ANGOLA, Ind. – For the first time this season, the Trine University men's basketball team is ranked in the D3hoops.com Top 25. After receiving votes in the previous two weeks, the Thunder are 25th in the week five poll.
The men's basketball team has completed the non-conference portion of their schedule and sit with a record of 10-1 as they enter Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) play this week. The signature win this year came on December 10, when Trine defeated the current #10 University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 67-64. At the time, La Crosse was ranked inside the top five.
Stellar play inside the MTI Center has contributed to the team's success thus far. The Thunder are 6-0 at home with an average margin of victory at 13.8 points per game. Over the last five seasons, Trine has a home record of 44-13.
Nationally, the Thunder have the fifth-best scoring defense by allowing just 56.1 points per game. Emmanuel Megnanglo also finds himself in the top five as an individual in blocked shots. He turns away an average of 3.45 shots per game and is four blocks away from breaking Trine's NCAA DIII blocks record currently held by Ellis Cummings.
Trine opens up MIAA action at home on Wednesday, January 4 when the Hope College Flying Dutch visit Angola. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.