Wednesday, Dec. 17 | 7:30 p.m. (CT) | Bearcat Arena | Maryville, Mo.
Kansas Wesleyan vs. Northwest Missouri State
WATCH | LISTEN | STATS | TICKETS

Saturday, Dec. 20 | 1 p.m. (CT) | Mabee Center | Liberty, Mo.
Northwest Missouri State at William Jewell
WATCH | LISTEN | STATS | TICKETS

THIS WEEK'S ACTION
The Northwest Missouri State University men's basketball team (7-4 overall, 1-1 MIAA) will wrap up non-conference play with a home game Wednesday against Kansas Wesleyan (6-6 overall) and a road contest Saturday at William Jewell (3-6 overall).
    Wednesday's tip vs. Kansas Wesleyan in Bearcat Arena is set for 7:30 p.m. following the women's game vs. Buena Vista. It will be an exhibition contest for KWC.
    Saturday's contest at William Jewell will tip at 1 p.m. at the Mabee Center in Liberty, Mo.

ALL-TIME VS. KWC
Northwest is 2-0 all-time vs. Kansas Wesleyan. The two victories came in the 1940-41 (W, 46-38) and 1941-42 (W, 39-31) seasons.

ALL-TIME VS. WILLIAM JEWELL
Northwest owns a 27-15 lead in the all-time series with William Jewell. The last meeting came Nov. 21, 2019 in Bearcat Arena with Northwest securing a 102-59 victory.
    Northwest has won seven straight matchups with William Jewell. The Cardinals's last win in the series came Dec. 4, 1992, on a neutral court in St. Joseph, Mo.

NORTHWEST SURPASSES WIN TOTAL FROM LAST YEAR
The Bearcat men's basketball team has surpassed its win total from last year (6-22). The Bearcats are 7-4 this season having won seven of their last 10 games.
    Northwest is 3-1 at home this season after going 0-10 in Bearcat Arena in 2024-25.

HOME COURT ADVANTAGE IN BEARCAT ARENA
Since the start of the 2011-12 season, Northwest has compiled a home mark of 179-25, including a tally of 121-19 in MIAA play.
    Since Jan. 14, 2015, Northwest has compiled a home record of 134-18. In that same stretch, Northwest is 97-13 in home MIAA contests.

Year        Record (MIAA Games)
2011-12    12-1 (9-1)
2012-13    12-3 (6-3)
2013-14    12-1 (9-1)
2014-15    13-2 (8-1)
2015-16    13-0 (11-0)
2016-17    18-0 (10-0)
2017-18    12-2 (8-1)
2018-19    17-0 (9-0)
2019-20    16-0 (10-0)
2020-21    12-2 (10-1)
2021-22    12-2 (9-2)
2022-23    15-1 (11-0)
2023-24    12-0 (11-0)
2024-25    0-10 (0-9)
2025-26    3-1 (1-0)

GET TO 70 FOR THE WIN
Northwest is 7-1 this season when scoring 70 or more points.

ROYCE IN A CLASS BY HIMSELF
Senior guard Royce Williams is the only MIAA player this season to average at least 14.0 ppg, grab at least 50 rebounds, nab at least 20 steals and knock down at least 15 three-pointers.

ROYCE ROLLS UP NUMBERS
Senior guard Royce Williams is tied for the team lead in scoring (13.6 ppg) and is tops on the squad in steals (21) and rebounds (5.5 rpg).
    Williams ranks No. 5 in the MIAA in steals (21).
    
ROYCE IS HOT FROM THE LINE
Williams is 31-of-33 (93.9%) at the free throw line. Williams had a streak of 28 straight made free throws snapped with a miss against No. 12-ranked Missouri S&T.
    He ranks tied for No. 11 in the nation and No. 1 in the  MIAA in free throw percentage.
    
GAIR ADDS SCORING FLAIR
Senior Aiden Gair leads the team in assists (34) and three-pointers made (30) and is tied with Royce Williams for the team lead in scoring (13.6 ppg).
    Gair has sank 125 three pointers in his NCAA collegiate career with 95 made triples at Millersville.
    Gair ranks second in the MIAA in three-pointers made with 30, trailing Central Missouri's Jevon Hill (39).
    He ranks No. 14 in the country in three-pointers made (30).
    
MIAA 3-Point FGs Made - Leaders
1. Jevin Hill (Central Missouri)    31
2. Aiden Gair (Northwest Mo. St.)    30
3. Gavyn Elkamil (Mo. Southern)    28
    Jack Bachelor (Washburn)    28
5. Benard Omooria (Rogers St.)    26

MAYES IS A SCORING BOOST, AT A HIGH PERCENTAGE
Senior Matthew Mayes is third on the team in scoring (11.9 ppg).
    Mayes is shooting 52.9% from the floor having drained 45-of-85 shots. Mayes ranks No. 10 in the MIAA in field goal percentage.

SCORING NOTES
Senior Aiden Gair secured his 33rd career double-figure scoring game with 12 points against No. 12-ranked Missouri S&T.
    Senior Matthew Mayes recorded his 25th career double-figure scoring game with a team-high 17 points vs. Missouri S&T.

Career Double-Figure Scoring Games
Aiden Gair - 33
Matthew Mayes - 25
Royce Williams - 21
Jack Ratigan - 11
Trey Moala - 10
Robby Garcia - 2
Gob Gob - 2
Larenz Walters - 2
Presley Ibeh - 1

Career 20-Point Scoring Games
Aiden Gair - 5
Royce Williams - 5
Matthew Mayes - 1

Career 30-Point Scoring Games
Aiden Gair - 1
Royce Williams - 1

ACTIVE DOUBLE-DOUBLES LIST
Junior Jack Ratigan owns Northwest's only active career double-doubles with two.

Career Double-Doubles
Jack Ratigan - 2

WALTERS NETS BACK-TO-BACK STRONG SCORING EFFORTS
Redshirt freshman Larenz Walters scored a career-high 16 points against Missouri Western and followed it up with a 14-point performance at home against Emporia State.
    Walters is averaging 14.0 points per game in MIAA play and 7.9 points per game in all games.

WILLIAMS HITS FOR 30 VS ESU
Senior guard Royce Williams registered a career-high 30 points in leading Northwest to a 77-70 win over Emporia State. It is the 12th 30-point game posted by an MIAA men's player this season.
    Williams also tied career-high with nine rebounds vs. the Hornets.
    Williams went 9-of-13 from the floor and was perfect at the free throw line by sinking all eight attempts. Williams buried 4-of-5 from three-point range vs. ESU.
    Williams put up 21 points at Missouri Western to open MIAA play.
    Williams is averaging 25.5 points per game in MIAA games. Williams is 8-of-13 (61.3%) from three-point range in MIAA games.

FOUR RETURNERS
The Bearcat roster features four players returning from last year's squad.
    Juniors Jack Ratigan and Trey Moala are the only two returnees who saw action last season.
    Larenz Walters and Presley Ibeh were on the squad last season but redshirted and did not see any action.
    
TRANSFER PORTAL
Northwest added six NCAA Div. I or Div. II transfers for this year's roster.
    Gob Gob is a Div. I transfer from UMKC. Gob played 19 games and scored 57 points for the Roos. Gob tallied a 16-point output vs. Oral Roberts (Feb. 1, 2025).
    Aiden Gair is a Div. II transfer from Millersville in Pennsylvania. Gair started 30 games and averaged 14.4 points for the Marauders. Gair buried 95 three-pointers to rank No. 17 in the nation.
    Matthew Mayes is a Div. II transfer from Henderson State. Mayes played in 28 games and made 21 starts for the Reddies. Mayes averaged 11.3 points per game. He dished out 77 assists and tallied 70 steals. Mayes ranked No. 17 in the nation in steals in 2024-25.
    Royce Williams is a Div. II transfer from Southern New Hampshire. Williams played three seasons for SNHU and saw action in 69 games with 15 starts. He averaged 9.3 points per game in 2024-25. He shot 46.6% from the floor and grabbed 83 rebounds. Williams played in the 2025 NCAA Tournament for SNHU.
    Osa Obasohan is a Div. I transfer from Hawaii. Obasohan played in 10 games for the Rainbow Warriors and scored six points. He played in a French under-21 league in 2023-24.
    Jack Webb is a Div. I transfer from Central Michigan. Webb last played for the Chippewas in the 2021-22 season. He played in 29 games and scored 13 points for the Chippewas in the Mid-American Conference.

35-10 VS. RANKED OPPONENTS SINCE 2015-16
Northwest is 35-10 vs. ranked opponents since the 2015-16 season. Northwest went 0-3 last season against foes ranked in the NABC Top 25.

Bearcats vs. NABC Ranked Foes (Since 2016)
L, 80-54 vs. No. 12 Missouri S&T (12/13/25)
L, 80-69 vs. No. 1 Washburn (1/22/25)
L, 96-66 at No. 2 Washburn (1/11/25)
L, 68-56 vs. No. 18 Southwest Minnesota State (11/23/24)
L, 43-42 at No. 2 Minnesota State (3/19/24)
W, 71-62 vs. No. 10 Minnesota-Duluth (3/17/24)
W, 64-61 (2OT) vs. No. 24 Fort Hays State (2/3/24)
W, 63-59 vs. No. 15 Emporia State (12/16/23)
W, 65-47 vs. No. 21 Northern State (11/10/23)
L, 61-57 vs. No. 15 Southern Nazarene (3/12/23)
W, 61-53 vs. No. 12 Central Oklahoma (3/5/23)
W, 65-51 vs. No. 7 Central Oklahoma (2/23/23)
L, 69-58 at No. 7 Central Oklahoma (1/12/23)
L, 74-65  at No. 22 Emporia State (12/17/22)
W, 78-62 vs. No. 5 West Texas A&M (11/5/22)
W, 67-58 vs. No. 5 Augusta (3/26/22)
W, 70-57 vs. No. 22 Black Hills State (3/24/22)
W, 61-43 vs. No. 14 Bentley (3/22/22)
W, 70-56 at No. 5 Augustana (3/15/22)
W, 53-50 vs. No. 21 Fort Hays State (3/5/22)
W, 57-49 vs. No. 18 Fort Hays State (2/2722)
L, 76-75 (OT) at No. 18 Central Oklahoma (1/20/22)
W, 64-59 vs. No. 21 Seattle Pacific (11/7/21)
W, 68-55 vs. No. 15 Northern State (11/6/21)
W, 80-54 vs. No. 5 West Texas A&M (3/27/21)
W, 77-46 vs. No. 8 Flagler (3/25/21)
W, 98-77 vs. No. 18 West Liberty (3/24/21)
W, 91-86 (OT) at No. 2 Northern State (3/16/21)
W, 85-44 vs. No. 17 Washburn (3/14/21)
W, 88-85 (OT) at No. 15 Washburn (2/20/21)
W, 78-76 vs. No. 22 Missouri Southern (3/8/20)
W, 77-76 vs. No. 17 Missouri Southern (2/20/20)
W, 96-75 at No. 14 Missouri Southern (2/13/20)
W, 100-88 vs. No. 9 Southern Nazarene (11/2/19)
W, 85-65 vs. No. 22 Daemen (11/1/19)
W, 64-58 vs. No. 6 Point Loma (3/30/19)
W, 76-53 vs. No. 20 Saint Anselm (3/28/19)
W, 70-59 vs. No. 13 Southern Nazarene (3/17/19)
W, 100-86 vs. No. 13 Ferris State (11/4/19)
W, 70-56 vs. No. 15 Lincoln Memorial (12/19/17)
W, 71-61 vs. No. 3 Fairmont State (3/25/17)
W, 79-67 vs. No. 15 Lincoln Memorial (3/23/17)
W, 55-52 vs. No. 18 Southwest Minnesota State (3/14/17)
W, 82-71 vs. No. 18 Augustana (11/17/16)
L, 80-78 at No. 1 Augustana (3/15/16)

MIAA PRESEASON POLLS
The Bearcats have been projected to finish 11th by the media and 14th by the coaches in the MIAA's preseason basketball polls.

2025-26 MIAA Coaches Poll
1. Washburn [13] – 169 points
2. Rogers State [1] – 141 points
3. Central Oklahoma – 137 points
4. Fort Hays State – 134 points
5. Pittsburg State – 127 points
6. Nebraska Kearney – 106 points
7. Central Missouri – 102 points
8. Missouri Western – 79 points
9. Northeastern State – 62 points
10. Emporia State – 59 points
11. Newman – 52 points
12. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 41 points
13. Missouri Southern – 35 points
14. Northwest Missouri State – 30 points
Coaches Are Not Allowed To Vote For Their Own Team

2025-26 MIAA Media Poll
1. Washburn [23] – 346 points
2. Fort Hays State [1] – 297 points
3. Rogers State [1] – 286 points
4. Pittsburg State – 280 points
5. Central Oklahoma – 229 points
6. Nebraska Kearney – 211 points
7. Central Missouri – 186 points
8. Missouri Western – 169 points
9. Emporia State – 159 points
10. Northeastern State – 132 points
11. Northwest Missouri State – 108 points
12. Newman – 93 points
13. Missouri Southern – 69 points
14. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 59 points