By Chad Waller, Director of Communications and Sports Information

NAIA Game of the Week – No. 6
No. 23 Saint Francis (Ind.) (18-9, 10-5 CL) at No. 22 Marian (Ind.) (15-5, 11-4 CL)
Saturday, Feb. 15 | 3 p.m. EST | John Grimes Court | Indianapolis, Ind.
Live Video/Audio/Stats – Provided by Marian

• No. 22 Marian (Ind.) and No. 23 Saint Francis (Ind.) match up in a Crossroads League (CL) showdown on Saturday. Both teams are seeking to move up in the CL standings as the Knights are currently tied for second place at 11-4 and St. Francis is tied for fourth-place at 10-5. Indiana Wesleyan tops the conference with a 12-3 mark.
• Marian was voted No. 4 in the CL Preseason Coaches' Poll, while Saint Francis was predicted to finish sixth. Currently, five teams in the conference are ranked in the NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll.
• Marian is coming off a 66-47 victory against Goshen (Ind.) on Wednesday, which marked the second game in as many nights. The Knights have won seven of their last eight contests.
• Saint Francis is going in a different direction with a 1-3 record in its last four games. However, the Cougars snapped a three-game skid with a 68-60 win over Spring Arbor (Mich.) on Tuesday. Senior Scott Kohne grabbed 23 rebounds, which was three shy of the USF single-game record. That mark established a season-high in the CL.
• Marian leads the all-time series with USF, 50-28. Saturday's game marks the 79th all-time meeting. Marian has won three of the last four in the series. The first meeting came on Nov. 15, 1964 when then-Marian College earned a 100-87 win in Indianapolis.
• When the game has been played on Marian's home court, the Knights hold a 30-12 all-time edge over Saint Francis.
• In the last meeting on Jan. 18, both teams ranked in the Top 25 set the 78th all-time meeting as a critical one. However, the 11th-ranked Cougars proved too strong behind 22-of-27 made free throws and a 54.5 percent success rate overall from the field in a 71-66 win. No. 20 Marian could not overcome a 37-24 score at the half.
• Marian is a perfect 7-0 this year on John Grimes Court. The last loss occurred on Feb. 16, 2013 against Bethel (Ind.).
• Saint Francis stands 9-6 in games this year played away from Fort Wayne, Ind. In their last seven road contests, the Cougars are 5-2.
• Both teams get it done on the defensive end, as Marian ranks No. 1 in Division I in scoring defense (56.6) and the Cougars are No. 14 (68.3). In 11 of 20 contests this season, the Knights have allowed 56 points or fewer and allowed a season-low 35 points in their win over NCAA Division III Grove City College (Pa.) on Dec. 28, 2013. The Knights have given up 70 or more points just three times this season. Overall, the Knights rank fourth among all men's basketball institutions at any level. For Saint Francis, the team has held opponents to fewer than 70 points in 13 of its last 19 games.
• Marian senior Jake Stafford, who averages 11.3 points per game, became the 34th Knight to surpass 1,000 career points two weeks ago with 16 points in the win over Taylor (Ind.). He now has 1,018 career points. Aaron Evans tops the club in scoring (19.1) and has reached double-digit points in all 20 of his games.
• Cougar Scott Kohne is the team's leading scorer (17.5) and has averaged over 22 points in the last four contests. He has scored 20-plus points in six CL games this season. He ranks No. 22 in the NAIA this year in total rebounding (8.9) and 39th in field goal percentage (.548).
• After Saturday's meeting, both teams have just two regular season games remaining on their schedules.

Note – A special thanks to the Sports Information Departments at Marian and Saint Francis for providing portions of the information above.

Additional Notes from Around NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball
(Through games played on Feb. 13, 2014)
• For the first-time in the history of the NAIA, there will be a All-Star Game. The NABC-NAIA Men's Basketball All-Star Game, presented by US Bank will occur on March 22 as the 10 best players from Division II will compete against the 10 best players from Division I. Coach Al Waller, formerly of College of the Ozarks (Mo.) and coach Don Meyer, formerly of Lipscomb (Tenn.), are the head coaches for the event. On that day, there will also be a Dunk and 3-Point Contest. For more information, click here.
• IU Southeast currently holds the longest active win streak at 14-straight games. The Grenadiers notched its first win during this streak on Dec. 18, 2013. IU Southeast next faces IU East on Saturday and has three overall regular season games remaining.
• Right behind IU Southeast is the 13-game win streak held by three teams: Cardinal Stritch (Wis.), Cornerstone (Mich.) and Union (Ky.).
• There are no teams in Division II with an undefeated record. Five teams currently have the fewest losses with three apiece.
• Cardinal Stritch (Wis.), Cornerstone (Mich.) and Dordt (Iowa) are tied for the most wins with 24. Overall, 22 teams have posted 20-or-more wins thus far.
• One team is still searching for its first victory.
• Behind a 13-game win streak, Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) remained in the No. 1 position in the eighth regular-season edition of the Division II Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll. For the complete release, click here.   
• Greg Miller of Grace (Ind.) was named this week’s NAIA National Division II Men’s Basketball Player of the Week. For the complete release, click here.
• On Feb. 2, Oregon Tech head coach Danny Miles became the second-ever coach in any level of men's college basketball to hit 1,000 wins. The 71-51 win over Corban (Ore.) earned him the rare milestone in coaching annals. Miles is in his 43rd season at Oregon Tech and now trails only Harry Statham of NCAA Division II McKendree (Ill.) in career wins. For more information, click here.
• Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) head coach Ralph Hodge hit 700 career wins after the Tigers took care of Purdue Calument (Ind.) on Feb. 1. He currently holds the third-most victories among active Division II coaches, as he is in his 35th season.
• Vasha Davis recently established an IU East men's basketball school record with 27-consecutive made free throws. Davis' streak stretched from his last two free throws at Asbury (Ky.) on Jan. 15 through his first four free throws at Saint Louis Pharmacy (Mo.) on Jan. 26. Davis has made 78 percent of his free throws for the season. He also ranks in the top 50 in the NAIA with an overall field goal percentage of .535.
• After the win on Jan. 28 against Taylor (Ind.), coach Mike Lightfoot of Bethel (Ind.) reached 700 career wins and hit that milestone in the third-fastest manner in NAIA annals (in 960 games). He also became the second active Division II head coach to reach the 700-win threshold.
• On Jan. 25, Embry-Riddle (Fla.) coach Steve Ridder hit career win No. 600. In the 59-58 victory over Warner (Fla.), he became the fifth active Division II coach with 600-plus wins.
• Brad Karp of Saint Xavier (Ill.) set the all-time SXU scoring record in the game against Indiana South Bend on Jan. 11. His 28 points pushed his career total to 2,530 points. Karp joins NCAA Division I standout Doug McDermott of Creighton (Iowa) as the only two active men's college basketball players in the nation with over 2,500 career points.
• From Jan. 24 - 26, the 11th Annual Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers weekend occurred to raise awareness about the fight against cancer. Both divisions of NAIA Men's Basketball Coaches will continue to conduct a national effort of fund raising for the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and American Cancer Society. Follow CoachesvsCancer on Facebook and @CoachesvsCancer on Twitter and leverage your social media channels using the hashtag #SuitsAndSneakers to share your school and coach’s participation in Suits And Sneakers. For more information, click here.
• Other Top 25 matchups this week:
o Tuesday – No. 16 Huntington (Ind.) def. No. 12 Bethel (Ind.), 87-81
o Wednesday – No. 11 St. Thomas (Fla.) def. No. 19 Embry-Riddle (Fla.), 60-58
o Saturday – No. 23 Saint Francis (Ind.) at No. 22 Marian (Ind.)