This week: Notre Dame College men's basketball will host Shepherd University on February 7, at 7:30 p.m. and then they will take on Fairmont State University on February 9, at 4 p.m.

Records: The Falcons are 14-6, overall, and 10-4 in the Mountain East Conference. Shepherd holds a record of 10-10 and is 6-8 in the MEC. Fairmont State is currently 15-5 (12-2 MEC).

Coaches Corner: Tim Koenig is the head coach of the Falcons and is in his sixth season with an overall record of 84-85 and he is 55-69 in the MEC. Justin Namolik has been the head coach at Shepherd for 11 seasons. His record at Shepherd is currently 159-150. Joe Mazzulla is in his second season as head coach and has a record of 36-13, overall, and 29-7 in the MEC.

Rankings: None of these teams are ranked in the NABC Coaches poll.

Series History: The Falcons are 4-8 against Shepherd since 2013-14, beating the Rams last month for the first time since 2016. NDC is 1-12 against Fairmont State all-time, after falling to FSU by 11 points, last month.

Noting the Falcons: In the two games last week, NDC dropped a heart-breaker to West Virginia State, 108-106, but Will Vorhees still totaled 32 points, 11 rebounds and five assists in the game. In the second game, on February 2, the Falcons beat Charleston by a score of 75-69. Vorhees had 32 points and 12 rebounds while Larenz Thurman added 17 points on 42-percent shooting. The Falcons are currently on a seven game home winning streak. Will Vorhees continues to have an incredible season and is second in NCAA Division II with 15 double-doubles. He ranks sixth in the nation in offensive rebounds-per-game (3.95), points-per-game (25.9) and total field goals made (186). He is eighth in rebounds-per-game with 11 and total points with 492, while he is 10th in total rebounds with 217. In the conference, Will Vorhees is sixth in field goal percentage, shooting 56-percent and he has blocked 1.42 shots-per-game this season, which is second most in the conference. Vorhees is second in the conference in defensive rebounds-per-game (7.05). Larenz Thurman is ninth in the MEC with 18.9 points-per-game. The Falcons are one of two teams to have two players (Thurman, Vorhees) in the top-ten in scoring in the conference. Thurman averages 4.53 assists-per-game, which is fourth best in the conference and he hits free throws at an 86-percent clip, which ranks fifth. Notre Dame ranks 12th in the nation in free throw percentage at 78.4-percent. In the MEC, the Falcons rank third, allowing just 79 points-per-game and blocks 3.35 shots per game, which is third highest in the conference. They hold teams to 43-percent shooting, on average, which ranks first. The Falcons are fifth in field goal percentage at 47-percent. They also grab 12.4 offensive rebounds-per-game, ranking fourth in the MEC.

Noting the Rams: Last week, Shepherd lost to No. 8 West Liberty (84-76) and Wheeling Jesuit (78-72). Thomas Lang averaged 15 points and Derek McKnight had 14 points-per-game and five assists. The Rams have now lost five of their last six games. Their last road win came on January 12 against UVa-Wise. Thomas Lang is fifth in the country in three pointers made per game (3.75) and total threes made (75). He is also 13th in free throw percentage (.903) in the nation and is tenth in the conference with 18.7 points-per-game. Winston Burgess is ranked fifth in NCAA-II shooting 65-percent and he is third in the conference, grabbing three offensive rebounds-per-game. Derek McKnight dishes out 4.1 assists each contest, which ties him for fifth most in the conference. Although SU allowed Wheeling Jesuit to shoot 58-percent from the field and 59-percent from three last week, they are second in the conference on the defense side, allowing 77.9 points-per-game on 45-percent shooting (35-percent from three). They shoot well behind the three point line, at 76-percent, which ranks fourth in the MEC.

Noting the Fighting Falcons: Fairmont State had a big week, beating Wheeling Jesuit, 88-64, with Vonte Montgomery leading the team, recording 22 points and 11 rebounds. On Saturday, however, in the battle for first place in the conference, the Fighting Falcons fell to No. 8 West Liberty, 96-85. Cole VanHandorf led the team with 25 points and five made threes. This season, Jason Jolly ranks third in the country in three point field goals per game at 3.95 and fourth in total threes made at 79. He is tenth in the conference, scoring 18.7 points-per-game. Vonte Montgomery has one triple-double this season, which puts him in a tie for third in Division II. He averages 16.9 points and 7.7 boards. Fairmont State is 17th in the country in fewest turnovers (215), fifth in three point field goals per game (12), 10th in three pointers made (239). They hold teams to 79.2 points-per-game, which ranks fourth in the conference. The Fighting Falcons shoot well at 48-percent and keep teams to 46-percent shooting, both rank third in the MEC. They shoot 40-percent from three point range and the defense holds teams to 35-percent from long distance, ranking second in both categories.