The Fairmont State men's basketball team will square off versus No. 8 West Liberty for the 182^nd time in the historic West Virginia college basketball rivalry on Saturday (Jan. 14) in Fairmont at 4 p.m.

Tickets for the doubleheader can be purchased at this link. The contest will be streamed live on mountaineast.tv and Travis Jones and Duane Cochran will have the call on Sky 106.5. Live stats will be provided on the Fairmont State Athletics website.
 
Fighting Falcons Facts

• Fairmont State won its third-straight game on Wednesday (Jan. 11) after a 106-85 road win at Wheeling. Briggs Parris poured in a season-high 19 points in the Fighting Falcon victory.
• Last Saturday (Jan. 7) Fairmont State picked up its first road win at Notre Dame (Ohio) since 2018. The Fighting Falcons drained 11 shots from beyond the arc in the first half and earned an 88-79 win. Fairmont State defeated Alderson Broaddus in the first game of 2023 on Wednesday (Jan. 4) from Joe Retton Arena.
• Entering Saturday, the Falcons hold an 11-4 overall record and a 6-3 Mountain East Conference record. Fairmont State shares a tie for fourth place in the MEC standings with Concord.
• The Fairmont State high-powered offense ranks fourth in the nation in scoring (92.9 points per game) and three-pointers made per game (11.6). The Fighting Falcons lead the Mountain East Conference free throw percentage (76.5%) and three-point percentage (40.7%).
• Isaiah Sanders' 52 three-point baskets rank sixth in the country and lead the MEC. The Fighting Falcons' leading scorer (17.7 points per game) has made 46.4% of his three-point attempts this season.
• Center Tariq Woody has posted a 67.8% field goal percentage, which is the fifth-highest average out of all Division II players. The Canton, Mich. native has made 75 field goals on 105 attempts and averages 11.0 points per game.
• Two Fairmont State players, Zyon Dobbs and Fonz Hale have dished out over 60 assists each in the team's first 12 games. Dobbs has passed 71 assists, while Hale has distributed 63, which are the third and fourth highest assists totals in the conference respectfully. Dobbs has averaged 11.1 points per game and is the team's leading rebounder (83). Hale, a transfer from Salem, has made 33 three-point baskets and averages 13.8 points per game.
• Parris, a shooting guard from Boones Mill, Va., has hit 22 triples in eight games played. He has scored more than 10 points in seven games this season and scored a season-high 19 points in the win at Wheeling.
• George Mangas has kept offensive possessions alive and has hauled in a team-leading 33 offensive rebounds. Mangas has averaged 12.9 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game.
• Seth Younkin swatted a season-high five blocks at Virginia Union and leads Fairmont State with 18 blocks. Younkin has racked up four multi-block games this season. The senior from Connellsville, Pa. has recorded 75 rebounds and is shooting 46.9% from the field.
• David Jolinder has posted 9.1 points per game in his first collegiate season. Jolinder has made 14-of-27 shots from beyond the arc, which equates to a 51.9% average.
• Tim Koenig is currently in his fourth season leading Fairmont State men's basketball and in his 10^th as a head coach. Koenig has won 165 career games as a head coach, which included a six-year stint at Notre Dame (Ohio).

 
Scouting West Liberty
The MEC preseason favorite has won 14 of its first 15 contests of the season and holds a 9-0 conference record. The No. 8 Hilltoppers have one win versus a ranked opponent, which came versus No. 21 West Virginia State on Dec. 10. WLU has outscored opponents by an average of 22.3 points in its wins.
 
The Hilltoppers' scoring offense ranks second in the country, with WLU scoring an average of 101.2 points per game. The 'Toppers rank nationally in the top 10 in nine statistical categories and hold the top spot in assist/turnover ratio (1.87), three-point attempts per game (33.3) and three-pointers per game (12.5). The leader of the high-octane offense is Bryce Butler, who is the MEC's top scorer. The Latrobe, Pa. native averages 23.7 points per game and leads all Division II players in made field goals with 148. Butler has scored double-digit point totals in all 15 West Liberty games this season and has totaled 1,440 career points in 101 games donning a WLU uniform.
 
Butler's supporting cast includes four players who average more than 10 points a game, including Malik McKinney (13.0 ppg), Christian Montague (12.0 ppg), Steve Cannady (11.7 ppg), and Ben Sarson (10.5 ppg). Alek West leads WLU in the steals category with 28 steals and Cannady and Butler both have 20 or more steals. The Hilltopper defense has forced an average of 19.73 turnovers per game, which is the fourth-highest average in the country.
 
The Hilltoppers are led by six-year head coach Ben Howlett. He was named the 16^th head coach in West Liberty men's basketball history at age 35 in 2017. Howlett has mentored a pair of NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Academic All-Americans of the Year (Dan Monteroso and Dalton Bolton).
 
Series History
Fairmont State and West Liberty will meet for the 182^nd time on Saturday, with the Fighting Falcons leading the series (97-84). Three of the last four games have been decided by three points or fewer. Fairmont State edged WLU 100-97 in West Liberty on Jan. 15, 2022. Dobbs and Sanders combined for 49 points in the hard-fought road win. The Hilltoppers knocked off Fairmont State at home in overtime, 110-107 on Feb. 19, 2022, and in the conference tournament semifinals, 117-96 on March 5. The Hilltoppers have won seven of the last 10 meetings and 23 of 30 matchups since 2010-11.
 
Up Next
The men's basketball homestand continues on Wednesday (Jan. 19) versus Davis & Elkins at 7:30 p.m.