WICHITA- The Newman men's basketball team looks to continue its perfect start in Heartland Conference play, when St. Mary's visits Wichita on Saturday. Tip-time is scheduled for 12 p.m. inside Fugate Gymnasium. The game will be broadcast live in Wichita by KGSO 1410 AM, with Jimmy Chavez and Bernie Pearson calling the action.

Projected Starters...
Newman Jets                                                                                St. Mary's Rattlers
Pos-Player-Height-Class-(Stats)                                    Pos-Player-Height-Class-(Stats)
G - Eric Saunders 6-4 SR. (12.7 ppg, 3.5 rpg)            G - Lamb Autrey 6-3 SR (11.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg)
G - Bobby Wesley 5-10 R-JR. (9.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg)        G -  Moses Sundufu 6-1 JR (8.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg)
G -  Darrell Traylor 5-11 JR. (7.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg)            G -  Daryell Taylor 6-2 JR (11.2 ppg, 2.6 rpg)
F -  Chuck Coley 6-7 SR. (9.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg)                  F - Ray Marshall 6-7 SR (8.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg)
F - Mason Felter 6-8 SR. (6.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg)                  F - Kevin Kotzur 6-8 R-JR (18.9 ppg, 9.4 rpg)

How They Match Up...
                                Newman                St. Mary's
Points Per Game:        69.1                        76.2        
Scoring Margin:            +1.6                        +8.0
Field Goal pct:               39.7%                     52.2%
3-point FG pct:               29.3%                     35%
Rebounds Per Game:  36.3                        35.7
Rebounding Margin:    -3.7                          +8.6
Assists Per Game:        12.9                        14.9
Turnovers Per Game:    14.4                        14.1
Turnover Margin:             -4.3                         -0.5
Steals Per Game:            9.6                           5.5
Blocks Per Game:            4.4                          3.1

Saturday's Games in the Heartland...
-Texas-Permian Basin (6-9, 0-3 Heartland) at Arkansas-Fort Smith (9-7, 2-1 Heartland)
-Texas A&M International (12-4, 2-1 Heartland) at Oklahoma Panhandle State (2-11, 0-2 Heartland)
- St. Edwards (8-7, 0-3 Heartland) at Dallas Baptist (10-6, 1-1 Heartland)    

Jets in Conference Play...
The Jets will look for their eighth-straight victory inside Fugate Gymnasium on Saturday when the Rattlers come to town. Newman has won its first two Heartland Conference contests for only the second time since transitioning to Division II. Senior Eric Saunders has been the focal point of the Jet offense, leading the team in scoring in seven out of the first 14 games of the season. The Moberly, Mo., native's assist-per-game average (3.5) leads the Newman offensive attack. Senior Chuck Coley is starting to use his length to wreak havoc on the offensive end. In Thursday's meeting against TAMIU, the West Palm Beach, Fla. product connected on three thunderous dunks in the first period of play.

Newman is undefeated at home, possessing a 7-0 record inside Fugate Gymnasium. Since making the jump to Division II athletics, the Jets are 39-9 when playing on its home court. St. Mary's sports a 5-1 record in true road contests this season.

Last Time Out...
Newman won its second-straight Heartland Conference game, turning back upstart TAMIU 70-66 on Thursday. In a battle of teams with undefeated conference marks, the Jets led from the opening tip. Facing a Dustdevil team shooting better than 50 percent from the field on the season, Newman held TAMIU to a 43.3 percent (22-53) clip in Thursday's win. The Dustdevils managed to shoot 41.7 percent (5-12) from beyond the arc, against a Jet defense holding opponents to 29.8 percent from three-point land. Chuck Coley and Eric Saunders paced the Newman offense, scoring 14 and 13 points respectively. Josh Pleasant chipped in 11 points and eight rebounds.

Player to Watch...
Bobby Wesley- The redshirt-junior from Garden City, Kan. has been steady at point guard for the Jets all season. In the month of December, Wesley scored in double-figures in four out of the five games he played. Since ringing in the new year, Wesley has averaged 7.6 points per game.

Scouting St. Mary's...
The Rattlers enter Saturday's match-up riding a five-game winning streak. St. Mary's has averaged 80.2 points per game in the five games since its last loss, a 79-72 loss to nationally-ranked Christian Brothers on Dec. 18 in Las Vegas. The Rattlers' offense typically runs through redshirt-junior, Kevin Kotzur. The two-time All-Heartland first-teamer scored a season-high 31 points in a 77-76 defeat to Missouri Western in the St. Mary's River City Classic on Nov. 26. Lamb Autrey (11.8 ppg) and Daryell Taylor (11.2 ppg) join Kotzur in double-figures.

Building A Rivalry...
Saturday's showdown marks the 10th time the respective schools have met. St. Mary's owns a 6-3 series lead. In the very first meeting on Jan. 12, 2008, the Rattlers defeated the Jets 72-59 in San Antonio. Last season, both squads won on their home floors. St.Mary's defeated Newman 78-68 on Jan. 15, 2011 at Bill Greehey Arena, while the Jets knocked off the Rattlers 94-82 on Feb 14, 2011 inside Fugate Gymnasium.