Raiders lift the lid on 2021-22 campaign inside Nutter Center Tuesday night

Tuesday, November 9

Dayton, OH

7:00 PM

Wright State University

Lake Erie

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Photo by: Joseph Craven

Raiders lift the lid on 2021-22 campaign inside Nutter Center Tuesday night

11/8/2021 2:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Watch on ESPN+Follow Live Stats Listen on WZDA 103.9 FM

DAYTON - The Wright State men's basketball team tips off the 2021-22 season on Tuesday night inside the Nutter Center as the Raiders welcome Lake Erie for a 7 p.m. tipoff. Tuesday night marks the return of Raider fans to the Nutter Center after having to stay away during last season's COVID shortened year, ending a stretch of 632 days since Wright State played basketball in front of its home crowd - which was Senior Day on February 16, 2020.

Tuesday night will be the only time Wright State plays at home in November, as the Raiders will play five games on the road in three states before returning to the Nutter Center on December 15.

Fans can follow the action in several ways - via live stats, by watching on ESPN+ or by tuning in on WZDA 103.9 FM, the new home of Raider Basketball on the radio. Chris Collins and Jim Brown will once again have all the play-by-play on the radio and ESPN feeds.

TUESDAY: WATCH ON ESPN+ | FOLLOW LIVE STATS | LISTEN ON WZDA 103.9 FM | GAME NOTES | TICKETS

IN CASE YOU'VE FORGOTTEN ABOUT US. . .
Wright State returns 10 players from last season's squad that finished 18-6 overall and recorded a 16-4 conference mark on the way to the third straight season of claiming at least a share of the Horizon League regular season title. Three returning Raiders earned Horizon League postseason honors, with Tanner Holden on the first team, Grant Basile on the second team and Tim Finke garnering All-Defensive honors, while former Raider Loudon Love earned his second straight HL Player of the Year honor along with being a first team performer. In October, Wright State received 463 total votes and nine first-place votes as the Raiders were selected second in the Horizon League preseason poll ahead of the 2021-22 season. Basile was named a first team preseason selection and Holden earned second team preseason honors.

STARTING STRONG
Wright State has always opened seasons strong at home, any way you slice its schedule. The Raiders have won 13 season openers over the last 21 years, dating back to 2000-01. This will be the 10th time the Raiders have opened the season inside the Nutter Center in the last 21 years, with seven wins in those games. In its history, Wright State is a combined 43-8 all-time in season openers in its two home venues. The Raiders were an astounding 19-1 in home openers inside the Physical Education Building from 1970-71 through 1989-90 (lone loss was 1976-77 home opener) and have been just as impressive inside the Nutter Center.

Since opening the Nutter Center on December 1, 1990, Wright State is 24-7 in home openers, including winning the first home contest of the season nine of the last 11 years.

LAKE EFFECT
Tuesday night's matchup will be the first time in program history that Wright State and Lake Erie will meet on the hardwood. The game will be the start of a trend for the Raiders, as they will square off with at least three additional opponents for the first time. Wright State will face both Purdue (Nov. 16), North Carolina State (Dec. 21) for the first time, while the Naples Invitational offers the Raiders' first meeting with George Washington (Nov. 22) as well as other potential first matchups depending on how the bracket shakes out.

STORM SURGE
Lake Erie, an NCAA Division II member, is coming off of a 4-14 season in the shortened 2020-21 season, with all of its games played inside the Great Midwest Conference. The Storm won three of its games at home, finishing with a 3-6 home mark, but were only 1-8 on the road last season. Sophomore Jacob Plantz is Lake Erie's top returning scorer, averaging 13.3 points per game last year, while senior Jeramie Burge added 11.0 points per contest as well. Plantz is also the Storm's top returning rebounder, averaging 6.0 rebounds per game a season ago. The meeting with Wright State will go down as Lake Erie's second and final exhibition ahead of its 2020-21 campaign, after the Storm played fellow Horizon League member Northern Kentucky to an 11-point contest last Thursday night, with NKU winning 75-64 in an exhibition for both sides. Kevin Peterson finished with a game-high 18 points for Lake Erie in the loss, while Plantz added 15 and Jackson Burdyshaw finished with 13 points of his own as the Storm shot 43 percent from the floor in the loss.

A WIN WOULD. . .
Regardless of when it comes, Wright State's first victory of the 2021-22 campaign will mark a minor milestone in the Raider history books, with the win set to give head coach Scott Nagy his 110th victory at the helm of Wright State. The 110 wins will move Nagy into second-place all-time for career victories at Wright State behind only the legendary Ralph Underhill, who finished his career with 356 Raider wins over 18 seasons. Nagy begins the season with 109 victories over five seasons, tied with former Raider head coach Billy Donlon, who tallied his 109 wins over six seasons.

LIFE ON THE ROAD (TRIP)
With 2021-22 returning to a 'normal schedule' compared to last season, Wright State will face a pair of long road trips after seeing its longest road stretch be only three games in 2020-21. After opening the season at home on Nov. 9, the Raiders will not return to the Nutter Center until Dec. 15, playing five games on the road in three states during that stretch. Wright State travels to Purdue (Nov. 12) and Marshall (Nov. 15) before three games in three days at the Naples Invitational from Nov. 22-24. Wright State also faces a five-game road trip during Horizon League play in January, traveling to Northern Kentucky (Jan. 10), Robert Morris (Jan. 13), Youngstown State (Jan. 15), IUPUI (Jan. 20) and UIC (Jan. 22).

WHERE'S THE LOVE?
Former Wright State standout Loudon Love announced during the summer that he was forgoing the additional season of eligibility he would have gained because of the COVID-19 pandemic, opting instead to begin his professional career. Love was selected 11th overall in the 2021 NBA G League Draft on Oct. 23 by the Texas Legends, affiliates of the Dallas Mavericks.

Love, the all-time leading rebounder in Wright State basketball history, played in 120 career games in a Raider uniform and departed Wright State as the winningest player in the Division I era, having been a part of 89 wins over his five seasons. He finished his career with 1,123 career rebounds, the most in Wright State basketball history (men and women), Love exited Wright State as the No. 3-leading scorer all-time in program history with 1,792 career points.