Complete Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Basketball: With non-league action in the rear view mirror, 24th-ranked Lourdes turns its attention to Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference play the remainder of the season.  The Gray Wolves begin a three-game road trip this week with a trip to Cornerstone on Wednesday evening before heading to Northwestern Ohio for a Saturday afternoon contest.

Head Coach Dennis Hopson: In his fifth season on the Lourdes bench, Dennis Hopson is 81-34 (.704) with the Gray Wolves and as a men's collegiate head coach.  He is only the third head coach in Lourdes program's history.

Series Notes: Cornerstone holds a 22-4 all-time advantage against Lourdes in a series that began Dec. 10, 2011.  Last year the two schools split their season series with each winning on their opponent's home floor.  The Gray Wolves were 75-66 victors in Grand Rapids, Mich. while the Golden Eagles won 91-84 inside the Ebeid Rec Center.  Cornerstone is 12-2 against Lourdes in Grand Rapids.  The Gray Wolves hold a 15-12 series edge against Northwestern Ohio dating back to Dec. 30, 2010.  The two schools split last season's meetings with the Racers winning 59-58 in Lima, Ohio and the Gray Wolves notching a 78-68 win in the Ebeid Rec Center.  Northwestern Ohio holds a 9-5 series edge all-time in Lima.

Wrapping Up Last Week: Lourdes used a 21-3 run midway through the second half to pull away from Ohio Christian on Tuesday evening (Nov. 21) on the way to a 91-75 win over the Trailblazers.  Jackie Harris led the Gray Wolves with 28 points and seven rebounds while Joey Holifield added 20 points, six rebounds, and six assists.  Shaunn Monroe and Stephen Coleman Jr. both finished with double figures as well, scoring 17 and 15 points respectively.

Scouting Cornerstone: The Golden Eagles had their three-game winning streak snapped on Tuesday (Nov. 21), falling 95-85 at Madonna.  Luke Rowlinson leads Cornerstone averaging 20.0 points per game while Cory Ainsworth has added 17.0 points and a team-leading 6.3 rebounds per contest.  Cornerstone is averaging 87.0 points per game this season while shooting 50.1% from the floor as a team.

Scouting Northwestern Ohio: The Racers snapped a two-game losing skid on Tuesday (Nov. 21), defeating Concordia (Mich.) 89-85 at home.  Northwestern Ohio travels to Siena Heights on Wednesday before hosting Lourdes.  Ryan Archey leads the Racers averaging 17.4 points per game this season.  Grant Pikkaart has added 9.4 points while grabbing a team-leading 4.3 rebounds per contest.

Cracking the Top-25: Lourdes enters the week ranked 24th in the latest NAIA top-25 coaches' poll.  A new poll will be released on Wednesday (Nov. 29).  This marks the first time the Gray Wolves have been ranked in men's basketball since the NAIA merged from two divisions into one prior to the 2020-2021 season.  The last time Lourdes was ranked was Feb. 19, 2020 when the Gray Wolves check in at 23rd in the NAIA Division II poll.  The highest Lourdes has ever been ranked was 13th during the 2019-2020 season.

Program's Best Start: Lourdes has posted the best start in program history with a 6-0 record this season.  Prior to this season, Lourdes had never started a season better than 3-0, which occurred in the 2015-2016 campaign.  Lourdes started a season 5-1 three previous times, in the 2012-2013, 2013-2014, and 2018-2019 seasons. 

Sharp Shooting: Lourdes is shooting 51.6% from the field through six games this season with every player that has logged at least 100 minutes on the season connecting at a 50% clip or better.  Jakiel Wells is connecting at 60.0% while Ethan Damerum is shooting 59.1%.  Jackie Harris has excelled from three-point range, making 25-of-55 (45.5%) attempts while averaging more than four triples per night.

Among the Nation's Best: Lourdes ranks fourth in all of NAIA shooting 80.4% from the free throw line this season.  The Gray Wolves have gone 78-of-97 from the charity stripe, led by Joey Holifield, who is 24-of-29 (82.8%).

Going the Distance: Jackie Harris and Joey Holifield both played all 40 minutes in the victory over Ohio Christian last week.  It was the second time this season that Holifield had not left the floor in a game, as he played all 45 minutes in the overtime win over Saint Mary-of-the-Woods on Nov. 11 as well.

Lighting Up the Scoreboard: Lourdes is averaging 90.0 points per game thus far this season, and has tallied 84 or more in five of the six games.  Jackie Harris leads the way for the Gray Wolves averaging 25.7 points per outing while Joey Holifield has added 18.3 points per night.  Shaunn Monroe contributes 14.8 points per game for the Gray Wolves.

Lourdes Tabbed WHAC Preseason Favorite: The Gray Wolves were selected to win the WHAC regular season title this season in the preseason poll conducted of the league's head coaches.  Lourdes collected four first place votes and was picked just ahead of Rochester (Mich.) and Indiana Tech in the league balloting.  

This and That: Lourdes is 210-180 all-time in the program's 14th season ... last season was the Gray Wolves fourth NAIA National Championship appearance and second consecutive (along with 2012 and 2013) ... the Gray Wolves improved to 6-14 all-time in overtime contests with the win over Saint Mary-of-the-Woods ... Lourdes is outscoring opponents 254-185 over the first 20 minutes ... the Gray Wolves have registered 64 steals defensively while committing just 82 total turnovers on offense.