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This Week
The No. 9 Westminster men's basketball team is the host of the 2009 Westminster Thanksgiving Tournament this Friday and Saturday. Westminster will face the College of Idaho at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, November 27. They battle Westmont on Saturday, November 28, at 7:30 p.m. Carroll will face Westmont on Friday and the College of Idaho on Saturday, with both games beginning at 5:30 p.m. All games will be played in the Behnken Field House.

Westminster plays host to the Westminster Thanksgiving Tournament with a 3-3 overall record. They are 1-1 at home this season and have won two straight games overall. They Griffins picked up wins against Northwest (WA) and the College of Idaho on the road last weekend.

Westminster is shooting 45% from the field through the first six games of the season. As a team, the Griffins are averaging 72.8 points per game and average 38 rebounds per contest. Defensively they limit the opposition to 71.5 points and force 13.7 turnovers per game.

Blair Prowse leads the team in scoring at 18.2 points per game. Prowse is shooting 42.9% from the file and has connected on 16-of-45 from beyond the arc. Weston Anderson is second in scoring at 16.5 points per night and Ben Walker is third with his 12.7 points per game.

Live Video and Stats
There will be Live Video streaming and Live Stats available for all four games during the Thanksgiving Tournament. The Live Video is $5 and is available about 10 minutes prior to the start of each game. The Live Stats is a free service and is also available about 10 minutes prior to the start of each game. Fans can access both of these features by visiting westminstergriffins.com

Men's Basketball Fast Break
•This is only the second time that Westminster has started a season 3-3, the other being in 2006-07.

•The Griffins have a 2-2-7 series record against non-conference teams they face twice in a season since 1999.

•At 71.2% from the free throw line, Westminster ranks 20th in the NAIA.

About College of Idaho
The College of Idaho comes to town at 1-2 overall and dropping two games at their own Golden Rule Shootout last weekend. The Yotes score 72 points per game ad shoot 41.3% from the floor. They rank 26th in the NAIA-D2 with an average of 8.0 3-point field goals made per game. Matt Ballenger leads the team in scoring at 17 points per game. Kelvin Potts averages six assists per game and ranks seventh nationally in that category.

About Westmont
Westmont comes to town at 3-0 overall and have outscored the opposition by 20 points per game. The Warriors shoot 53.1% from the floor and 46.8% from beyond the arc. Defensively they hold the opposition to 41.3% shooting and force 19 turnovers per game. Dan Rasp leads the team in scoring at 16.7 points per game and is followed closely by Andrew Schmalbach at 16.3 points per game. John Miller leads the team with 19 total rebounds.

Inside the Series with…
College of Idaho
Series Record: Westminster leads, 10-8
Current Streak: Westmont 1 win
Last Meeting: Westminster def. College of Idaho, 77-69 (11/21/09)

Westmont
Series Record: Series tied, 1-1
Current Streak: Westmont 1 win
Last Meeting: Westmont def. Westminster, 67-52 (11/14/02)

Tough Competition
Westminster has faced some tough competition through the opening month of the season. After battling NCAA D2 and in-state rival Dixie State in the season opener, Westminster battled NAIA D2 No. 18 Warner Pacific. Last weekend they went against No. 8 Concordia (Calif.) and No. 3 Fresno Pacific. Westminster still has six games against teams that are ranked or receiving votes in the preseason NAIA top 25 poll.

On the Prowse
Senior Blair Prowse is having a great start to the season after missing most of 2008-09 with an injury. Prowse is averaging 18.2 points per game and ranks 35th nationally with his 2.67 makes from 3-point territory per game. His 16 total makes from distance is the 32nd highest total to date in the NAIA. He was the team leader with 20 points and eight rebounds in the game against Concordia (Calif.) on November 13.

Well Done Mr. Anderson
Westminster senior Weston Anderson is currently second on the team with his 16.5 points per game average. Anderson has started all six games after making just one start during the first three years of his career. He has reached 20 points twice this season, and went for 18 in another. His 18 assists led the team through the first six games.

A Walker to Remember
JC transfer Ben Walker is off to a fast start during his Griffin career. Walker currently ranks third on the team with 76 points and is tops on the squad with his 42 rebounds. From the line Walker is solid, shooting 85.7% to rank 27th in the country. Walker has recorded two double-doubles through the opening four games to rank second in the Frontier Conference in that department.

Coaches like the Griffins
The Westminster men's basketball team was selected to win the Frontier Conference according to a poll of the conference coaches. The Griffins received 47 total points and five first-place votes in the poll of the eight conference coaches. Defending NAIA national champion Rocky Mountain College finished second with 44 points and three first-place votes.

In the Polls
The Westminster men's basketball team received a No. 9 national ranking in the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Preseason Poll that was released on October 26. The Griffins received 232 total points in the poll. The No. 9 ranking is the highest for the team to start a season ever, and the 12th consecutive poll they have been in the top 10. The previous high to start a season was 13th in 2006 and 2008.

Next Week
Westminster stays home for two games against St. Thomas (Fla.) next weekend. The first game is Friday, December 4 at 8:00 p.m. with the rematch slated for Saturday, December 5 at 6:00 p.m. Both games follow a women's basketball double-header during the Women's Basketball Festival. All games will be played at the Behnken Field House.