Oklahoma Wesleyan Ranked No. 1 for 11th Straight Poll
• Oklahoma Wesleyan earned the No. 1 ranking for the 11th straight NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Top 25 poll, announced Monday by the NAIA office. In the sixth edition of the Top 25, Oklahoma Wesleyan grabbed all of the 16 first-place votes and is 21-0 this year. The Eagles are the only undefeated team in Division II after a 112-96 win against Ozarks (Mo.) on Jan. 26. Oklahoma Wesleyan has won an NAIA-record 39 straight games and next face No. 19 Bellevue (Neb.) on Jan. 30.
• The No. 2 and No. 3 teams hold their positions with Walsh (Ohio) and Oregon Tech.
• No. 4 Indiana-Southeast sits at the fourth spot with 372 points while No. 5 Warner Pacific (Ore.) is the second Cascade Collegiate Conference team in the top-five.
Game of the Week
• With a 39-game winning streak on the line, No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan heads to Bellevue, Neb., for a date with No. 19 Bellevue (Neb.) on Jan. 30. The game is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. CST. The two teams are the only ones with an undefeated record in the Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference — Oklahoma Wesleyan holds a one-half game lead with a 5-0 mark while Bellevue is 4-0.
• Leading the country in 3-pointer’s made (13.8 pg), the Eagles (21-0) have connected on at least 10 treys in each game this year. Most recently, Oklahoma Wesleyan set a school single-game record with 22 3-pointers in the win against Ozarks (Mo.) on Jan. 26. Oklahoma Wesleyan is second in the NAIA in scoring margin (+21.8 points).
• Bellevue, who is 16-6 overall, is on a lengthy 13-game winning streak. After starting the year 3-6, the Bruins have won by double-digits in seven contests. Prior to Saturday’s game, Bellevue takes on Ozarks (Mo.) on Jan. 29.
Keeping It Perfect
• No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan, with a NAIA-record 39-game winning streak, is the only undefeated team in Division II at 21-0. The streak remained intact after a 112-96 win against the College of the Ozarks (Mo.) on Jan. 26. The win was significant as Ozarks was the last team to take down the Eagles back on Jan. 20, 2009. Between conference tournaments and postseason, Oklahoma Wesleyan is 4-0 against Ozarks since the defeat.
• As Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference members, Oklahoma Wesleyan faces each opponent twice during the regular season. The Eagles will have the rematch with Ozarks with a quick turnaround on Feb. 2 in Point Lookout, Mo.
• During the current winning streak, the defending national champs have scored 100-plus points in 12 of those games, including the last three games.
• Oklahoma Wesleyan looks to extend that streak with a road game, the NAIA Game of the Week, at No. 19 Bellevue (Neb.) on Jan. 30.
How Does it Compare?
• With a perfect 21-0 record and a 39-game winning streak, No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan should be mentioned in some elite company. Among all divisions in four-year collegiate men’s basketball schools, the Eagles hold the nation’s longest active winning streak.
• With a 21-0 record, Oklahoma Wesleyan is tied with NAIA Division I member Mountain State (W.Va.) for the most wins without a defeat among all men’s basketball programs. There are just two other four-year teams with an undefeated record and they both are from NCAA Division II, Arkansas Tech (18-0) and Southern Indiana (17-0).
• The overall 39-game winning streak can be compared to other records held among the NAIA and NCAA in men’s basketball. The NAIA Division I record is 63 straight set by Oklahoma City from 1991-93; the NCAA Division I record is 88 straight set by UCLA from 1971-74; the NCAA Division II record is 57 set by Winona State (Minn.) from 2006-07; and the NCAA Division III record is 60 set by Potsdam State (N.Y.) from 1985-87.
Around the Top 25 This Weekend
• Besides the game between No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan and No. 19 Bellevue (Neb.) on Jan. 30, there are three other Top 25 games this week. No. 17 Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) travels to No. 8 Briar Cliff (Iowa) and No. 18 Davenport (Mich.) visits No. 12 Cornerstone (Mich.) on Jan. 27 while No. 5 Warner Pacific (Ore.) heads to No. 24 Eastern Oregon on Jan. 29. For a complete list of all the Top 25 games this week, refer to page eight.
Top 25 Rewind
• During the week of Jan. 18-24, the Top 25 posted a 44-7 (.863) record. Two ranked teams fell to unranked programs on Jan. 23: No. 11 Embry-Riddle lost to St. Thomas (Fla.), 80-70 while Concordia (Neb.) took down No. 8 Briar Cliff (Iowa), 64-62.
• The top-10 teams went 18-2 (.900) in last week’s action.
• The top three ranked teams rolled with a 8-0 record and won by an average of over 24 points. On the year, those three teams are a combined 59-4 (.937).
For the Record
• Just one team, No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan, has a perfect record. The Eagles are 21-0 and next play at No. 19 Bellevue (Neb.) on Jan. 30.
• There is one team with just one loss: (RV) Fisher (Mass.) (18-1). No. 2 Walsh (Ohio) had suffered one loss prior to a 73-72 setback against No. 22 Cedarville (Ohio) on Jan. 26.
• Oklahoma Wesleyan leads the country in wins with 21.
• Conversely, there are two teams in Division II searching for victory No. 1: Fisk (Tenn.) (0-13) and Paul Smith’s (N.Y.) (0-14).
We’re Going Streaking
• No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan holds an NAIA-record 39-game streak dating back to Jan. 20, 2009 in a loss to Ozarks (Mo.).
• With the second-longest active streak, (RV) Fisher (Mass.) has won 16 straight with the last loss coming back on Nov. 20.
• Both No. 19 Bellevue owns a 13-game winning streak with the last loss coming on Nov. 28 against Dordt (Iowa).
• No. 7 Indiana Wesleyan had its 14-game winning streak stopped after a 79-72 loss to No. 9 Bethel (Ind.) on Jan. 26. Also, No. 11 Embry-Riddle (Fla.) suffered an 80-70 setback to St. Thomas (Fla.) on Jan. 23. That loss snapped a 14-game winning streak.