Indiana State (10-6, 3-2) vs. Valparaiso (9-9, 2-3)
Athletics-Recreation Center, Valparaiso, Indiana; Saturday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Two guards will be on display as Tyreke Key and Indiana State will go up against Javon Freeman-Liberty and Valparaiso. The junior Key has scored 25 percent of the team's points this season and is averaging 16.6 over his last five games. Freeman-Liberty, a sophomore, is averaging 18.8 points over the last five games.
TEAM LEADERSHIP: Valparaiso's Freeman-Liberty has averaged 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.4 steals while Donovan Clay has put up 7.9 points. For the Sycamores, Key has averaged 17.6 points and 5.3 rebounds while Jordan Barnes has put up 11.7 points and 4.1 rebounds.
CLAMPING DOWN: The Sycamores have given up just 59.6 points per game across five conference games, an improvement from the 72.7 per game they allowed over 10 non-conference games.
CREATING OFFENSE: Freeman-Liberty has made or assisted on 41 percent of all Valparaiso field goals over the last three games. The sophomore guard has accounted for 22 field goals and seven assists in those games.
ASSIST RATIOS: The Crusaders have recently created buckets via assists more often than the Sycamores. Valparaiso has 36 assists on 70 field goals (51.4 percent) across its past three contests while Indiana State has assists on 38 of 75 field goals (50.7 percent) during its past three games.
DID YOU KNOW: Valparaiso is ranked second among MVC teams with an average of 73.9 points per game.
