GAME NOTES: The Valparaiso Crusaders hope to stay hot on Wednesday night when they step into McBrayer Arena for a non-conference clash with the Eastern Kentucky Colonels.

Valparaiso is off to its best start through eight games since moving to Division I in 1978. The team is playing its sixth straight game away from the ARC and brings a six-game win streak into this contest. On Sunday, the Crusaders captured the inaugural Challenge in Music City tournament championship with a 70-55 triumph over Portland in Nashville.

Eastern Kentucky is unbeaten at home in three tries so far this season. However, the Colonels had their five-game winning streak halted at BYU last Saturday, 90-76. This is their lone home date of a five-game stretch.

EKU owns a 3-2 series lead, although Valpo cruised to an 82-60 victory behind a 68 percent shooting effort when these last met on Feb. 23, 2013.

Valparaiso ran through the likes of Drake, Murray State and Portland during last week's event in Nashville, winning all three games by at least 15 points. Tournament MVP Alec Peters, a sophomore, led the way with 20 points in the deciding game against previously unbeaten Portland. The Crusaders raced out to a 22-point halftime lead in that contest and never looked back, as they shot 53 percent from the floor and went 6-of-11 from beyond the arc in the first half while holding the Pilots to 7-of-24 shooting (.292). Junior guard Darien Walker finished with 13 points to go along with five rebounds, and he joined Peters on the All-Tournament team. Walker shot 54.3 percent from the floor and went 8-of-17 from distance as he averaged 16.7 ppg on the weekend.

Eastern Kentucky enters this matchup ranked second in the nation in scoring margin (+32.6), third in scoring offense (91.0 ppg), second in steals (13.8) and second in free-throw percentage (.807). Preseason All-OVC senior guard Corey Walden is the headliner, averaging 19.4 points and 3.4 steals per game. But Walden also gets plenty of help from his supporting cast as Ja'Mill Powell (13.4 ppg), Eric Stutz (12.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg) and Jaylen Babb-Harrison (12.4 ppg) are all averaging double figures. In the game against BYU, however, a 30-8 Cougars' run early in the second half turned a one-possession game into a one- sided affair. Powell had 26 points in that one to pace four double-digit scorers for EKU, but the Cougars' were unable to overcome 15 BYU 3-pointers.

Valpo has already matched its longest win streak under coach Bryce Drew, and is looking to win seven in a row for the first time since 2007-08. That may be easier said than done, considering the Crusaders went 5-9 on the road last season and are just 7-20 in non-league road contests since the start of the 2010-11 season.