SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Evangel men's basketball begins Heart of America Athletic Conference action Wednesday at Graceland.

OPENING STORYLINES 

► Evangel opens conference play at Graceland after going 1-7 in a rough non-conference schedule. The Crusaders are coming off a loss last Friday at NCAA Division I Missouri State.

► Evangel leads the all-time series with Graceland 54-10 after splitting the season series last year. The Crusaders won in Springfield as the Yellowjackets took the meeting in Iowa.

► Freshman Justin Washington leads Evangel at 17.8 ppg and 9.5 rpg after scoring 18 points at Missouri State.

► Evangel has improved its strength in rebounding as Washington and Jalen Norman both rank in the top 20 nationally in rebounding. Washington at 9.5 boards per game and Norman at 7.2 rpg.

► In five of the six losses for the Crusaders, only one has been by more than eight points with an 86-64 loss at Missouri Baptist on Nov. 13. 

LOOKING AHEAD

Evangel returns to Springfield to host Missouri Valley in conference play. Tipoff from the Ashcroft Center is scheduled for 4 p.m.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, follow the Crusaders on Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelAthletics or go to www.EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the Go Evangel Front Row App at EvangelAthletics.com/FrontRow available on Google Play and in the App Store.

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