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Upcoming in Gray Wolves Basketball: Lourdes enters the second half of its season looking to separate itself from a bunched league standings.  The Gray Wolves host Northwestern Ohio, a team it trails by two games, on Wednesday evening, before heading to Siena Heights on Saturday night to face a team that is tied with Lourdes in the win column.

Head Coach Andre Smith: In his sixth season both on the Lourdes bench and overall as a men's collegiate head coach, Andre Smith has a 91-81 (.529) record.  He is the only head coach in Lourdes program's history.  Smith was the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2012-2013.

Series Notes: Lourdes holds a 6-5 all-time advantage against Northwestern Ohio in a series that dates back to Dec. 30, 2010.  The Racers have won the last five meetings though, including a sweep of last year's contests.  Northwestern Ohio posted a 63-50 win at Tam-o-Shanter before downing the Gray Wolves 71-59 to end the regular season in Lima, Ohio. The Gray Wolves are 8-2 all-time against Siena Heights in a series that dates back to Nov. 12, 2011.  Lourdes swept last year's meetings, downing the Saints 56-40 at Tam-o-Shanter before winning in Adrian, Mich. 64-49.  The Gray Wolves hold a narrow 3-2 series advantage all-time in games played in Adrian.

Wrapping Up Last Week: Lourdes was within two points of NCAA Division I Central Michigan with 13 minutes to play on Thursday before the Chippewas went on a 17-2 run to earn an 87-66 victory over the Gray Wolves.  E.J. Blackwell scored 23 points in the exhibition game for Lourdes while Daniel Steen added 10 points.  On Saturday, Madonna raced out to an 18-0 lead in the game's first eight minutes and held off a late Lourdes rally, defeating the Gray Wolves 78-73 at Tam-o-Shanter.  Zach Steinmetz led five Gray Wolves in double figures with 19 points while Blackwell added 16 more for Lourdes.

Scouting Northwestern Ohio: The Racers snapped a five-game losing streak on Saturday afternoon with a 62-59 victory at home against Siena Heights.  Lawrence Jackson leads Northwestern Ohio averaging 22.9 points per game while Josh Scott adds 11.5 points per night.  Northwestern Ohio ranks 21st nationally, allowing 69.9 points per game.

Scouting Siena Heights: The Saints have dropped three of their last four games after falling 62-59 on the road at Northwestern Ohio on Saturday.  George Goodman leads Siena Heights averaging 14.1 points per game, and is the team's only double figure scorer.  The Saints have blocked 66 shots this season, 15th most in NAIA Division II.

Spreading Out the Scoring: Lourdes had five players finish the game scoring in double figures on Saturday afternoon, led by Zach Steinmetz's 19 points.  While the contest against Madonna marked the first time this year the Gray Wolves had five players in double figures, they have been used to balanced scoring all season.  Lourdes had four players tally 10 or more points in a game six times this season prior to the Crusader contest.

A Bunched League Standings: Lourdes enters play this week tied for eighth place in the WHAC ledger with Michigan-Dearborn and Lawrence Tech, with the top eight teams qualifying for the postseason tournament.  Just one-and-a-half games separates seventh place Madonna from 12th place Marygrove as the conference moves towards the end of the first round of league play.

Grace Returns to the Lineup: KyJuan Grace made his season debut for the Gray Wolves in the exhibition game at Central Michigan and drew a starting assignment on Saturday against Madonna.  Grace averaged 1.5 points per game over his first two seasons at Lourdes, but tallied five points in his regular season debut against the Crusaders.

Making Free Throws: Lourdes is shooting 70.9% from the free throw line this season.  Zach Steinmetz is connecting at a team-high 80.4% from the charity stripe while E.J. Blackwell, who has the most attempts on the squad with 70, is connecting at a 78.6% clip.

Who's in the Lineup Today?: Lourdes has had 10 different players start at least one contest thus far this season.  Not one Gray Wolf has started all 15 games. 

Limiting Scoring Yet Again: The Gray Wolves enter the week ranked ninth in NAIA Division II allowing just 66.5 points per game this season after finishing in the top-five nationally in scoring defense each of the last four seasons.  Lourdes finished third in NAIA Division II last season surrendering just 58.7 points per game.  In 2013-2014 Lourdes was fifth (63.10), one year after leading the country in 2012-2013 allowing just 51.3 points per night.

More National Rankings: Lourdes ranks 26th in NAIA Division II shooting 38.0% from three-point range this year and is 41st shooting 70.9% from the free throw line.  Defensively, the Gray Wolves are holding the opposition to just 42.0% shooting from the floor, a mark that ranks 40th nationally, and is 48th in rebounding margin, outboarding the opposition by 3.47 rebounds per night.

Individually Among the National Leaders: Zach Steinmetz ranks 30th in the country averaging 8.6 rebounds per contest.  Julian Johnson ranks 48th with handing out 4.0 assists per game.

This and That: E.J. Blackwell leads Lourdes in scoring, averaging 16.9 points per game, while Zach Steinmetz adds 16.4 points per contest ... Steinmetz is 14 points shy of 1,200 for his career ... the Gray Wolves have scored one fewer point (996) this season than the opposition (997).