/usr/web/www.marshallindependent.com/wp-content/themes/coreV2/single.php
×

SMSU MEN’S BASKETBALL: Mustangs open NSIC home season this weekend facing SCSU and UMD

Independent file photo SMSU’s Kenny Byers passes the ball during their game against Mayville State on Nov. 21. The Mustangs will face St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth this weekend.

MARSHALL — The Southwest Minnesota State University men’s basketball team (3-6, 0-3 NSIC) returns home for a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference games versus NSIC North teams this Friday and Saturday inside the R/A Facility.

•SMSU, which has played seven of its nine games away from Marshall, will face St. Cloud State University (5-4, 2-1 NSIC) on Friday, with game time slated for 7:35 p.m.

•SMSU concludes the weekend on Saturday, with a 6 p.m. match-up versus NSIC leading Minnesota Duluth (8-1, 3-0 NSIC). UMD, which plays at the University of Sioux Falls on Friday, begins the weekend having won seven straight games and is receiving votes in this week’s NABC and D2SIDA Top 25 polls.

•This weekend’s games are the first two of eight games versus NSIC North Division teams in the regular season.

Broadcast info

•Both games will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with Ryan Rohlik providing play-by-play.

•Friday’s game will be broadcast live regionally on Midco Sports Network with David Brown and Brad Newitt.

•Live stats, radio broadcast and video can be found at SMSUmustangs. com.

Series history vs. St. Cloud State

•SMSU and St. Cloud State meet for the 64th time with SCSU leading 41-22 in a series that starts in 1969-70.

•SCSU won the lone meeting last season, 80-60, in St. Cloud on Dec. 14, 2018.

•SCSU leads 16-13 in games played in Marshall, but SMSU won the last game played in Marshall on Dec. 10, 2016.

•SCSU’s wins last season snapped a three-game SMSU winning streak in the series.

•SMSU head coach Brad Bigler is 6-10 all-time versus SCSU.

Series history vs.

Minnesota Duluth

•SMSU and Minnesota Duluth meet for the 86th time with UMD leading 51-34 in a series that began in 1972-73.

•SMSU won last season’s lone meeting, 75-63, in Duluth on Dec. 15, 2018.

•SMSU has won 15 of the last 17 games overall since the 2005-06 season and is currently on a four-game winning streak.

•UMD’s two victories since the 2005-06 season came on Jan. 20, 2012, and Jan. 30, 2016, both in Duluth.

•SMSU has won the nine straight in games played in Marshall with UMD’s last victory coming on Dec. 12, 2004.

•SMSU head coach Brad Bigler is 12-2 all-time versus UMD.

Mustang tip-off tidbits

•SMSU is a combined 37-19 versus NSIC North teams in regular season conference play since divisions were introduced prior to the 2012-13 season.

•Junior Kenny Byers leads the team in both scoring (13.7) and rebounding (8.7) and has recorded a team-high five double-doubles.

•SMSU has four players averaging seven points or more per game.

•Sophomore Grant Kramer has dished out a team-high 22 assists.

•Junior Nick Dufault, who scored a season-high 20 points, which included five 3-pointers in the loss to Concordia-St. Paul last Saturday, has connected on a team-high 21 3-pointers. He ranks fourth in team history in 3-point field goal pct. (42.9).

•SMSU made a season-low 18 field goals and shot a season-low 31 percent last Friday at Minnesota State.

•Freshman Cliff McCray has reached double figure scoring in five straight games and six times overall.

•Freshman Andy Stafford played in his first two games last weekend and will not redshirt this season.

•SMSU has outrebounded its opponents four times through nine games this season. Last season, SMSU outrebounded its opponent just twice in its last 21 games and finished last in the NSIC in rebound margin (-8.5).

•SMSU scored a season-high 82 points, shot as season-high 56 percent from the field, including 72 percent in the second half, in the win over Minnesota Morris on Nov. 22.

•SMSU has held a plus-15 rebound advantage in two games this season (+17 at Central Missouri and +19 versus Minnesota Morris).

•SMSU is shooting 43 percent from the field, 34 percent from 3-point range, 61 percent from the free throw line and is plus-1.7 in rebound margin.

•SMSU is averaging 66 points per game, while opponents are averaging 69 points per game.

Scouting

St. Cloud State

•SCSU has won four of its last five overall, including two NSIC home victories last weekend over UMary (88-56) and Minot State (78-73).

•Senior guard Trevon Marshall is averaging 16 ppg and 3.6 rpg, while shooting 48 percent from the field. Marshall scored a career-high 31 points in the win over Minot State.

•Senior guard Andrija Blatancic is scoring 12.2 ppg and is shooting 69 percent from the field.

•Junior guard Ilya Tyrtyshnik has a team-high 21 3-pointers and is averaging 12 ppg.

•Head coach Matt Reimer is in his sixth season at SCSU with a record of 101-64. He has led the Huskies NCAA Tournament appearances in both 2018 and 2019.

•SCSU is shooting 49 percent from the field, 34 percent from 3-point range, 64 percent from the free throw line and is plus-5.6 in rebound margin.

•SCSU is averaging 79 points per game, while opponents average 67 points per game.

Scouting

Minnesota Duluth

•UMD plays at Sioux Falls before taking on SMSU.

•Senior guard Brandon Myer is averaging 20.8 ppg and 10 rpg, while shooting 58 percent from the field. He has twice been named the NSIC North Division Player of the Week this season.

•Senior center Alex Illikainen, a transfer from Wisconsin, is scoring 17.7 ppg and is shooting 53 percent from the field.

•Junior forward Logan Rohrscheib has made 20 3-pointers and is averaging 11.8 ppg.

•Head coach Justin Wieck is in his second season with an overall record of 25-11.

•UMD is shooting 50 percent from the field, 38 percent from 3-point range, 77 percent from the free throw line and is plus-2.1 in rebound margin.

•UMD is averaging 88 points per game, while opponents average 76 points per game.

— Content courtesy

of SMSU Athletic

Communications

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.38/week.

Subscribe Today