Monday, Nov. 9 | 7:30 p.m. (CT) | Bearcat Arena | Maryville, Mo.
William Jewell at Northwest Missouri State
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'CATS SEASON OPENER VS. WILLIAM JEWELL
The Northwest Missouri State University men's basketball team is set to open the 2026-27 season at home against William Jewell on Monday, Nov. 9, at 7:30 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.

ALL-TIME VS. WILLIAM JEWELL
Northwest holds a 27-16 edge in the all-time series vs. William Jewell.
    The Bearcats and Cardinals met last season in Liberty, Mo., with William Jewell scoring a 74-65 victory over Northwest.
    The teams have not played in Maryville, Mo., since a 102-59 Northwest win over William Jewell on Dec. 21, 2019.

FOR OPENERS
The Bearcats have won eight of their last 10 season openers.

Last 10 Season Openers
L, 71-49 vs. Minnesota St. (10/31/25)
L, 72-50 vs. Augustana (11/8/24)
W, 65-47 vs. Northern State (11/10/23)
W, 78-62 vs. West Texas A&M (11/5/22)
W, 68-55 vs. Northern St. (11/6/21)
W, 86-78 at Rogers State (11/21/20)
W, 85-65 vs. Daemen (11/1/19)
W, 72-70 OT vs. Northern St. (11/3/18)
W, 89-65 vs. Upper Iowa (11/10/17)
W, 87-52 vs. Upper Iowa (11/11/16)

HOME COURT ADVANTAGE IN BEARCAT ARENA
Since the start of the 2011-12 season, Northwest has compiled a home mark of 181-30, including a tally of 122-24 in MIAA play.
    Since Jan. 14, 2015, Northwest has compiled a home record of 136-23. In that same stretch, Northwest is 98-18 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    5-6 (2-5)

80 OR MORE FOR KEELEY
The Bearcats are 11-2 when they score 80 or more points under head coach Matt Keeley.
    Northwest went 2-0 in the 2024-25 season when scoring 80 or more points. Northwest went 9-2 last year when scoring 80 or more points.

Northwest Scoring 80 or More (Keeley)
L, 91-85 vs. Missouri Southern (3/4/26)
W, 81-56 at Emporia State (2/28/26)
W, 87-80 vs. Northeastern State (2/19/26)
W, 81-74 at Missouri Southern (2/12/26)
W, 80-75 at Central Missouri (1/23/26)
L, 96-89 (2OT) vs. Neb.-Kearney (1/15/26)
W, 100-94 at Nebraska-Kearney (1/3/26)
W, 96-58 vs. Kansas Wesleyan (12/17/25)
W, 97-59 vs. York (11/26/25)
W, 85-72 vs. Augustana (11/15/25)
W, 82-79 vs. UMSL (11/1/25)
W, 81-74 at Northeastern State (2/20/25)
W, 83-80 at Central Washington (12/16/24)

SCORING NOTES
Sophomore Robby Garcia has tallied the most double-figure scoring games of this year's returners. Garcia has posted 14 games of 10 or more points.
    Senior Trey Moala has posted 13 double-figure scoring games as a Bearcat.
    Junior Larenz Walters has produced 13 double-figure scoring games at Northwest, including a career-high 21 vs. Missouri Southern in the 2026 MIAA Tournament.
    Junior Presley Ibeh has notched seven double-figure games.
    Senior Mikhail Abdul-Hamid has reached 10 or more points on two occasions.
        
Career Double-Figure Scoring Games
Robby Garcia - 14
Trey Moala - 13
Larenz Walters - 9
Presley Ibeh - 7
Mikhail Abdul-Hamid - 2

Career 20-Point Scoring Games
Robby Garcia - 1
Larenz Walters - 1

SEVEN RETURNERS
Northwest is returning seven players from last year's squad that went 15-16 overall and 8-11 in the MIAA. The Bearcats finished 10th in the league and qualified for the MIAA Tournament in Kansas City.
    Sophomore Robby Garcia is Northwest's top returning scorer at 9.5 points per contest.
    Fifth-year senior Trey Moala is the top returning rebounder at 4.0 boards per game.
    Junior Larenz Walters tallied team-bests in assists (39) and steals (26) a season ago.

COACH KEELEY
Head coach Matt Keeley is entering his third season at the helm of the Bearcat program.
    Keeley guided Northwest to a nine-win improvement last season and earned a berth into the 2026 MIAA Tournament.
    Keeley is 21-38 in two seasons at Northwest. Overall, Keeley is 134-127 as a head coach.

35-12 VS. RANKED OPPONENTS SINCE 2015-16
Northwest is 35-12 vs. ranked opponents since the 2015-16 season. Northwest has lost seven straight games against foes ranked in the NABC Top 25.


Bearcats vs. NABC Ranked Foes (Since 2016)
L, 94-44 at No. 1 Washburn (1/21/26)
L, 76-53 vs. No. 1 Washburn (1/10/26)
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 10th in the MIAA in both the preseason coaches and media polls.

2026-27 MIAA Coaches Poll
1. Washburn [12] – 168 points
2. Central Missouri [1] – 154 points
3. Missouri Western – 123 points
4. Missouri Southern [1] – 120 points
5. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 114 points
6. Rogers State – 111 points
7. Pittsburg State – 104 points
8. Fort Hays State – 103 points
9. Central Oklahoma – 90 points
10. Northwest Missouri State – 59 points
11. Nebraska Kearney – 43 points
12. Emporia State – 36 points
13. Northeastern State – 35 points
14. Newman – 14 points
Coaches Are Not Allowed To Vote For Their Own Team

2026-27 MIAA Media Poll
1. Washburn [30] – 392 points
2. Rogers State – 326 points
3. Central Missouri – 322 points
4. Missouri Western – 293 points
5. Fort Hays State – 253 points
6. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 252 points
7. Missouri Southern – 241 points
8. Pittsburg State – 206 points
9. Central Oklahoma – 193 points
10. Northwest Missouri – 155 points
11. Nebraska Kearney – 101 points
12. Northeastern State – 86 points
13. Emporia State – 79 points
14. Newman – 41 points

PRESS CONFERENCE TUESDAY AT PIZZA RANCH
Northwest head coach Matt Keeley will be available each Tuesday from Noon - 1 p.m. for a press conference at Pizza Ranch in Maryville.