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

SOMERS, Wis. (Nov. 12, 2015)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside men's basketball squad begins the regular season this weekend, opening the 2015-2016 slate against Saint Xavier University on Saturday before facing in-state rival Silver Lake College on Tuesday.
 
The Rangers and Cougars hit the hardwood at 3 p.m. on Saturday while Parkside and Silver Lake tip off at 7 p.m. on Tuesday evening. Live stats, audio, and video will be provided for both games. Jim Kramer along with WIPZ Broadcasters Zach Roethlisberger and Ryne Goralski will provide the audio feed commentary on Saturday while Jim Kramer will provide the play-by-play for Tuesday's encounter.
 
About the Rangers: Three-time defending Great Lakes Valley Conference East Division Champion UW-Parkside has plenty of shoes to fill, needing to replace four of the top five scorers from last season's record-setting squad. The Rangers had one of the best seasons in program history in 2014-2015, setting school records for both overall wins and wins in conference play, earning the program's fourth trip to the NCAA Division II Tournament and the third in as many seasons.
 
2013 GLVC Freshman of the Year Andy Mazurczak is the top returner from a season ago, starting all 30 games and averaging 11.9 points per game along with dishing out 2.9 assists per game in 2014-2015. Jalen Currie is the only other starter back from a season ago, posting 4.6 ppg and 4.4 rebounds per game in his debut season with the Rangers. Kendale McCullum was a spark off the bench, adding 4.8 ppg while Goran Zagorac averaged over 10 rebounds a game in his two starts last season.
 
Parkside took on Division I University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in an exhibition on Nov. 5, falling 81-62 inside the Klotsche Center. The visiting Rangers got off to a sluggish start but finished the game strong, outscoring the Panthers 35-31 in the second half while owning a 40-32 edge in points in the paint.
 
Mazurczak shined in the exhibition, dropping a game-high 23 points while McCullum and Alexander Brown both contributed 10 points off the bench.
 
Nov. 14 vs. Saint Xavier University at DeSimone Gymnasium (Live Stats)(Video)(Audio)
 
Series History: The Rangers and Cougars have met 25 times on the hardwood with UW-Parkside owning a 14-11 advantage in the all-time series.
 
About the Cougars: Saint Xavier (1-4), an NAIA Division II institution, already has five games under its belt this season and heads north to Wisconsin looking to snap a three-game slide. The Cougars lone victory this season was an 85-63 triumph at the expense of Silver Lake on Nov. 1. Since then Saint Xavier has dropped contests to Huntington University (84-70), Grace College (78-65), and the University of Saint Francis (102-91).
 
In Wednesday's loss to St. Francis, Larry Motuzis scored a game-high 39 points, canning six three-pointers while hitting 13 shots from the charity stripe.
 
On the season, Motuzis averages 26.2 points per game and a team-best 6.8 rebounds per game. Stanley Moore is the only other Cougar averaging in double figures, pouring on 15.6 ppg.
 
Nov. 17 vs. Silver Lake College at DeSimone Gymnasium (Live Stats)(Video)(Audio)
 
Series History: The Rangers and Lakers have battled three times with Parkside prevailing on all three occasions. Last season the Rangers pounded Silver Lake 89-51 on Dec. 4 behind a 21-point, 14-rebound performance from Zygimantas Riauka.
 
About the Lakers: Silver Lake (1-4), a member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association, is still searching for its first win against a four-year institution. The Lakers lone win was a 68-61 home victory over junior college University of Wisconsin-Washington County on Nov. 4. Silver Lake was unable to generate any momentum from the win, falling 82-68 to Trinity International University two days later and stumbling 74-68 to Trinity Christian College on Nov. 7.
 
Alexis Stevens paces the Laker scoring charge, averaging 11.2 points per game while grabbing 7.4 rebounds per game. Densel Smith chips in 9.6 ppg and 5.8 rpg while Jordan Portee contributes 7.0 ppg and 3.6 assists per game.
 
Pod-demonium: The GLVC continues its pod system for the 2015-2016 season, 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 the University of Indianapolis, Saint Joseph's College, and travel partner Lewis University. Pod mates rotate every two years with the Rangers previously paired with Lewis, University of Illinois Springfield and McKendree University from 2013-2015.
 
Preseason Prognostications: UW-Parkside is picked to finish fifth in the GLVC East in 2015-2016 according to the league's 16 head coaches.
 
The Rangers (26-4, 17-1 GLVC) accumulated 71 points in the poll, securing the No. 5 spot in the eight-team East Division and owning a 30-point cushion on sixth place University of Illinois Springfield (11-16, 5-13 GLVC). National semifinalist and GLVC East Co-Champion Bellarmine University (31-4, 17-1 GLVC) sits atop the poll, collecting 119 points and 14 of the 16 first place votes.
 
The University of Indianapolis (25-6, 14-4 GLVC) is second with 101 points and one first place nod while the University of Southern Indiana (19-8, 12-6 GLVC) is third with 87 points and the remaining first place endorsement. Lewis University (22-9, 12-6 GLVC) rounds out the upper half of the division, slotting fourth with 81 points.
 
UIS is sixth with 41 points, followed by McKendree University (11-15, 4-14 GLVC) in seventh (35 points) and Saint Joseph's College (6-22, 3-15 GLVC) in eighth (33 points).
 
In the West Division, defending GLVC Tournament Champion Drury University (21-9, 12-6 GLVC) ranks No. 1 with 115 points and 11 first place endorsements. One point is all that separates No. 2 from No. 3 with Truman State University (20-10, 11-7 GLVC) grabbing 92 points to snag second while Quincy University(13-16, 7-11 GLVC)  is third with 91 points. Both Truman State and Quincy collected two first place votes. The University of Missouri-Saint Louis (19-11, 10-8 GLVC) rounds out the upper half of the division, netting 82 points and the final first place vote.
 
Maryville University (12-17, 6-12 GLVC) is fifth with 70 points followed by William Jewell College (13-14, 9-9 GLVC) in sixth (45 points), Missouri University S&T (9-17, 2-16 GLVC) in seventh (38 points) and Rockhurst University (7-19, 3-15 GLVC) in eighth (35 points).

Veteran's Day Salute: UW-Parkside will be honoring military veterans from the Great Lakes Naval Base prior to Saturday's game against Saint Xavier. Additionally, all military veterans will receive free admission to the game.
 
On Wisconsin: UW-Parkside has faced in-state foes on 21 occasions since the 2003-2004 season, winning 19 of those games, including the last nine. The Rangers last setback to a Badger State opponent was on Nov. 15, 2009, falling 86-81 to Concordia University Wisconsin. Parkside's only other in-state loss in the past 13 years was an 87-50 defeat to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Nov. 23, 2004. The Panthers went on to win the Horizon League that season and advance to the NCAA Sweet 16.

The Rangers own wins over Cardinal Stritch, Northland International University, Saint Norbert College, Silver Lake College and Viterbo University over the last 13 seasons and own an all-time record of 108-18 against Wisconsin private colleges and universities.
 
Mr. 1,000: Senior guard Andy Mazurczak sits just 31 points shy of surpassing the 1,000-point barrier in his career. The Norridge, Illinois native heads into the season with 969 career points. Mazurczak additionally sits fifth on the all-time list for assists with 327, just five shy of Walter Greene (1978-1981) in fourth.
 
Non-Conference Mastery: The Rangers have dominated non-conference play over the last four seasons, owning a 27-6 record in regular season non-league clashes. UW-Parkside wrapped up last season with an 8-1 non-league mark while going 7-1 in both 2013-2014 and 2011-2012 while posting a 5-3 record in 2012-2013.
 
Home Cooking: UW-Parkside has won 24 consecutive GLVC games inside DeSimone Gymnasium. That stretch includes eight wins over nationally-ranked opponents and five wins over Top 10 teams. The Rangers have additionally won 25 of their last 26 games at home, including 13 in a row.

20-Win Club: The Rangers eclipsed the 20-win barrier for the third consecutive season in 2014-2015, marking the first time since 1987 that the program has notched three consecutive 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 13th season as head coach and his 16th season overall at UW-Parkside in 2015-2016.

Reigel, the GLVC Coach of the Year in both 2013 and 2015, has guided the Rangers to three straight GLVC East Division crowns while also earning Jack Bennett Man of the Year Award and Midwest Region Coach of the Year honors in 2013. The Wisconsin native sits second on the all-time wins list with 171 wins and has guided the Rangers to four NCAA Tournament berths.

Returning to the sidelines will be associate coach Keven Bradley along with assistants Tom Reigel and Andy Fitzgerald.