Independent file photo SMSU's Ryan Bruggeman drives past a University of Sioux Falls defender during their Dec. 1 game.

MARSHALL – Southwest Minnesota State University senior point guard Ryan Bruggeman reached a significant milestone over the weekend, becoming the program’s all-time leading scorer on Saturday.

In addition to his record 1,650 career points, Bruggeman also holds the SMSU career records in assists (577) and steals (181), plus numerous other single-season and single-game records.

With another key milestone to his name, let’s take a moment to reflect on how Bruggeman got to this point in his basketball career.

2013-14

Bruggeman capped off a very strong career at Pelican Rapids High School, averaging 26.7 points per game, 8.7 rebounds per game, 8.7 assists per game and 3.2 steals per game as a senior.

Highlights of his year included scoring 28 points in an upset win over No. 1-ranked Perham and scoring 45 points in a regular season game at Breckenridge.

But as usual, Bruggeman saved his best for last. On Mar. 1, 2014, the Pelican Rapids senior scored 51 points – including 34 in the second half – against Barnesville in the Section 8AA quarterfinals. It was the final game of Bruggeman’s high school career as Barnesville won the game 102-98, but he made it a memorable one as the Vikings nearly fought all the way back from a 22-point deficit in the second half.

“No lead is safe against a team that has Ryan Bruggeman,” Barnesville head coach Todd Henrickson told the Fargo Forum that night after that game. “They never quit, and we knew they wouldn’t. I would like to say I’m surprised, but I’m not.”

Bruggeman held scholarship offers from fellow Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference programs Minnesota State University-Moorhead, Bemidji State University and the University of Minnesota Duluth, plus a walk-on offer from Division I North Dakota State University.

Ultimately, Bruggeman chose to join the Mustangs, committing to the program in early April 2014.

“He is a tough-nosed player who has great instincts for the point guard position,” SMSU coach Brad Bigler said in a press release announcing the signing. “He will add competition but more importantly he is a ‘gel’ guy in the locker room.”

2015-16

After redshirting in his first year on campus, Bruggeman was immediately inserted into the starting lineup at the beginning of his redshirt freshman season.

His first game against a college opponent was an exhibition game at Williams Arena against the University of Minnesota on Nov. 6, 2015. Bruggeman finished with 11 points as the Gophers defeated the Mustangs 81-64.

Despite the loss, Bruggeman received attention for his performance in the game.

“Ryan Bruggeman is the smartest guy on this floor,” GopherIllustrated.com writer Ryan James tweeted during the game. “So much understanding of the game, high work rate. Impressed with him.”

Bruggeman finished the season averaging 10.5 points per game while setting SMSU freshman class records for assists (126) and steals (49). His season also included hitting the game-winning layup with 4.5 seconds remaining to beat Minot State on Dec. 12, 2015.

2016-17

As a sophomore, Bruggeman helped the Mustangs make a 15-win jump from a 13-15 record in 2015-16 to 28-6 record in 2016-17.

The point guard added another pair of game-winners to his resumé during the regular season on his way to a NSIC South title and earning first-team all-NSIC honors.

It was only the beginning for both Bruggeman and the Mustangs.

In the NSIC Tournament quarterfinal game against the University of Sioux Falls, Bruggeman scored a career-high 34 points to help SMSU advance to the next round. It was the first time a Mustangs player scored at least 30 points in a game since 2004. In the double-overtime thriller against Augustana University in the semifinals, Bruggeman finished with 26 points, eight rebounds and eight assists as the Mustangs rallied from 10 points down in the final three minutes of regulation to force overtime and eventually win the game.

The Mustangs finished off the tournament championship to clinch the program’s fourth overall NCAA Tournament appearance and the first since 2012. Bruggeman was named NSIC Tournament MVP after averaging 21 points and six assists in the four games.

SMSU finished just shy of making the program’s third trip to the Elite Eight, losing 55-52 in the region championship to eventual national champions Northwest Missouri State University.

2017-18

The milestones for Bruggeman continued as a junior.

Early in the season, he reached the 1,000-point milestone against UMD.

He also would go on to set both the career and single-season records for assists during the season.

Bruggeman ended the year averaging 16.8 ppg, along with 218 assists and 64 steals.

He helped the Mustangs capture their second consecutive NSIC South title. They made it to the NSIC Tournament championship game but lost by six to the eventual national runner-up Northern State University.

The Mustangs also qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year, something SMSU hadn’t accomplished previously.

After the season, the accolades kept coming for Bruggeman.

He again was named to the all-NSIC first team, becoming the first SMSU player to do so in back-to-back seasons since Jordan Miller in 2012 and 2013, and one of just seven two-time first team all-NSIC honorees in program history.

Bruggeman also was named all-region by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, was placed on the Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association All-Central Region second team and the Division II Bulletin Honorable Mention All-American team.

2018-19

This season, Bruggeman has taken his game to another level.

His scoring average is up to 23.2 ppg through the first 11 games of the season, including four 30-point performances. His new single-game career high 36 points on Dec. 7 was the first time a Mustangs player has scored at least 35 points in a game since Jacob Fahl put up 35 points against Northern State in Jan. 2001.

Bruggeman broke the program’s career steals record earlier this season and now has amassed 181 steals for the Mustangs, breaking the previous record of 157 set by Andre Beasley from 1990-93.

Bruggeman’s early-season success has him ranked highly in the NCAA statistics. His scoring average entered the weekend ranked 12th in Division II this season, while he also began the weekend fourth among all active players in career assists, sixth in career steals and ninth in career points.

With 18 games remaining on the regular season schedule, all the numbers Bruggeman has compiled during his career will only continue to improve, further cementing the point guard’s status as one of the greatest players to wear the Mustang brown and gold.