Posted: Jan 12, 2016

Storm men set to host Loras in IIAC home opener

INDIANOLA, Iowa - The Simpson men's basketball team hosts Loras in its Iowa Conference home opener Wednesday, Jan. 13. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. from Cowles Fieldhouse.

Game Setup
Matchup: Loras (7-6, 2-0 IIAC) at Simpson (8-5, 1-1 IIAC)
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 13
Time: 8 p.m. (following women's game)
Location: Cowles Fieldhouse - Indianola, Iowa

Live Coverage
Live Video: SimpsonAthletics.com
Live Stats: SimpsonAthletics.com

Last Time Out
DJ Dafney had a double-double and Austin Turner scored a career-high 17 points as the Storm beat Coe 69-63 on Saturday, Jan. 9. Dafney had 10 points and 10 rebounds and Dillon Gretzky had 10 points and nine rebounds as Simpson snapped a six-game losing streak in the series, beating Coe on the road for the first time since 2009.

A look at Loras
The Duhawks are 7-6 overall and moved to 2-0 in the Iowa Conference for the first time in seven seasons after beating Buena Vista 82-76 on Saturday. Loras is led by two of the top-five scorers in the conference in Justin VanWambeke (18.2 ppg, 4th in the IIAC) and reigning IIAC Player of the Week Mirko Brcic (17.3 ppg, 5th in the IIAC). Grcic is averaging 22 points and 11 rebounds through two conference games.

The all-time series
Wednesday marks the 92nd meeting in the all-time series, which Loras leads 47-44. Simpson is on a five-game losing streak in the series, losing by an average of 15.8 points during the stretch. The Storm have lost seven of the last 10 against the Duhawks.

TOP 5 STORM STORYLINES

1. Storm look to remain perfect at home
Simpson is a perfect 3-0 at Cowles Fieldhouse this season, outscoring opponents 90-75. The Storm shoot a higher percentage (45.1 at home, 41.1 on the road) and force more turnovers (20 at home, 17 on the road) in front of the home crowd. Simpson also makes more 3-pointers, hitting 9.3 per game at home compared to 8.9 on the road.

2. What a difference a year makes
It took the 2015-16 Storm just 11 games to surpass last year's win total. First-year head coach Brad Bjorkgren led Simpson to a 7-4 mark, the best record through 11 games since the 2006-07 team also went 7-4. That team finished 18-9, the program's last winning season.

3. Valuing the basketball
A big reason for Simpson's early success has been its ability to take care of the ball while forcing opponents into more turnovers. Simpson's +5.7 turnover margin leads the Iowa Conference and ranks 15th in Division III. The Storm force 17.38 turnovers per game compared to committing just 11.7.

4. Stepping up by committee
Simpson has benefited from a balanced attack through 13 games. In addition to featuring a lineup with four players averaging double figures, five different players have led the team in scoring in its eight wins. Dillon Gretzky has been the leading scorer in three wins, Austin Turner twice and Sam Amsbaugh, Ryan Skaar and DJ Dafney once each.

5. Amsbaugh heating up
Sophomore forward Sam Amsbaugh has been on a roll as of late, averaging a team-high 18.5 points and eight rebounds over the last four games. He is shooting better than 53 percent from the field and has set career-highs in points in two of the last four games. His best game to date came in a loss at Buena Vista on Jan. 6 when he scored 27 points and pulled down eight rebounds.

The coach
Brad Bjorkgren is in his first season as head coach of the Storm. The Simpson alum coached Urbandale High School for 27 seasons, winning nearly 400 games, nine conference championships and appearing in seven Class 4A State Tournaments.

Up next
Simpson hosts Iowa Conference preseason favorite Dubuque on Saturday, Jan. 16. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.