COMING UP: at OUAZ, Wednesday, 7 p.m. (MST); at Embry-Riddle, Friday, 5 p.m. (MST)

COMPLETE WEEKLY MEDIA NOTEBOOK
 
GAME DAY INFORMATION: All 28 regular-season men's basketball games and all postseason contests will be broadcast live on 92.5 KLAD-FM with Mike Safford calling the action –with the Justin Parnell Show beginning 30 minutes prior to tip-off, with Live Stats available through OIT's SIDEARM Stats Portal. Wednesday's game will be streamed on the GSAC Sports Network (PPV), while Friday's match-up will be streamed through Team1Sports. Follow in-game updates on "X" via @OITMBB.
 
MULTIMEDIA: All photos from the 2023-24 season will be posted online via the OIT Men's Basketball Flickr Page, while highlight clips and interviews will be posted online via the new OIT Men's Basketball YouTube Channel.
 
OPPONENT INFORMATION – OUAZ: Tech starts their road trip in Arizona against Ottawa University of Arizona, as the Spirit (3-1) are coming off their second-straight NAIA National Tournament appearance – a run to the national semifinals before being dispatched by College of Idaho. OUAZ makes their home debut after big road wins over Oklahoma City and Texas Wesleyan, plus a neutral site win over Carroll, as the team averages 88 points a game and converts 39-percent of their 3-point chances. 6-foot-4 wing Jayce Catchings (24.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg) has been the top option, with guards McKay Bundy (17.3 ppg, 7.8 rpg) and Jacob Henry (12.8 ppg, 4.5 apg) and post Bryce Fitzgerald (17.8 ppg, 4.5 rpg) key to the Spirit success.
 
HISTORY VS. THE SPIRIT: Wednesday marks the first meeting between OUAZ and OIT since the Spirit began their program in 2017. For the Owls, it is the second trip ever to Arizona – joining a 2019 excursion to the Phoenix metro for games at Park-Gilbert and Embry-Riddle.
 
OPPONENT INFORMATION – EMBRY-RIDDLE: OIT closes the week in the desert, climbing to 5,300 feet in elevation for a match-up in Prescott against Embry-Riddle. The Eagles (1-2) began their eighth season of basketball under the direction of a new coach – former UC-Santa Barbara assistant Ben Tucker – earning an impressive win over Bellevue, before losses to Carroll and MSU-Northern. ERAU is averaging 70 points a game and converting just 41-percent of their field goals, but have a guard-laden line-up led by Jake Klingler (14.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg) and Zach Moritz (12.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg), with 6-foot-7 Dennis Pomazanov (12.5 ppg) the top forward.
 
HISTORY VS. THE EAGLES: The two teams have met twice, with OIT winning both match-ups. The Owls cruised to a 74-53 road victory in 2019, while two seasons ago, Tech dominated the Eagles in the Lithia Classic, earning a 116-68 win.
 
THE NEW GSAC: OUAZ and Embry-Riddle will be conference mates next season – as a new look Golden State Athletic Conference debuts. Original members Hope International and The Master's will be joined by current members Life Pacific, Arizona Christian and OUAZ, while four school – ERAU, Benedictine-Mesa, Park-Gilbert and Saint Katherine – will join the circuit. Ten schools have left the GSAC over the last 10 years – all heading to the Division II Pacific West Conference (with Cal Baptist eventually moving to the Division I).
 
A WIN IN ROCKLIN: Victories in Rocklin have been few and far between since Jessup University moved from the Cal Pac to the Golden State Athletic Conference in 2013 – as Tech was a combined 1-6 in Warrior Arena, including 4-straight losses. Things changed Saturday afternoon, as the Owls jumped out to a quick 9-0 lead and made plays late in the contest, earning a key 78-72 victory at JU. OIT converted 54-percent of their field goal attempts in the second half, while recording a key 43-34 rebound edge.
 
STOPPING THE 3: Limiting the 3-pointer has been key to the Owls early season success – as Tech held their third-straight opponent under the 30-percent threshold from outside the arc. Jessup finished 6-of-21 from 3-point range – actually improving the season average for OIT opponents to 25-percent (22-of-88).
 
BAUMAN HAS PERFECT NIGHT: Leading the OIT attack in California was Kody Bauman, posting 15 points off the bench – scoring on four-straight possessions late in the contest. The senior finished the night a perfect 6-of-6 from the field, adding a trio of free throws – improving his season field goal percentage to a team-high .650 percent.
 
STRONG PERFORMANCES: Tech got key production from the guard line, as Keegan Shivers, Jay Elmore and Kam Osborn continued quality starts to the season. Shivers led the Owls in scoring, tallying 18 points with nine rebounds – reaching the 400-rebound plateau for his career, while pulling withing 149 points of the 1,000-point club. Elmore connected on 3-of-4 shots from 3-point range, scoring nine points off the bench – upping his season 3-point percentage to 44-percent. Osborn finished the night with nine points – including two huge buckets inside the final three minutes – a driving lay-up that extended a lead to 73-67 and a jumper as the shot clock expired to give Tech a 76-70 edge.
 
GUERRA DISHES IT UP: Jamison Guerra continued his stellar start to the 2023-24 season, recording eight points and seven assists in the win over Jessup. Guerra leads the Cascade Conference, averaging 6.7 assists per game – recording at least six assists in all four games this season.
 
FRASER NETS CAREER HIGH: OIT got a big boost on the glass from Erik Fraser against Jessup – recording the first double-digit rebound game of his career. The junior scored eight points and added 10 boards, breaking his single-game personal mark of nine, set last season at College of Idaho. Fraser currently is averaging seven points and six rebounds a game – one of three Owls to average more than six rebounds a contest.
 
JENSEN DOUBLES UP: A key for Tech in the win was the play inside of Blake Jensen, who posted his seventh double-double in his last 10 games dating back to last season. The forward had 11 points and 10 rebounds against Jessup – improving his season averages to 11 points and eight rebounds – while leading the club with six blocked shots.
 
TECH GAINS IN THE TOP-25 POLL: The first regular-season NAIA Top-25 poll was released on Nov. 8, with OIT climbing in the vote category – rising from four voter points in the preseason poll to 38 voter points – the seventh team listed in the others receiving votes category. Two Hustlin' Owl opponents hold down the top two spots (No. 1 College of Idaho, No. 2 Grace), while Wednesday's opponent, OUAZ, along with Bethel, joined OIT in the others receiving votes category.
 
AROUND THE CONFERENCE: It was an up-and-down week in the Cascade Conference, as Warner Pacific earned a pair of home wins over Westcliff and Providence, with College of Idaho earning a win over Division II Northwest Nazarene and Bushnell (over Linfield) and Evergreen State (over Willamette) topping D-III teams. Southern Oregon and Corban split games in Montana – as SOU beat Montana Western and Corban beat MSU-Northern, while both Lewis-Clark State and Eastern Oregon dropped tight games with No. 3-ranked Arizona Christian. This week, Bushnell joins Tech in Arizona – playing ACU, Benedictine Mesa and Embry-Riddle – with LC traveling to Montana to meet Providence and No. 5-ranked Montana Tech. Eastern Oregon and Walla Walla will play host to Carroll and Montana Western in La Grande, with C of I and Northwest meeting Vanguard and Antelope Valley in Caldwell.
 
CAREER RECORD BOOK: Seven members of the Hustlin' Owls are among the Top-75 in the OIT Men's Basketball Career Record Book heading into the weekend. Keegan Shivers leads the group, ranking No. 18 in 3-pointers made (157) and in 3-point attempts (388), No. 51 in rebounds (400), No. 52 in field goal attempts (672), No. 56 in points scored (851) and in steals (61), No. 62 in assists (158) and No. 66 in field goals made (291). Jamison Guerra is No. 29 in assists (280), No. 59 in 3-point attempts (185) and in free throws made (151), No. 62 in steals (57), No. 64 in 3-pointers made (51), ranking No. 67 in free throw attempts (194); Erik Fraser is No. 63 in 3-pointers made (53) and No. 65 in 3-point attempts (155); Jay Elmore is No. 61 in 3-pointers made (55) and No. 66 in 3-point attempts (140); Kam Osborn is No. 69 in both 3-pointers made (46) and 3-point attempts (136); with Kody Bauman and Blake Jensen each No. 52 in blocked shots (20).
 
SUCCESS IN DANNY'S HOUSE: Since OIT moved to their current campus in 1964, the Hustlin' Owls have had a decisive home floor advantage inside the Athletic Center – winning over 81-percent of their home games. Over the last 60 seasons Tech has played on what is now known as Danny Miles Court, the Owls hold a 776-177 overall record in the building – including an 89-17 mark under current head coach Justin Parnell. OIT has recorded a winning record in 57-of-59 seasons (going 5-7 in 1965-66 and 1-8 in 1970-71), including undefeated records four times (1986-87, 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11). OIT finished 2022-23 with an 8-5 home record, their 52nd-straight winning season on their home floor and has a 2-1 mark at home in 2023-24.
 
3-POINT STREAK NEARING THE 1,000 MARK: The 3-point shot has been key to the Hustlin' Owls success over the years, with Tech converting at least one 3-pointer in 987 consecutive games. OIT last failed to make a 3-pointer on Dec. 4, 1992, at Humboldt State, going 0-for-7 from outside the arch. During the streak, the Owls made one 3-pointer in a game on five occasions. UNLV holds the current 3-point streak record (1,195), just ahead of CCC rival Corban (1,185), Duke (1,150), College of Idaho (1,125) and Western Kentucky (1,104).
 
NEXT WEEK: Tech will have Thanksgiving Week off in preparation for the start of Cascade Conference play – hosting Eastern Oregon (Dec. 1 – for Military Appreciation Night) and No. 1-ranked College of Idaho (Dec. 2).