STORYLINES
Wayne State will aim to turn its improved play into a wins with a pair of home games against Purdue Northwest and Parkside.  WSU has been in each of its last four contests, including a win over Lake Superior State on Jan. 27th.  The Warriors have lost the last two games by a combined five points.

THE SERIES
WSU leads 6-3 in the all-time series against Purdue Northwest.  The Green & Gold is 5-0 at home in the series, but this will be the first meeting between the teams at the Fieldhouse.  WSU lost at PNW last month, 93-75.

Wayne State trails 8-13 in the all-time series vs. Parkside.  The Warriors are 5-3 in home games, but lost this season's first match-up, 89-69, in Kenosha.  WSU and UWP have split the last six contests.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Purdue Northwest is 5-17 overall and 2-12 in GLIAC games.  Head coach Boomer Roberts is in his fourth season leading the program.  The Pride have dropped four straight after beating WSU on Jan. 22nd.  Mikell Cooper is leading the team in scoring at 13.8 points per contest.  Anthony Barnard is averaging 12.8 points and a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game.  Sangolay Njie is contributing 10.2 points per night and 6.2 boards per game.  PNW is averaging 75.4 points per game and allowing 83.2, while shooting 43 percent from the floor, 32 percent from behind the arc and 71 percent at the free throw line.

Parkside is 11-10 overall and 8-6 in the GLIAC ,but saw its three-game winning streak come to an end versus Michigan Tech on Feb. 5th.  The Rangers will play at SVSU on Thursday night, before heading to Motown.  Head coach Luke Reigel is in his 19th season leading the team.  Tray Croft is among the top scorers in the league at 19.9 points per night, while shooting 46 percent from the floor, 39 percent from behind the arc and 92 percent at the charity stripe.  He also leads the roster with 82 assists (3.9 APG).  Jamir Simpson is scoring 11.9 points per night, while grabbing a team-best 5.6 rebounds per game.  As a team, Parkside is scoring 74.7 points per contest and allowing 73.0 points per night.  The Rangers are shooting 46 percent from the floor, 36 percent from three-point range and 77 percent from the charity stripe.

LAST TIME OUT
The Green & Gold led 36-31 at halftime at Northwood on Monday night, but were unable to close it out as NU won 80-77 to end its 12-game losing streak.  Brailen Neely scored 16 points to lead WSU's offensive attack and joined the program's 1,000-point club late in the first half.  Ray Williams, Jr. had 13 points and David Hughes added a season-best 12 points.  Antonio Marshall chipped in with 10 points.

FIRST HALF WARRIORS
WSU has led at halftime in eight games this season, including a five-point lead at Northwood on Monday night, but the Warriors are 2-6 in those contests.  In addition, Wayne State has led in 14 of the 17 games this season.

WAYNE STATE FIELDHOUSE
Wayne State opened its brand new basketball fieldhouse against Michigan in an exhibition contest on Nov. 5th in front of a sold out crowd.  The night featured several special moments including a pre-game ceremony that featured basketball alumni (Bob Holmes and Shareta Brown) and coaches (Ron Hammye, David Greer and Carrie Lohr), University president Dr. M. Roy Wilson, and Detroit Pistons Vice Chair Arn Tellem.  Halftime featured a performance from Spyder Turner.  Several community and University leaders were on hand, including Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and the WSU Board of Governors.

1,000-POINT DUO
Brailen Neely entered this season with 993 career points combined between his time at Oakland and now as a Warrior.  With 21 points at Ashland on Nov. 12, he surpassed the 1,000 career-point plateau.

With a jumper at the 3:30 mark of the first half at Northwood this past Monday, Neely surpassed the 1,000-point mark, while wearing the Green & Gold.  He is the 21st player in program history to do so.

In addition, Darian Owens-White is fast approaching the milestone for WSU games and needs 25 points to join the club.  

NEW SHOT CALLER
Wayne State has a new man in the first chair for the first time since the 2000-01 season in interim head coach E.J. Haralson.  This comes after the program's winningest coach David Greer announced his retirement on Nov. 17th.

WINNING DOWN LOW
Wayne State went 0-for-10 on three-point attempts vs. Northwood on Dec. 11, 2021, breaking a streak of 35 games with a made triple.  The Green & Gold went 0-for-10 vs. Saginaw Valley State on Jan. 23, 2020.  WSU's last win previously without making a long-range shot was on Jan. 11, 2018, vs. SVSU (74-57).

On the other side of the coin, Wayne State grabbed 51 rebounds compared to Northwood's 34 and turned 20 offensive rebounds into 19 second-chance points.

DANCING IN MARCH
The Green & Gold played in the NCAA Tournament for the 14th time in program history a year ago, and for the first time since 2013.  Head coach David Greer guided Wayne State to the national tournament on five occasions (2004, 2005, 2011, 2013 and 2021).  The last time WSU won a game in the NCAAs was in 2005 when the Warriors topped Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, 56-55, in Findlay, Ohio.

GLIAC CHAMPS
The Green & Gold won its eighth GLIAC championship last year and its first outright GLIAC regular-season title since the 1998-99 season.  Following that 1998-99 season, WSU topped Saginaw Valley State, Gannon and Michigan Tech to win the tournament title.

2021 POSTSEASON AWARDS
Last season, Darian Owens-White was a First Team All-Midwest District and a First Team All-GLIAC honoree, while Brailen Neely was a Second Team All-Region and a First Team All-GLIAC selection.  Owens-White was the first Wayne State student-athlete to be voted to the NABC All-District First Team since Tony Goins in 1998-99.  Avery Lewis earned Second Team All-GLIAC recognition, while also being a member of the league's All-Defensive Team.  It was the first time WSU had two First Team All-GLIAC selections since Mike Hollingsworth and Bryan Smothers collected the awards following the 2010-11 season.

LIVE ON WDTK
Kevin Brechmacher will call every Wayne State contest live on WDTK - The Patriot (1400 AM / 101.5 FM).  Fans can also stream the action online at PatriotDetroit.com.  Former Tartar/Warrior Chuck Key (Thursday) and former Warrior Andy Dold (Saturday) will provide analysis this week.

FAN POLICY
Capacity will be capped at 50 percent for home WSU basketball games moving forward.  Masks must be worn indoors and social distancing must be followed whenever possible.  In addition, proof of appropriate vaccination will be required.

WARRIOR ALL-ACCESS
Every regular season home game, will be available to stream pay-per-view via Warrior All-Access at WSUAthletics.com.  Season ticket holders will have free access to the broadcasts.