FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations

SOMERS, Wis. (Nov. 13, 2014)-- The two-time defending Great Lakes Valley Conference East Division Champion University of Wisconsin-Parkside men's basketball escaped the grip of winter this weekend, opening up the 2014-2015 regular season in balmy Puerto Rico where they will face a pair of local Division II squads. The Rangers begin the season on Friday with an 11 a.m. showdown against the University of Puerto Rico-Bayamon before closing the trip on Saturday with a 2 p.m. game against the University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras.
 
About the Rangers: UW-Parkside (23-7, 15-3 GLVC) looks to continue to build on last season's success, claiming the GLVC East crown for the second consecutive season while punching a ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in program history. Last year's squad posted a school record 15 wins in conference play while collecting the most overall victories since the 1975-1976 season.
 
Last season's starting five returns virtually intact with Basketball News Preseason All-American Zygimantas Riauka leading the way. A First Team All-GLVC selection and an All-Region and All-District honoree, the senior forward led the squad in scoring (16.7 points per game), rebounding (9.3 rebounds per game), blocks (59) and field goal percentage (63.6 percent) with double-doubles in 16 of the 30 games last year.
 
Jimmy Gavin is back, landing Second Team All-GLVC honors last season after averaging 16.0 points per game off the bench, hitting 40.5 percent from three-point range. Gavin will likely fill the void in the starting five from the graduation of All-League selection Colt Grandstaff.
 
2013 GLVC Freshman of the Year Andy Mazurczak will continue as the field general, the point guard averaged 13.0 ppg and 4.2 rpg last season with a team-best 5.0 assists per game.
 
Jordan Mach returns after averaging 12.4 ppg and 3.8 rpg with a team-high 81 threes while Mohamed Mohamed is the fourth returning starter, averaging 6.1 ppg and 3.5 rpg last season.
 
Gregory Smith and Manny Joshua each appeared in 21 games last season and will continue to supplement the lineup along with Leavon Head and Cameron Frank.
 
The Rangers suffered a 77-40 exhibition setback to 2014 Final Four participant University of Wisconsin on Nov. 5 inside the Kohl Center. Gavin led Parkside in the game with 15 points while Mohamed and Jalen Currie added six and five points, respectively while Riauka collected four boards and game-high three blocks.
 
About the Vaqueros: Puerto Rico-Bayamon is a bit of the mystery, going 1-11 last season against NCAA Division II squads from the United States. The Vaqueros (Spanish for Cowboys) are dual members of both NCAA Division II and the Puerto Rico Inter-University Athletic League (LAI), an association of approximately 20 schools from the US Territories of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
 
About the Gallitos: Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras has a similar arrangement as Bayamon, playing games as an NCAA Division II member and as a member of the LAI. The Gallitos (Spanish for Roosters) compiled a 2-10 record last season against US Colleges, claiming wins at the expense of Palm Beach Atlantic University (86-83) and Florida Institute of Technology (65-64).
 
Baloncesto: The Rangers have squared off against Puerto Rico universities twice in program history, winning both encounters. UW-Parkside downed UPR-Rio Piedras 78-67 on Nov. 24, 2012 at the Hooters of Melbourne Thanksgiving Tournament in Florida while also owning a victory over the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez.
 
Puerto Rico Rewind: Junior Jimmy Gavin is back to the tropical island for the second time this year. The guard was a member of an Athletes in Action team that toured Puerto Rico during the summer.
 
Home Cooking: UW-Parkside has won 17 of its last 18 GLVC games inside DeSimone Gymnasium. That stretch includes seven wins over nationally-ranked opponents and four wins over Top 10 teams. The Rangers have additionally won their last 12 games at home.

20-Win Club: The Rangers eclipsed the 20-win barrier for the second consecutive season in 2013-2014, marking the first time since 1987 that the program has notched back-to-back 20-win campaigns and the first time since joining NCAA Division II in 1995. UW-Parkside pieced together three in a row from 1984-85 to 1986-87 while the team was a member of the NAIA. The Rangers were 22-7 in 1984-85, 21-9 in 1985-86 and 22-8 in 1986-87.

Reigel's Rangers: Head Coach Luke Reigel begins his 12th season as head coach and his 15th season overall at UW-Parkside in 2014-2015.

Reigel was named the 2013 Jack Bennett Man of the Year while also earning Midwest Region and GLVC Coach of the Year honors. The Wisconsin native sits second on the all-time wins list with 145 wins and has guided the Rangers to three NCAA Tournament berths.

Returning to the sidelines will be associate coach Keven Bradley and assistant Tom Reigel while Andy Fitzgerald joins the staff as assistant from Edgewood College.