ANGOLA, Ind. – Following their victory over Calvin University on Wednesday and win against Adrian College at the Little Caesars Arena on Sunday, the Trine University men's basketball team has moved up to number three in the D3hoops.com Top 25 poll. For the first time this season, Trine received a first-place vote, but Hampden-Sydney College still received 23 of the 25 possible first-place votes. The Thunder are now the highest ranked team in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and have opened a two-game lead in the conference standings over both #12 Calvin and Hope College, who is receiving votes.

Trine is sitting at 18-1 and are undefeated in MIAA play and at home, both at 8-0. They have defeated every league opponent once this year and their 69-65 win versus Adrian marks the first sweep of the season. The Thunder had four double-digit scorers in the contest but were held to a season-low in scoring. Even still, the defense was tough and forced 25 turnovers to help secure the win.

The team's biggest triumph of the season came last week when Trine defeated Calvin in a top-10 affair at the time, 74-71. A career-high 21 points by Aidan Smylie, including five makes from distance, helped fuel the victory. Cortez Garland was credited with 13 points and a team-high seven assists. Once again, the Thunder were able to win the turnover battle 20-12.

Trine has gotten significant minutes and production from the bench unit of late, specifically Drew Moore, Nate Tucker and Jayce Cusack. Moore contributed 12 points in 22 minutes played against the Bulldogs on Sunday while Tucker scored eight points and was on the court for 27 minutes in total. Tucker netted a career-high 22 points off the bench against Hope just two weeks ago as well. Cusack has been a steady presence in the rotation after not seeing much court time early in the 2023-24 campaign.

A rematch with Hope awaits Trine on Wednesday, January 31 as the Thunder look to sweep their conference foe at home beginning at 7:30 p.m.