WARREN, Mich. – The Macomb Men's Basketball team will return to the court this week with a pair of games against high level MCCAA competition. On Thursday (Nov. 5), the Monarchs visit preseason No. 11 Lansing Community College for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off at LCC's Gannon Gymnasium. The 2026-27 home opener is two days later as the Monarchs host Bay College, a team receiving votes just outside of the preseason NJCAA Division II Top 25, on Saturday (Nov. 7). Tip-off for the home opener is set for 1 p.m. inside The Den.
 
Thursday's game will be streamed live by the host Stars here. Saturday's home opener will feature free live stream coverage on MacombMonarchs.com/Watch.
 
The Monarchs enter this week's matchups against ranked competition 1-1 on the young season after splitting their games against two NJCAA DI opponents last weekend at the Southwestern Michigan College Roadrunner Classic. The Monarchs dropped a 71-64 decision to Kennedy-King College on Friday afternoon before bouncing back with a 77-70 victory over Richard J. Daley College on Saturday. 
 
Saturday's win marked the first at the collegiate level for first-year head coach Jeff Jayson. 
 
A LOOK AT LANSING: The preseason ranked No. 11 Stars open their season this week after capturing a share of the MCCAA Western Conference title with an 11-3 league mark and a 28-8 overall record in 2025-26. The Stars went on to secure a Great Lakes District C Championship and finished seventh nationally at the 2025-26 NJCAA Division II National Championship. 
 
Led by longtime head coach Mike Ingram, the Stars roster consists of four sophomores and 11 freshmen. A returning player to watch is DeAndre Berry, who averaged 13.8 points per game a season ago and earned Second Team All-Western Conference and Western Conference All-Freshman honors. 
 
The Stars' Western Conference title last season was their first conference championship since the 2021-22 season. 
 
SCOUTING BAY: The Norse enter this week 2-0 after a pair of convincing home victories over Minnesota North College-Hibbing and Minnesota North College-Itasca. Bay finished last season 23-7 overall and 11-3 in the MCCAA Northern Conference, falling to Lansing in the Great Lakes District C Semifinals. The Norse are receiving votes in the NJCAA DII Preseason Rankings, one spot outside of the Top 25.
 
Players to watch include sophomores Jayden Brown, Emerson Droubie and Kyle Hustrulid. Brown had an outstanding weekend this past Friday and Saturday, scoring 30 and 25 points, respectively, in the two wins. Emerson Droubie earned All-Region, All-MCCAA, First Team All-Northern Conference and Northern Conference All-Freshman honors a year ago, while Hustrulid was named to the Honorable Mention All-Northern Conference team. 
 
Bay is led by first-year head coach Mike Cretens, who had spent the past four seasons as an assistant with the program under former head coach and current athletic director Matt Johnson. 
 
A LOOK AT MACOMB: Kimari Barden had a strong debut for Macomb on Friday as he notched a 15-point, 12-rebound double-double against Kennedy-King. The redshirt sophomore forward came back Saturday and registered 21 points, six rebounds and three steals as the Monarchs earned the win over Richard J. Daley. 
 
Devin Lee led the Monarchs in the win over the Bulldogs with 23 points and six rebounds. The freshman guard shot 6-of-12 from three-point range. Sophomore guard Braeden Holder dished out a game-high nine assists Saturday while scoring seven points and grabbing five boards.
 
Through two games, Barden leads the team in both scoring (18.0 PPG) and rebounding (9.0 RPG). Lee is averaging 14.0 points per game and Dante Wimberly is third on the team in scoring after posting a pair of eight-point performances last weekend. Holder is averaging six assists per contest. 
 
LIVE COVERAGE: Lansing will provide live video coverage of Thursday's contest here. Saturday's home opener will be streamed live on MacombMonarchs.com/Watch with Tom Cavanaugh and Alexander Johnson calling the action. Live stats will also be available. 
 
UP NEXT: Macomb will remain home following Saturday's game as they host NJCAA Region 12 foe Terra State Community College on Tuesday (Nov. 10) at 7:30 p.m. The game will mark the first regular season doubleheader for the Macomb men's and women's basketball teams.