COMPLETE D3HOOPS.COM POLL
TERRE HAUTE, IND. -- The Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology men's basketball team is ranked 23rd nationally in the latest d3hoops.com national weekly poll released on Monday.
The No. 23 national ranking marks Rose-Hulman's first in-season men's basketball top 25 ranking since the 1998-99 season. The Fightin' Engineers are also the only Indiana school to receive votes in the d3hoops.com men's basketball national poll.
Rose-Hulman stands 12-1 on the season after defeating Mount St. Joseph 52-36 in its most recent game on Saturday. The Fightin' Engineers also rank No. 1 nationally in the weekly NCAA Division III rankings in defense, allowing just 47.2 points per game.
Rose-Hulman has won 10 consecutive games to earn the ranking, marking the third-longest winning streak in school history. The 1976-77 squad won 21 straight games, and the 1998-99 team won 12 consecutive games.
Defense has been Rose-Hulman's calling card this season, as the Fightin' Engineers have held seven opponents to 45 points or less and four opponents to under 40 points in a game.
Offensively, junior Julian Strickland leads the team in scoring at 14.0 points per game, with senior Austin Weatherford also in double figures at 10.8. The starting lineup also includes senior Brenton Balsbaugh (7.8), Jon Gerken (7.5) and James Pillischafske (4.5).
Rose-Hulman puts a perfect 6-0 record in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play on the line in Wednesday's 7:30 p.m. home matchup with Anderson University. Live in-game stats and live video will be available online at www.rose-hulman.edu/sports.