WARRIORS RETURN HOME TO HOST CLEARY

ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich. - It'll be a big home game for the Warriors (14-6, 9-5) on Wednesday, Jan. 31 at 7:30 p.m. when the team takes on the Cleary Cougars (1-18, 1-13) in Garth Pleasant Arena. Rochester enters a critical period of conference play with seeding implications, beginning with the Cleary matchup.

THREE KEY THINGS

WHITE LOOKS TO CONTINUE HOT-SHOOTING

WHAC Player of the Week Brett White has been on a tear for the Warriors in his last three games, averaging 27.3 points per contest. White's efficiency has also jumped out, with the forward shooting 70.6% from the field in his games last week. The forward will look to continue to flourish in a series of pivotal games for the Warriors.

HOME COURT ADVANTAGE

Rochester has had a great chunk of its success this season occur at home, with the team 10-1 in games at Garth Pleasant Arena. The Warriors average 79.4 points per game at home, but defensive metrics take the spotlight - Rochester averages 8.8 steals and 1.9 blocks a game at home compared to 5.7 steals and 1.3 blocks on the road.

CLEARY CONTINUES INAUGURAL SEASON

The Cougars will be hungry for their second-ever win in the program's history. For the Cougars, Garth Pleasant Arena will already be familiar, with the team playing two games in the venue early in the season during the Travis Bass Classic. The Cougars are led by sophomore guard Bennie Crenshaw Jr., who averages 10.2 points per game.

COACH'S CORNER

Head Coach Klint Pleasant had this to say about the upcoming stretch of games:

"Our focus in practice has been our defensive intensity and defensive awareness off the ball. We've all played each other already, and oftentimes, in the second half of conference play, an extra measure of toughness makes the difference."

SPORTS INFORMATION SPOTLIGHT

White's performance last week catapulted the forward into second place in the WHAC's three-point percentage leaders at 46.7%.

AROUND THE CONFERENCE

#10 Lourdes keeps its first place in the conference, one game ahead of #RV Madonna. It's a tight race for third and fourth, with Indiana Tech in sole possession of third at 10-4, while three teams - Lawrence Tech, Indiana Tech, and Rochester - sit at 9-5. Rochester plays LTU on Saturday and hosts Indiana Tech the following Saturday, not before hosting Madonna

Hussein Murray - RU Athletic Communications

Featured Image: Hanna Swanson - RU Athletics