PITTSBURG — The Pittsburg State University men's basketball team will wrap up its 2016 action with a pair of MIAA road games this week. The Gorillas will travel to St. Charles, Mo., to face Lindenwood University Thursday (Dec. 8) at 7:30 p.m. (CST) before continuing on to Jefferson City, Mo., to take the court against Lincoln University Saturday (Dec. 10) at 3:30 p.m.

The Records
Pitt State is 1-8 overall and 0-2 in MIAA play entering Thursday's action. The Gorillas have dropped six straight games, including a pair of MIAA home losses to Nebraska-Kearney (92-79) and Fort Hays State (72-67) last week.

Lindenwood is 8-2 on the season. The Lions, who have won five straight games, will make their MIAA debut against the Gorillas. LWU posted a 75-62 victory over Brescia (Ky.) University in its most recent action Monday (Dec. 5).

Lincoln brings a 6-2 record into a Thursday (Dec. 8) home match-up against Missouri Southern. The Blue Tigers claimed an 80-57 neutral site win over Harris-Stowe State in its most recent action at St. Charles, Mo., on Dec. 3.

Head Coach Kevin Muff
Pittsburg State's Kevin Muff is his seventh season leading the Gorillas. Muff (Kansas State, '86) became the Gorillas' 14th all-time head coach on Apr. 5, 2010, after spending 12 seasons at Cloud County Community College, where he helped the Thunderbirds to an average of 21 wins in each of the last five seasons.

He has a 93-88 (.514) record in his tenure with the Gorillas.

Muff was named the 2015 MIAA Co-Coach of the Year after leading the Gorillas to a 16-11 regular season record and a tie for third-place in the MIAA standings. Pitt State was picked to finish 10th in the 14-team league in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll after posting an 8-18 (4-15 MIAA) mark a year ago.

He then guided the Gorillas to a perfect 4-0 record in the MIAA Postseason Tournament, helping the Gorillas become the first No. 5 seed to claim the championship. Pitt State earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II National Tournament and finished the 2014-15 campaign with a 20-12 overall record.

Thursday's action will be Muff's seventh meeting vs.LWU. He's 3-3 against the Lions. Muff has an 8-1 record in nine match-ups with LU.

Series History
The Gorillas will meet Lindenwood for the eighth time Thursday. The Gorillas hold a 4-3 advantage in the series. Pitt State beat LWU in the only regular season meeting last year – 70-66 at St. Charles, Mo., on Jan. 21 – but the Lions knocked off the Gorillas, 77-68, in the first round of the MIAA Tournament in Pittsburg on Mar. 1.

Pitt State and LU will meet for the 34th time Saturday. The Gorillas hold a lopsided 30-3 advantage in the series, but the Blue Tigers ended a 28-game losing streak against Pitt State with a 68-63 victory at Jefferson City, Mo., on Jan. 23, 2016.

Scouting the Gorillas
Pitt State has three players averaging more than nine points a game early in the season:  junior guard/forward Isaiah Hicks (9.9 ppg), senior forward Creighton Brinker (9.4 ppg) and junior guard Dakota Jones (9.4 ppg).

Additionally, freshman guard Brandon Clifford (8.8 ppg) and freshman guard R.J. Pair (7.0 ppg) both contribute seven or more points a game.

Hicks (6-6, 205) joined the Gorillas from Cloud County Community College, where he averaged 6.8 points per game as a sophomore in 2014-15. The Long Beach, Calif., native averaged 12.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game as a freshman at Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria, Calif., in 2013-14.

In addition to his 9.9-point scoring average, Hicks leads the team in rebounds (5.8 rpg).

Brinker (6-7, 215) broke out with a career-high scoring performance against SCSU on Nov. 12.  The Seneca, Kan., native scored 18 points on five of seven shooting from the field. He connected on all four of his 3-point field goal attempts.

Brinker bettered that performance with a 26-point, eight-rebound effort vs. UNK on Dec. 1, making 10 of 15 shots from the field.

For the season, Brinker is shooting .528 from the field (28-53) including .607 from 3-point range (17-28).  He's also averaging 5.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocked shots per game to date.

Jones (5-11, 175) poured in 22 points in the season-opening loss to MSU on Nov. 11 and he added 20 points in a home win vs. Newman on Nov. 15.

The Warrensburg, Mo., native averaged 11.7 points per game last season, and Jones has compiled 656 points in 69 career games (9.5 ppg).

Clifford (6-3, 190) scored a team-leading 24 points in his Pitt State debut on Nov. 11 against Minnesota State. The Paragould, Ark., native made eight of 11 shots from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers. He added nine points against SCSU the next night.

For the season, Clifford is shooting .511 from the field, converting 24 of 47 shots.

He was a two-time Arkansas Class 5A All-State selection at Paragould High School. He averaged 28 points, six rebounds and four assists as a senior, helping the Rams to a 20-5 finish.

Pair (5-10, 175) scored a season-best 14 points against FHSU on Dec. 3.

He signed with the Gorillas out of The Colony High School in The Colony, Texas. A two-time first-team All-District selection, Pair averaged 15 points, five assists and 4.5 rebounds per game his senior season. He compiled 1,143 points, 273 assists, 145 3-point field goals and 194 steals during his prep career.

Pair has grabbed 2.6 rebounds per game and dished out 14 assists to go along with his 7.0-point scoring average.

Additionally, junior guard Elijah Gaines (6-2, 175) averaged 11.8 points and 4.1 rebounds per game while helping Long Beach (Calif.) Community College to a second straight South Coast Conference championship in 2015-16. He is averaging 5.7 points and 3.6 rebounds per game to date.

Senior guard Jordan Phelps has averaged 5.2 points per game while shooting a team-leading .533 from the field (16-30). Phelps (6-3, 180) transferred to Pitt State from Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) University.

Freshman forward Christian Edmondson has averaged 3.3 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.  Edmondson (6-6, 215) posted a double-double with 12 points and 15 rebounds in the Gorillas' home win over Newman on Nov. 15

Edmondson joined the Gorillas from Flower Mound (Texas) High School where he was a first-team Texas Class 6A All-District selection in 201516. He averaged a double-double for the season, generating 14.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game for the Jaguars.

Senior guard Josiah Gustafson has averaged 3.3 points per game in limited action since returning from a shoulder injury.

Gustafson, a two-time All-MIAA performer, started 60 games the previous two seasons.  The Omaha, Neb., native averaged 15.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per game during his junior campaign, garnering second-team All-MIAA honors.

He shot 49.8 percent from the field (143-287) and made a team-leading 53 3-pointers (.473, 53-112).  Gustafson ranked 11th in the MIAA in scoring, eighth in the league in field goal percentage and second in the conference in free throw percentage (.885, 92-104).

Gustafson scored in double figures 22 times during the 2015-16 campaign with six games of 20 points or more. He earned first-team All-MIAA honors as a sophomore in 2014-15 when he averaged a team-leading 15.5 points per game as well as 3.6 rebounds per game.

Gustafson has scored 1,150 points in 90 career games (79 starts), averaging 12.8 points per game.

Junior guard Jaxon Holden suffered a concussion in Pitt State's exhibition game against Kansas State and missed the Gorillas first seven games.

He returned to the Pitt State line-up vs. UNK on Dec. 1 and he's averaged 9.5 points per game in the last two outings.

Holden (6-1, 180) averaged 7.7 points and 2.0 rebounds per game in his first season  for the Gorillas in 2015-16. The Flower Mound, Texas native shot 49.1 percent from the field and made 26 3-point field goals while starting 13 of 23 games played.

Holden played his freshman season at NCAA Division I Stephen F. Austin University in 2014-15, helping the Lumberjacks to a 29-5 record.

As a team, Pitt State is shooting 40.6 percent from the field (208-512), 36.8 percent from 3-point range (70-190) and 62.9 percent from the free throw line (107-190).  The Gorillas are averaging 65.9 points per game.

Pitt State's opponents are shooting 46.6 percent from the field (240-515), 39.8 percent from 3-point range (68-171) and 72.3 percent from the free throw line (141-195) while averaging 76.6 points per game.

Pitt State Probable Starters
    F    1    Isaiah Hicks, 6-6, 205, Jr., Long Beach, Calif.
    F    23    Creighton Brinker, 6-7, 215, Sr., Seneca, Kan.
    G    3    Elijah Gaines, 6-2, 175, Jr., San Pedro, Calif.
    G    10    R.J. Pair, 5-10, 175, Fr., The Colony, Texas
    G    21    Jaxon Holden, 6-1, 180, Jr., Flower Mound, Texas