Coaches' Poll, released on Tuesday.
• Trinity International has appeared in the NAIA Division II Coaches Poll 22 times in program history, with this week being the first since the 1997-98 campaign.
• The Trojans' last NAIA ranking came on Jan. 6, 1998, when the TIU also 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.
• The Trojans sit at No. 5 in the latest NCCAA National Rankings, their highest ranking this season. 
• Trinity has been ranked No. 8 in three of the first five polls this season, beginning with the opening poll on Nov. 15.
• The Trojans were picked 4th in the CCAC preseason ratings, behind St. Francis, Robert Morris, and St. Xavier.
• Trinity ranks 2nd in the latest conference ratings, released Tuesday, behind No. 14 Robert Morris.

Record Books

• On Nov. 11, Trinity posted 126 points in their Trojan Classic victory over Silver Lake (Wisc.). The performance was one point shy of the all-time program record of 127 points scored in a single game. (Feb. 14, 1996 at Rockford [Ill.])
• As a team the Trojans combined for 25 made three-pointers against the Lakers, setting a new CCAC single-game record.
• The 25 threes also goes down as the second-highest number of three-point field goals in a single game in NAIA history.

Up Next

• The Trojans face a pivotal test in the CCAC North Division race, when they host the No. 14 Robert Morris Eagles on Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 5:30 p.m.
• On Saturday, Jan. 21, Trinity will honor the 10th anniversary of the 2006-07 CCAC Tournament Championship team during the game vs. St. Francis. Members of the 2006-07 team will be honored during the game, and a team reunion will be held.
• Wednesday, Jan. 25 vs. St. Xavier will be the third annual White Out Game. A select number of White Out shirts will be given to TIU students, alumni, and fans.
• Saturday, Feb. 4 vs. Roosevelt is the team's annual Upward Night, where kids and families involved with Upward Basketball enjoy free admission and a chance to meet the team after the game.