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

SOMERS, Wis. (Dec. 16, 2014)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside men's basketball team is back in action after a 12-day hiatus, closing out its non-conference slate week by hosting Upper Iowa University and Michigan Tech University.
 
The Rangers (6-1) host the Peacocks tonight at 7 p.m. before taking on the Huskies on Saturday at 3 p.m. inside DeSimone Gymnasium. Live stats, video and audio will be provided for both games. Steve Kratochvil will provide the play-by-play while Jim Kramer will add color commentary on the audio feed available online and over the airwaves on WRJN 1400 AM throughout southeastern Wisconsin.
 
About the Rangers: UW-Parkside dominated a pair of Wisconsin schools in early December before taking a 12-day break for final exams. The Rangers scorched the nets in the second half in a 91-79 win over Cardinal Stritch University on Dec. 3 before torching Silver Lake College 89-51 the next night with four Rangers registering in double figures.
 
Against Stritch, the host Rangers drilled 75 percent of their shots in the second half, overcoming an early deficit en route to the 12-point victory. Jimmy Gavin paced the Green and White, scoring a season-high 30 points with 12 of those points coming at the charity stripe.
 
Against Silver Lake, the Lakers netted the game's opening bucket but it was all Rangers after that, utilizing a 13-3 run to seize the lead. Parkside owned a 39-23 lead at the half and owned a double-digit cushion the entire second half.
 
Zygmantas Riauka led the Rangers with a double-double of 21 points and 14 rebounds while also adding four assists, three steals and two blocks. Jordan Mach drained three threes to finish with 14 points while Andy Mazurczak and Jimmy Gavin added 13 and 12 points, respectively.
 
Riauka leads the team in scoring on the season, averaging 18.1 points per game while also leading the Rangers in rebounding (9.0 per game) and blocks (15). Jimmy Gavin nets 17.9 ppg with 4.4 rpg along with 3.7 assists per game. Mazurczak is the third Ranger averaging in double figures, chipping in 12.1 ppg while Mach contributes 8.3 ppg.

Dec. 16 vs. Upper Iowa University at DeSimone Gymnasium (Live Stats)(Video)(Audio)
 
About the Peacocks: Upper Iowa (7-3, 3-2 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) heads to Somers having won three of its last four games. The Peacocks lone blemish during that stretch was a 89-78 setback to 11th-ranked Minnesota State University on Dec. 12. UIU tallied wins over the University of Sioux Falls on Dec. 5 (82-66), Southwest Minnesota State University on Dec. 6 (78-74), and a 86-74 win over Concordia University Saint Paul on Dec. 13.
 
Four UIU players average in double figures with Bo Pagel pacing the squad with a 13.8 points per game average. Grant Lang adds 11.9 ppg while Jace Hanna chips in 11.5 ppg along with 5.6 rebounds per game. Jordan Hay leads UIU on the glass with 5.8 rpg while adding 10.5 ppg on the offensive end of the court.

Dec. 20 vs. Michigan Tech University at DeSimone Gymnasium (Live Stats)(Video)(Audio)
 
About the Huskies: Michigan Tech (5-2, 2-2 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) has won its last two games, claiming a 70-59 victory over the University of Findlay on Dec. 11 along with a 72-61 decision over Wayne State University.
 
The Rangers and Huskies have faced two common opponents this season in the University of Minnesota Duluth and Walsh University. Michigan Tech nipped the Bulldogs 60-58 on Nov. 22 while falling 69-63 to GLIAC rival Walsh on Dec. 6. UW-Parkside experienced similar results against the two foes, downing UMD 79-61 on Nov. 21 while stumbling 80-79 to Walsh in the home opener on Nov. 29.
 
Ben Stelzer powers the Huskie offensive attack, averaging 24.3 points per game while Jordan Chartier adds 10.6 ppg and a team-best 5.9 rebounds per game.
 
Pod-demonium: The GLVC continues its pod system for the 2014-2015, retaining the setup of two divisions with two pods of four. Pod mates will play each other in a home and home series and play all other opponents once. UW-Parkside's pod includes University of Illinois Springfield, McKendree University and Lewis University.

Preseason Prognostications: Despite winning the GLVC East Division in each of the last two seasons, the Rangers were picked fourth in the annual GLVC Coaches' Poll.
 
UW-Parkside garnered 90 total points, including two first-place endorsements to secure fourth in the GLVC East. Bellarmine University is the division's favorite for the second straight season, amassing 102 points and six first place votes. Lewis University is slotted at No. 2 in the East with five first place votes and 96 points while East Co-Champion University of Indianapolis is third with 93 points and three first place nods.
 
Defending GLVC Tournament Champion University of Southern Indiana is fifth with 79 points followed by the University of Illinois Springfield in sixth (39 points), Saint Joseph's College in seventh (36 points) with McKendree University occupying the cellar with 33 points.
 
In the West Division, 2013 National Champion Drury University collected 120 points, securing 15 first place votes. University of Missouri-Saint Louis scooped up the lone remaining first place endorsement, securing 95 total points to claim the No. 2 spot. Quincy University with 79 points and Truman State University with 77 points round out the upper half of the West in third and fourth, respectively.
 
Maryville University occupies the fifth spot with 72 points followed by William Jewell College in sixth (53 points), Missouri University S&T in seventh (42 points) and Rockhurst University in eighth (30 points).
 
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 14 of their last 15 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 151 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.