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NSIC Leads Nation in Men's Basketball Attendance
Northern State Leads Nation for Third Straight Year

May 13, 2010 | NCAA DII Attendance List Tag

Indianapolis - The NSIC has six teams ranked in the top thirty in the nation in men's basketball attendance for the 2009-10 season, including the top team in Northern State University. The NSIC drew 290,945 fans to 203 games this season for a 1,433 fan per game average. The NSIC drew more fans than any other conference and was second only to the MIAA in average per game attendance (1,691).

For the third straight year and the fourth time in the last five years, the Northern State University men’s basketball team led the NCAA Division II in attendance at home games. Through 15 home contests in the 2009-10 campaign, the Wolves drew a total of 51,207 fans for an average of 3,414 per game. St. Cloud State was third (3,143); Augustana 11th (2,233); Minnesota State 20th (1,751); SMSU 24th (1,656) and the University of Mary 30th (1,457).

Walthall Named MSUM Dragons Head Men's Basketball Coach

May 15, 2010 | MSUM Release Tag

MOORHEAD, Minn. - Minnesota State University Moorhead Dragons Athletics Director Doug Peters announced Saturday that the Chad Walthall has been named the Head Men’s Basketball Coach at MSUM.

“Chad is a great addition to the Dragons Athletic Department, ” Peters said. “ He has proven that he can build a winning program and at the same time his leadership style and personality fit into the vision we have for MSUM Athletics. ”

Walthall becomes the 13th men’s basketball coach at MSUM in the 86-year history of the program. He comes to the Dragons after serving as the Head Assistant Coach at the University of Iowa.

“My family and I are very excited and grateful to be a part of the Dragon family,” Walthall said. “I have tremendous respect for MSU-Moorhead and am honored to be named the Head Men’s Basketball Coach.”

“After meeting with the current team, President Szymanski, Athletics Director Doug Peters and the department staff, it was very clear that if given the opportunity it would be an excellent fit,” He continued. “Having been a part of this community in the past, I know how loyal and dedicated fans can be and am looking forward to building a program that the university and community will be very proud of.”

Walthall has served as the primary assistant at the University of Iowa for the past three seasons. Prior to joining the Hawkeye’s staff, Walthall was the Head Coach (2000-2007) and Athletics Director (2003-2007) at Loras College (Iowa), a NCAA DIII institution that competes in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

In his first season at LC, Walthall led the Duhawks to a fourth place finish in the IIAC and hosted its first conference tournament game in school history. The DuHawks never had a losing season under his guidance and in his last three years, Loras won 77% (37-11) of its league games, more than any other basketball program in the conference.

According to Peters, that experience as the head basketball coach and athletics director at Loras played a significant role in the decision to hire Walthall.

“Coach Walthall built the basketball program at Loras,” Peters said. “He took a team that was at the bottom of the league and created a program that had seven consecutive winning seasons, including a 15-1 conference record and IIAC Championship in his last season. That championship team also had the same number of Academic All-Conference players as All-Conference players.”

“The academic success and mentorship our coaches provide, is just as important as the wins and losses on the floor,” Peters continued. “Coaches have a tremendous amount of influence on student-athletes and Chad has demonstrated that he can be a leader that helps young men to grow and develop as players, students and tomorrow’s leaders.”

In his final season at Loras, he led the team to their first IIAC Championship since 1951, setting a school record for most conference wins. This was on the way to becoming the IIAC Tournament Champions as well as earning the school’s first NCAA Tournament Berth in the history of the program.

In his tenure at Iowa, Walthall served as the lead assistant coach and filled in as the Hawkeyes Interim Head Coach for four games in the 2009-10 season. He also took the lead on recruiting the 20th ranked recruitment class of 2010 (as ranked by Van Coleman), which was third among Big Ten schools.

In that class, Walthall was the lead recruiter for the nation’s No. 55 recruit, Larson,as well as #108, Brust and #141, McCabe. This class came one season after he was the lead recruiter for Cully Payne and Eric May, both of which were named to the 2009 All-Big Ten Freshman team.

Walthall served as an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan for two seasons before he went to Loras College. Prior to EMU, he was the assistant at St. Olaf (Minn.) for four seasons. He also coached at Redwood Valley High School for the 1993-94 season after finishing his masters degree at St. Cloud State (Minn.) where he was the graduate assistant basketball coach.

Walthall was responsible for recruiting at St. Olaf and EMU. He was also oversaw the team’s academics at both of those institutions as well as at SCSU, where he was part of a program that earned an NCAA DII Tournament Bid in 1991-92.

A native of Staples, Minnesota, Walthall has an undergraduate degree in Physical Education as well as a Master of Science in Athletics Administration.

Chad will be joined in Moorhead by his wife, Jenny, and their four children (Brooke 9, twin sons Brady and Blake 7, and Beau 3).

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 18
SCSU Falls 76-70 in Elite 8 Final Four

March 29, 2010 | NSIC Release | NCAA Championship Site Tag

St. Paul, Minn. - The St. Cloud State Huskies ended their most successful season in school history at 29-6 en route to the team’s first Final Four appearance. The Huskies fell 76-70 in the final four of the NCAA DII Elite Eight in Springfield, Mass. St. Cloud State men’s basketball players Matt Schneck (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) and Taylor Witt (Morris) were named to the 2010 NCAA Division II Elite Eight All-Tournament team. The announcement was made following the Division II Championship game won by Cal Poly Pomona, 65-53, over Indiana University (Pa.). The Huskies joined Darryl Webb of IUP, and Dahir Nasser and Austin Swift of Cal Poly Pomona on the five-member team. Swift was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament after leading the Broncos to the National Championship.

Witt scored 43 points, the fourth highest scoring total in an Elite Eight game, in the Huskies 92-88 quarterfinal win over Midwestern State University (TX). He also made an NCAA tournament record 22 of 23 free throws in the win. Witt scored 16 in the 76-70 semifinal loss to IUP. He averaged 22.4 points in five NCAA games played this season. He was also named to the NSIC All-Tournament team.

Schneck ended his collegiate career with a pair of double doubles in the Elite Eight. In the win, Schneck tallied 16 points and 13 rebounds. He completed his career with one of his best games, scoring 29 points and pulling in 17 rebounds. An NABC All-American, he averaged 21.2 points and 14.8 rebounds in five NCAA tournament games. He was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Central Region Tournament and the NSIC Tournament.

The Huskies posted a 29-6 overall record in the most successful season in school history winning their first ever Elite Eight game and advancing to the Final Four. Along the way, St. Cloud State won the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament and the NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament.

#16 St. Cloud State 70 vs. #2 Indiana (Pa.) 76
NCAA DII Men's Basketball Final Four

March 25, 2010 | Box Score | National Bracket

Springfield, Mass. –The No. 16 ranked St. Cloud State men’s basketball team (29-6) saw its postseason run come to an end as #2 Indiana (Pa.) (33-2) knocked off the Huskies 76-70 in the NCAA Elite Eight Final Four in Springfield, Mass. All-American Matt Schneck led the Huskies with 29 points and 17 rebounds while Taylor Witt added 16 points as both played all 40 minutes. IUP will play Cal Poly Pomona on Saturday in the National Championship game.

IUP took an early lead as they went on a 13-0 run over a six minute span of the first half to open up a 19-6 advantage ten minutes into the game. They would extend the lead to 15 at 30-15 with five minutes left in the half, but the Huskies would go on a 10-2 run to close the gap to seven at the break, 32-25.

The Huskies would start the second half on an 8-2 run to make it a one point game at the 17:43 mark. Witt would score four of those eight points on lay-ups. IUP would answer as they extended their lead back to 12 with nine minutes to play, 56-44. But as the Huskies did earlier they closed the gap again as the outscored the Hawks 14-4 over the next four minutes to make it a two point game with five to play. The Huskies would go on to tie the game at 63 as Brett Putz scored two of this ten points on a lay-up with 3:31 to go. But a Julian Sanders three point put the Hawks back on top for good as they slowly pulled away as they made their free throws down the stretch.

The Hawks had five players score in double figures including Darryl Webb, who scored 12 points and grabbed 15 rebounds.

The Huskies were outshot in the game 47.4% (27-57) to 35.8% (24-67) from the field and were a dismal 5-of-22 (22.7%) from three point range.

The Huskies are now 11-14 all-time in NCAA Tournament games. They also saw their seven-game winning streak come to an end and fall to 13-2 in non-conference games this season.

This marked the first time the Huskies had advanced to the NCAA National Semifinals as they join the 1986-87 Huskies as the only two teams to advance past regional play. That season St. Cloud State lost 78-73 in overtime to Delta State in the NCAA quarterfinals.

Indiana (Pa.) will make its first trip to the national championship game. The Crimson Hawks improved to 4-4 all-time in the Elite Eight and 19-8 overall in the NCAA tournament. IUP has won 15 in a row since last losing at Clarion on February 7 and is in the midst of its first ever 30-win season.

#16 St. Cloud State vs. #2 Indiana (Pa.) - 5:00 p.m. Today
NCAA DII Men's Basketball Final Four

March 25, 2010 | Live Stats | National Bracket

Springfield, Mass. –The No. 16 ranked St. Cloud State men’s basketball team (29-5) will take on #2 Indiana (Pa.) (32-2) in the NCAA Elite Eight Final Four in Springfield, Mass. today at 5:00 p.m. (CT). The Huskies advanced to their first National Semifinals with a 92-88 win over #3 Midwestern State (31-3) while Indiana (Pa.) overcame a 14-point second half deficit to defeat #6 Valdosta State (28-5) 80-64 in their quarterfinal game yesterday. Today's game will be aired live on the CBS College Sports Network (check your local listings). Thursday's game will be the first meeting between the Crimson Hawks and Huskies in men's basketball.

With yesterday's win the Huskies are now 11-13 all-time in NCAA Tournament games. They are currently on a seven-game winning streak, have won 16 of the last 17 games this season and are 13-1 in non-conference games. SCSU's last loss was an 80-69 setback on February 27th at Winona State.

This marks the first time the Huskies have advanced to the NCAA National Semifinals as they join the 1986-87 Huskies as the only two teams to advance past regional play. That season St. Cloud State lost 78-73 in overtime to Delta State in the NCAA quarterfinals.

Indiana (Pa.) enters the semifinals of the NCAA Elite Eight tournament for the third time in school history. IUP previously advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 1995 and 2002 and is seeking its first trip to the national championship game. The Crimson Hawks improved to 3-4 all-time in the Elite Eight and 18-8 overall in the NCAA tournament. IUP has won 14 in a row since last losing at Clarion on February 7 and is in the midst of its first ever 30-win season.

#16 St. Cloud State 92, #3 Midwestern State (TX) 88
Taylor Witt Drops 43 in NCAA Elite 8 Quarterfinals

March 24, 2010 | SCSU Release | Live Stats | National Bracket | Box Score

Witt on KFAN with Dan Barreiro
Interview Begins at 49:00 mark

Springfield, Mass. –The No. 16 ranked St. Cloud State men’s basketball team (29-5) defeated #3 Midwestern State University (31-3) 92-88 in the NCAA Elite Eight in Springfield, Mass. The Huskies will advance to the National Semifinals to take Indiana (Pa.) on Thursday afternoon at 5:00 p.m. (CT). The game will be aired on the CBS College Sports Network.

SCSU's Taylor Witt scored a career high 43 points, including 38 of St. Cloud's 53 second half points, as he set NCAA Elite 8 records for free throws attempted and free throws made as he hit 22-of-23 from the charity stripe. The last time a player scored 43 points in an Elite Eight game was when Jack Sullivan of Mount Saint Mary’s scored 43 in 1957 and it amounts to the fourth highest total in an NCAA tournament game.

The Huskies started the game a blazing 9-of-11 from the field including a game-opening three pointer from junior Andrew Bernstetter (St. Joseph, Minn.) to take a 24-16 lead 12:00 minutes in, but the Mustangs responded with a pair of steals that led to easy buckets to put the game at 24-23 in favor of St. Cloud State. The game remained close until the Mustangs went on a 7-0 run to close the half and lead 45-39.

St. Cloud State rallied from their second largest halftime deficit by going on a 12-6 run to knot the game at 51 just four and a half minutes into the second half. The Huskies then took the lead back at the 15:12 mark at 53-51. From that point the Huskies went on a tear to take a 72-68 lead with 6:44 to go in the game. Midwestern would take the lead back at 78-76 with 3:21 remaining, but then Witt turned it on. Taylor score 15 of the Huskies final 16 points in the final three minutes of the game.

All-American senior Matt Schneck (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) was also strategically substituted throughout the final minutes of the game and finished with his 22nd double-double of the season with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

St. Cloud State shot a solid 52.9 percent from the field (27-for-51), while out-rebounding the Mustangs 38-33. Midwestern State answered with a 50 percent shooting game, going 33-for-66 from the field. The Huskies had a huge advantage at the charity stripe, making 32-of-44 (24-of-32 second half), while the Mustangs shot 15-of-22.

Midwestern State was led by Chris Hagan's 31 and Chris Green's 27 points.

The Huskies are now 11-13 all-time in NCAA Tournament games and are currently on a seven-game winning streak. They have also won 16 of the last 17 games this season and are 13-1 in non-conference games.

SCSU's Schneck, MSU's Nelson Earn All-American Honors

March 22, 2010 | NABC Release Tag

Kansas City, MO. – The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) announced Monday that St. Cloud State's Matt Schneck (Sr., C, Whitefish Bay, Wis.) and Minnesota State's Travis Nelson (Sr., C, Marion, Iowa) were named to the 16-member 2010 State Farm Coaches’ Division II All-American Team. Schneck and Nelson join the elite group of the best Division II players in the country after being voted in by the coaches.

Schneck is headed into an Elite Eight matchup with Midwestern State University in the semi-final round of the NCAA tournament averaging a double-double with 18.3 points a 11.1 rebounds a game. He is ranked 10th nationally in rebounding average and 15th in field goal percentage at 61.8. He is finishing up his St. Cloud State career as one of the top scorers and rebounders in the history of the Husky men’s basketball program. He currently is seventh on the all-time scoring list with 1,553 points and is fourth in rebounding with 879 boards.

Schneck has earned himself plenty of hardware this season and it all started after being named to the 2009-2010 Sporting News Pre-season All-American team, along with junior captain Taylor Witt (Morris).

Nelson, who was a All-Region pick by the NABC and Daktronics, was also a two-time All-NSIC choice and was named the league's Newcomer of the Year in 2009. Nelson averaged 16.1 points and 5.8 rebounds this past season for the Mavericks. A two-time All-NSIC performer Nelson shot 57.1 percent from the floor this year and 78.6 percent from the free throw line. The Marion, Iowa native finished his career as a Maverick with 971 points is fourth on the school’s career field goal percentage list at 56.5 percent.

Nelson will participate in the NABC All-Star game in conjunction with the NCAA Division II Elite Eight.

MSU's Nelson Scores 15 in Fifth Annual NABC/NCAA DII All-Star Game

March 17, 2010 | NABC Release Tag

The fifth annual NABC/NCAA Division II All-Star Game will be held Friday, March 26, in conjunction with the 2010 NCAA Division II Men's Elite Eight in Springfield, Massachusetts. The game tips at 7 p.m. on the Basketball Hall of Fame Center Court. Minnesota State's Travis Nelson and Winona State's David Johnson were selected from the NSIC to compete in the game. Unfortunately Johnson is able to compete in the game. Nelson, one of 11 players on the East squad, becomes the third Maverick in school history to play in the game, joining Luke Anderson (2007) and Atila Santos (2008).

Minnesota State senior center Travis Nelson (Marion, Iowa) started and scored 15 points while hauling in four rebounds as the East All-Stars fell to the West squad, 133-125 in the NABC/Division II All-Star Game held in Springfield, Mass. Nelson finished 7-of-11 from the field and 1-of-2 from the free throw line in the loss. He played 24 minutes in the loss.

Nelson, an NABC All-American and a All-Region pick by the NABC and Daktronics, was also a two-time All-NSIC choice and was named the league's Newcomer of the Year in 2009. Nelson averaged 16.1 points and 5.8 rebounds this past season for the Mavericks. A two-time All-NSIC performer Nelson shot 57.1 percent from the floor this year and 78.6 percent from the free throw line. The Marion, Iowa native finished his career as a Maverick with 971 points is fourth on the school’s career field goal percentage list at 56.5 percent.

NSU Announces Paul Sather as Men's Basketball Coach

March 19, 2010 | NSU Release Tag

ABERDEEN, S.D. – Northern State University President Dr. James Smith has announced the appointment of Paul Sather as the new NSU Men’s Basketball Coach. The hiring follows the recent retirement of Don Meyer as NSU Men’s Basketball Coach effective at the end of the 2009-2010 season.

Sather was one of five finalists for the position and was selected following a national search and formal interview process.

A 1996 NSU graduate, Sather returns to the Wolves’ staff after five years as the head coach at Black Hills State University in Spearfish, S.D. He also spent time at NSU as an assistant coach under both Bob Olson and Meyer from 1998 to 2004.

“We are extremely pleased to have Paul Sather return to Northern State University. With Coach Sather’s experience here as a player and former assistant coach, we know that his learning curve, with respect to Northern, will be much less than would be the case for virtually any other candidate,” said Smith. “We also welcome his enthusiasm and strong winning record as we move forward to a new phase of athletics here at NSU. Sather now joins a distinguished list of names like Wachs, Olson, and Meyer. We wish Coach Sather the very best as he begins his era here at Northern State University.”

Sather becomes the 22nd head coach in NSU’s 100-plus year history and just the fourth in the past 53 years.

Media Availability:
Coach Sather is currently off campus participating in post-season recruiting. A formal press conference with Sather and NSU President Jim Smith has been scheduled for Monday, March 22, 2010 at 11 a.m. in the Centennial Room of the NSU Student Center. A live web stream of the press conference will be available on the NSU athletics page www.nsuwolvesathletics.com.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 17
SCSU Advances to Elite 8 - Will Face Midwestern State (TX)

March 18, 2010 | NSIC Release | NCAA Championship Site Tag

St. Cloud State will represent the NSIC in the 2010 NCAA Division II Elite 8 on March 24-25, 27 in Springfield, Mass. It marks the fifth straight season the NSIC has sent a team to the Elite 8. The Huskies needed overtime to defeat NSIC foe Augustana College 84-75 in the NCAA Central Region Championship Game. SCSU advances to the Elite Eight for the first time since the 1986-87 season and will play Midwestern State (TX) on Wednesday, March 24 at 11:00 a.m.

SCSU Triumphs in Overtime Over Augie 84-75
Huskies Advance to Elite 8

March 16, 2010 | Box Score

Mankato, Minn. - For the second time in school history the St. Cloud State men’s basketball team will be playing in the NCAA Elite Eight after beating Augustana College 84-75 in overtime in the NCAA Central Regional Championship Tuesday night in the Taylor Center. The Huskies (28-5) were able to cut down the nets for the second time this season as they outscored the Vikings 18-9 in overtime, including the final 11 points to make it to the Elite Eight for the first time since the 1986-87 season. St. Cloud State will next play Midwestern State Wednesday, March 24 in Springfield, Mass. with the game time to be 11:00 a.m. central time. To listen to the post-game press conference click here.

Junior Andrew Bernstetter (St. Joseph) picked the right time to shine for St. Cloud as he scored his first points of the game with a put pack to bring the score to 75-73 in favor of the Vikings with 2:28 to go in overtime.

He then took the Husky lead back for good with a devastating three pointer just before the final minute to take a 76-75 lead.

After two Husky free throws, junior Nate Phillips (Rosemount) had a break-away layup, as he was out in front of the pack on a defensive rebound to seal the victory.

St. Cloud State went on to make 8-of-10 free throws in the extra five minutes after shooting 17-for-29 in the first 40 minutes.

Senior captain Matt Schneck (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) recorded his 21st double-double of the season with 19 points and 19 rebounds to lead all Husky players in points and all players in rebounds. For his effort in the tournament, Schneck was named the NCAA Central Regional Most Valuable Player.

The Huskies were down 75-71 with 2:44 to go in the game, but like all season long the team responded after the Bernstetter put-back.

Junior Josh Ortman (Buffalo) was named to the All-Regional team, after posting a 17 point night, going 7-for-11 from the field. Junior captain Taylor Witt (Morris) finished strong down the stretch to score 16 points, while making 8-for-11 from the field.

Sophomore Brett Putz (Forest City, Iowa) rounded out the double-digit scorers for St. Cloud State with 13 points on another stellar 4-for-6 night from the three-point line.

As a team the Huskies shot 45.6 percent from the field on a 26-for-57 night of shooting.

In a back and forth regional championship game down the stretch, the Huskies scored three points on three straight plays to take a 58-53 with 5:22 in the second half but the Vikings responded with a 6-0 run to take the lead back and once again both teams were tied at 60-60 with three minutes to go.

Just over four minutes later the score was still in a standstill at 63-63. The Vikings then drew a foul as Lee Stephens went to the free throw line and made one of two to take a one point lead. After a St. Cloud State timeout with 44.2 seconds to go junior Taylor Witt (Morris) nailed a clutch jumper to take the lead back with 30.8 seconds left.

The Vikings then turned the ball over on a drive to the basket early in the shot clock to give the ball back to the Huskies with 19.9 seconds to go. Schneck stepped to the line and made one of two free throws to take a two point lead.

David Foster of Augustana then took the ball the length of the court for a layup to setup overtime at 66 points a piece.

The Huskies trailed 6-0 early but went on a 7-0 run to take their first lead of the night at the 15:59 mark and it was signs of things to come in the first half, as both teams battled back and forth through three lead changes and two ties, as the Vikings took a 28-26 lead into halftime.

The fourth seeded Huskies defeated fifth seeded Metro State and top seed Minnesota State to earn their spot in tonight's game. Augustana, the third seed, downed the sixth seed of N.M. Highlands and the second seed of Mesa State on their road to the finals. SCSU will take on Midwestern State (TX) (31-2) on Wednesday, March 24th at 11:00 a.m. in Springfield, Mass.

All Tournament team:
Cameron McCaffrey (Augie)
Josh Ortmann (SCSU)
Cody Schilling (Augie)
Mike Dominguez (MSC)
And the Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament as voted on by the media in attendance Matt Schneck – (SCSU)

SCSU Stops Minnesota State - Advances to Region Championship

March 14, 2010 | Box Score Tag

Nate Phillips comes up big off the bench in win. Photo courtesy of Sport Pix

Mankato, Minn. - In a battle between NSIC foes, the No. 16-ranked St. Cloud State men’s basketball team put together a late game surge against No. 8 Minnesota State University Mankato to earn a school record 27th victory of the season with an 83-71 win in the semifinal round of the NCAA Central Regional tournament Sunday night. The Huskies will now make their fourth regional championship appearance when they take the No. 3-seeded Augustana College Vikings at 7 p.m. Tuesday night in the Taylor Center. St. Cloud State last won a regional championship when they defeated Ferris State 77-69 in 1987. Augustana College was a 95-84 winner over Mesa State in the earlier semifinal.

After splitting the two regular season matchups against the Mavericks, St. Cloud State-the NSIC conference tournament champions, gave Minnesota State (25-5) - the NSIC regular season champions, their biggest point-loss of the season.

The rush for the school record in wins started after a back and forth second half of the play as the Huskies sat in a 71-68 lead with 3:07 to go in the game. St. Cloud State then outscored the Mavericks 11-3 in the final three minutes to claim the coveted victory.

St. Cloud State had a balanced attack all night long with four players scoring in double figures, as the Huskies shot nearly 48 percent from the field.

Sophomore Josh Ortmann was lights out from beyond the three point line; making 4-of-5 three’s to give him 16 points in the game.

Junior Nate Phillips had the biggest game of his career off the bench for St. Cloud State, scoring six points, grabbing five rebounds and recording four steals on the night.

"Went I get an opportunity, I want to do whatever I can to help the team out," Phillips said. " I just came in and did what I had to do."

Senior captain Matt Schneck recorded his 20th double-double of the season with a game-high 21 points and 14 rebounds, while junior captain Taylor Witt poured in 14 and sophomore Brett Putz scored 13.

After early foul trouble in the first half, St. Cloud State’s bench play came up big to help take a 37-31 lead into halftime, before helping with the final Husky run in the closing minutes.

Putz scored a team-high 10 points in the half and junior Nate Phillips grabbed four rebounds and recorded a pair of steals. Freshman Tim Bergstrasser (St. Cloud) had a big first half on the boards for the Huskies with six of the St. Cloud State’s 30 rebounds in the half. St. Cloud State went on to out-rebound the Mavericks 48-39 in the game while scoring 17 points off of Minnesota State turnovers.

The solid bench play began after the Huskies started the game making three of 10 shots from the field and had two starters sit early with two fouls a piece in the first four minutes of the game but St. Cloud State did not falter, tying the game up at 12-12 after a Witt three point play the hard way at the 13:19 mark.

The Mavericks answered with a 5-0 run in the next three minutes to take the lead back at 17-12, but just over a minute later the Huskies trailed 17-16 and were in the bonus at the free throw line for the final nine minutes of the first half.

Then Ortmann took back the Husky lead for the first time since leading 2-0 in the opening moments with a moving jumper off the left wing to make it a 20-18 game, as the Huskies did not give up the lead the rest of the game. Ortmann then followed it with a three pointer moments later to take a five point lead and his three was followed by another three from Putz to take a commanding 26-18 lead.

With the team’s fifth straight win, it also marks the most wins in a St. Cloud State post season in school history, as the Huskies went 3-0 in the NSIC tournament and claimed a win in the first two rounds of Central Regional play.
Text Courtesy of SCSU Sports Information.

Augie Scores 60 in 2nd Half to Down Mesa State 95-84

March 14, 2010 | Box Score Tag

Mankato, Minn. - The Augustana men’s basketball overcame an early shooting slump to defeat Mesa State 95-84 Sunday night in the NCAA Central Regional semifinal in Mankato, Minn. With the victory, the Vikings set a school record for victories with 24 and advance to the NCAA Central Region final for the second staright season.

In Saturday’s opening round, the Vikings opened a large lead early against New Mexico Highlands by shooting over 59 percent in the opening half. Tonight, the Vikings came out sluggish, with Mesa State disrupting the Vikings’ offensive rhythm, holding them to 11 made field goals on 32 attempts (34.4 percent) in the first half.

Mesa State’s Mike Dominguez, who led all scorers with 41 points, scored 22 in the first half. His two free throws with 1:17 to play in the first half gave Mesa State its largest lead of the half at 41-33. However, a layup by Derrick De Zeeuw cut the Maverick halftime lead to six at 41-35.

Despite cold shooting, Augie kept the game close by maintaining a sizeable rebound margin. For the second straight game, the Vikings outrebounded their opponent by a double digit margin. Augie collected 55 caroms to Mesa State’s 37, and 19 Vikings offensive boards contributed to 18 second chance points.

Early in the second half, Jordan Dalton was called for a technical foul, and Dominguez converted two free throws and scored a layup on the possession to give Mesa State its largest lead at 47-37 with 17:42 to play.

But as they had done the previous night, the Vikings were able to find some offensive rhythm and put together a substantial scoring run to put the game almost out of reach. Over the next 13:21, the Vikings outscored the Mavericks 45-17 to increase the Augustana advantage to 18 with 4:21 remaining. Cameron McCaffrey scored 11 of his team-high 18 points during the run, as the Vikings shot 13-of-24 (54 percent), including 6-of-9 from three-point range, and were 9-of-10 from the foul line. Conversely, the Viking defense forced five Maverick turnovers and held them to 30 percent from the field (6-of-20).

Mesa State put together one final run of its own. A three-point field goal by Brian Kenshalo capped a 20-8 run that brought the Mavericks within six at 90-84 with 48 seconds to play, but the Vikings converted 5-of-6 free throws and held Mesa State scoreless the rest of the way for the 95-84 victory.

Cody Schilling scored 17, while David Foster tallied 15. Nathan Truex finished the night with 14 points and 9 rebounds.

The Vikings will face St. Cloud State in Tuesday night’s regional final. The game is scheduled to tip at 7 p.m. in Mankato, Minn.
Text Courtesy of Augustana Sports Information Office

St. Cloud State Defeats Metro State 82-77

March 13, 2010 | Box Score Tag

Mankato, Minn. - The No. 16-ranked St. Cloud State men’s basketball team made clutch plays down the stretch to hold off an athletic Metropolitan State University squad 82-77 Saturday night in the first round of the NCAA Central Regional tournament in the Bresnan Arena.

Junior captain Taylor Witt (Morris) came through for the Huskies (26-5) for the second consecutive game making two free throws with five seconds to go to put St. Cloud State up 80-77, before junior transfer Nate Phillips (Rosemount) made the biggest play of his Husky career.

Phillips stole the ball off the Roadrunner dribble near the Huskies’ bench and took it in for a lay-up to seal coach Schlagel’s second 26-win season of his career.

Junior Josh Ortmann (Buffalo) also came up huge in the final moments of the game for the Huskies. As the shot clock ran down under 10 seconds, Ortmann hit a three pointer with 47.4 seconds to go in the game to take a 71-64 lead to hold off a final rush by Metro State.

The Roadrunners answered with a three point play of their own to make it a 76-72 game with just less than 30 seconds remaining. After a made free throw by St. Cloud State, the Roadrunner’s again answered with a three pointer to make it 77-75 before the Huskies closed out their fourth straight win.

St. Cloud State shot made 29-of-40 free throws in a game that the Huskies scored 32 points in the paint. Witt made 12-of-13 from the free throw line to lead the team.

After a back and forth half of play, the Huskies went into halftime ahead 35-30, but led by as many as eight before a Roadrunner three-pointer at the buzzer.

St. Cloud State shot 42 percent from the field on a 10-for-24 half, while seven Husky players got in on the scoring action. Metro State countered with an 11-for-28 shooting period.

Junior Andrew Bernstetter (St. Joseph) had a big start for the Huskies, scoring 11 points while, becoming St. Cloud State’s all-time blocks leader with the 116th block of his career just 2:39 into the game. He passed Jon Hinzman (1994-98) for the record and finished the half tying his career high with five blocks.

He finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and six blocks, while senior Matt Schneck (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) pounded the lane for his 19th double-double of the season with 21 points and 11 rebounds.

St. Cloud State will now take on the No. 1 seeded Minnesota State University Mankato at 7:30 p.m. Sunday night in the Bresnan Arena.

Minnesota State Rallies to Defeat CSM 84-80

March 13, 2010 | Box Score Tag

Photo Courtesy of MSUMavericks.com

Mankato, Minn. - The Minnesota State men’s basketball team – ranked #8 in the nation and the top-seed in the Central Region – opened the 2010 NCAA Division II Central Regional Tournament surviving a scare from eighth-seeded Colorado School of the Mines Saturday evening as the Mavericks pulled out a come-from-behind victory, 84-80.

Minnesota State was paced on the stat sheet by senior guard Jermain Davis who finished the night with 19 points and a career and game-high 12 rebounds.

“I was very relieved to get those 40 minutes of basketball done,” said head coach Matt Margenethaler. “Give credit to the Colorado School of Mines, I thought they played an absolutely great game. They do all the little things right and they are going to be back here (at the Regional).”

The Mavericks opened the contest with a 10-4 run as senior center Travis Nelson and Davis each had dunks in the set offense.

Minnesota State pushed a lead to as big as eight at the 13:29 mark before the Colorado School of Mines crawled back to tie the game at 21 with 7:06 remaining.

CSM continued to put the pressure on the Mavericks as it built a nine point lead at the break. The Maverick halftime disadvantage marked the largest Minnesota State at halftime faced this year.

The Mavericks shot an icy 29.4 percent in the first half, their lowest first half output of the season. Minnesota State made just 8-of-18 free throw attempts in the opening 20 minutes, while the Orediggers connected on 9-of-12. The Mavericks did own the edge on the glass, 25-20, including 15-1 on the offensive end. Despite the 15 second chance opportunities the Mavericks had just five second chance points in the first half.

CSM hit on its second basket of the second half to push an 11 point lead and maintained at least a three-possession edge as late as the 12 minute and five second mark of the game.

Junior guard Jefferson Mason gathered a steal at the top of the opposing key and took it the length of the court to slam home a two-handed transition dunk, reducing the Oredigger lead to seven.

On the ensuing School of Mines possession, junior guard Marcus Hill picked up a steal and drilled a three-point basket from the left wing to cut the deficit to four.

CSM’s Grant Agee answered on the ensuing possession with a three to push the lead back to seven, which would represent the largest Oredigger in the final 11 minutes.

Minnesota State then went to the free throw line for its points as Davis and junior wing Cameron Hodges each sank a pair of extra opportunities to cut the lead to three with 10:03 remaining.

Davis converted a nifty layup at the 7:54 mark to pull the Mavericks with in one before Drew Hoffman drilled a three for the Orediggers to push the lead back to four.

The two teams then traded baskets until the Mavericks tied the game at 63 when senior guard Jesse Clark converted a traditional three-point play.

CSM tried to answer on the ensuing possession, but Davis blocked a baseline three-point attempt by Hoffman and took it the length of the court for a layup to give the Mavericks a brief 65-63 edge.

Brent Green hit a jumper in the paint to tie the game at 65. The Mavericks then embarked on an 11-2 run to push a nine-point lead with 66 seconds remaining.

The Mavericks still had an 11 point lead with 27 seconds remaining before the Orediggers drilled three three-pointers to cut the edge to four as time expired.

Mason led all Mavericks with 19 points as he hit 6-of-11 field goal opportunities and knocked down 7-of-11 free throw chances. He also finished with nine rebounds, four blocks, two steals and an assist.

Davis’ 17 points came on 5-of-12 shooting, including 6-of-9 from the free throw line. Hill joined Davis with 17 points to round out the Mavericks in double-figures.

Minnesota State finished the game shooting 40.6 percent from the floor and outrebounded CSM, 44-33. The Mavericks finished with 21 offensive boards, compared to just four for the Orediggers. Minnesota State’s bench finished with 26 points and the Mavericks scored 21 points off 16 CSM miscues.

Minnesota State (25-4) hosts the fourth-seeded St. Cloud State Huskies on Sunday at 7:30 p.m.
Text Courtesy of MSU Sports Information Office

Winona State Falls 73-68 to Mesa State in Regional

March 13, 2010 | Box Score Tag

Mankato, Minn. - Winona State University's season came to an end with a 73-68 loss to Mesa State College in the second game of the opening round to the NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament held in the Bresnan Areana at the Taylor Center on the campus of Minnesota State University Mankato.

The Warriors closed out their season with a 20-10 record and for the first time in six consecutive years did not advance to the region semifinal round. WSU came into the tournament as the No. 7 Seed, while Mesa State with a 23-5 at the time was the No. 2 Seed.

A scoring drought in the second half saw an, 11-point, 46-35, Winona State lead disappear, as Mesa State held the Warriors in check and ran off 19-4 streak to take a, four-point, 54-50, lead with 7:01 left to play. The Mavericks continued to build on the lead and at one point (33 seconds left to play) appeared to have the game wrapped up with a 68-62 lead. But Ben Fischer kept the Warriors within in range of the Mavericks by unleashing a couple of three-point field goal bombs and WSU was behind by to a 70-68 count with 15 seconds left in the game. From there MSC converted three of four free throw attempts and WSU missed a couple of shots to end the game.

Fischer finished with a game-high 20 points, while Jon Walburg followed with 19 and Clayton Vette hit for 12.

Balanced scoring favored the Mavericks, who had four players finish in double figures. Free throws also helped MSC, which connected of 23 of 24 attempts.

Winona State did lead most of the first half and was up by as much as nine points at 23-14. But the Mavericks came back to tie the score at 29-29 before the Warriors' Xavier Humphrey scored on a layup with two seconds left before the intermission.
Text Courtesy of Winona State Sports Information Office

Augie Defeats N.M. Highlands 87-73 in Regional

March 13, 2010 | Box Score Tag

Mankato, Minn. - The Augustana men’s basketball team opened a first half 21-point lead en route to a 87-73 win over New Mexico Highlands (NMHU) Saturday at the NCAA Central Regional in Mankato, Minn.

With the win, the No. 3 seeded Vikings improved to 23-6 and No. 6 NMHU concluded the season 20-11. The win also continues a streak for head coach Tom Billeter. Coach Billeter's teams (North Dakota State, Augustana) have made the NCAA Division II Tournament seven times, and they have won the first round game in all seven

The teams combined for 129 shot attempts, and the Vikings outrebounded NMHU 57 to 43.

Both teams began the game aggressively on offense, but NMHU was able to build an early 8-4 run three minutes into the game by holding Augie to 1-of-4 shooting. During that time, sophomore Cody Schilling, who finished with 20 points and 8 rebounds, provided the spark offensively for the Vikings. Schilling scored 9 consecutive points, commencing with a breakaway slam, to propel the Vikings to an 11-8 at the 15:48 mark.

Following a couple of minutes of the teams jockeying for the lead, Augustana made the offensive run that began to put the game out of reach. Down 13-17 at the 13:50 mark, the Vikings went on a 27-2 run over more than 9 minutes, during which the Vikings held NMHU to 0-of-11 from the field and forced six turnovers. Senior David Foster scored 13 during this run, including 3 three-pointers.

The Vikings sustained their double-digit lead for the remainder of the half and went into the break up 51-34. The Vikings shot 59.3 percent (16-fo-27) in the first half and held NMHU to 10-fo-30 from the field.

NMHU countered with a small run of its own to begin the second half, cutting the Augustana advantage to 14 points with 15:08 to play follow a three-point basket by Roman Andrade. Andrade led NMHU with 25 points. But each time NMHU made a run, Augustana countered with enough offense to push the lead back to a sizable margin.

Foster led the Vikings with 25 points, tying a season high, and garnered 10 rebounds, a career high. His effort was also his first double-double of the season. His point total ties his season high and Nathan Truex scored 12 and Lee Stephens and Elliot Thomas each scored eight.

Augustana will face Mesa State in the second round of the NCAA Central Regional. The Vikings and Mavericks will tip at 5 p.m. Sunday in Mankato, Minn.
Text Courtesy of Augustana Sports Information Office

Daktronics All-Region Team Announced

March 10, 2010 Tag

Denver, Colo. - The 2010 Daktronics All-Central Region team was released on Wednesday, March 10 as ten players from nine different schools made up the two teams. Seven of the players come from teams that qualified for this coming weekend’s NCAA Central Region Tournament in Mankato, Minn. The NSIC boasts five of the ten players, including first team members Matt Schneck (St. Cloud State) and Travis Nelson (Minnesota State). Minnesota State, the top team in the region, was the only school with two members as Nelson took first team honors and Jefferson Mason was named to the second team.

The team is sponsored by Daktronics, Inc., an acknowledged world leader in scoring, timing and programmable display systems for virtually every sport at every level of competition. The team is voted on by the members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) from the Central Region, made up of 32 men’s basketball playing institutions in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.

The online nomination and voting processes are powered by ATHLETICSITE.COM. Headquartered in Charleston, S.C., ATHLETICSITE.COM is the official provider for college athletic websites for over 38 sports organizations, including 34 colleges, universities and conferences primarily at the NCAA Division II level. To receive more information on how your institution can partner with ATHLETICSITE.COM for a customized website solution, visit www.athleticsite.com.

Daktronics First Team All-Region
Matt Schneck, St. Cloud State (C 6-8 Sr. Whitefish Bay, Wis.)
Travis Nelson, Minnesota State (C 6-11 Sr. Marion, Iowa)
Mike Dominguez, Mesa State*** (G 6-3 Sr. Santa Fe, N.M.)
Roman Andrade, New Mexico Highlands (G 6-2 Sr. Albuquerque, N.M.)
DeAndre Lansdowne, Fort Lewis (G 6-2 Jr. Albuquerque, N.M.)
Daktronics Second Team All-Region
Jefferson Mason, Minnesota State (G 6-6 Jr. Crystal, Minn.)
David Johnson, Winona State (G 6-2 Sr. Hayfield, Minn.)
Anthony Moody, University of Mary (G 6-0 Jr. Appleton, Wis.)
Donte Nicholas, Metro State G 6-5 Jr. Washington, D.C.
Justin Neuhaus, Colorado Christian F 6-11 Sr. San Marcos, Texas
***Daktronics Central Region Player of the Year

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 16
NCAA MBB Central Region Teams Announced

March 8, 2010 | NSIC Release | NCAA Championship Site Tag

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The NCAA announced the Central Region bracket Sunday night. The NSIC will boast four of the eight teams, including top seeded Minnesota State University, Mankato, who will host the Tournament on March 13-14, 16 at the Taylor Center in Mankato, Minn.

Minnesota State University, Mankato will play the Colorado School of Mines in the first round. Augustana College, the third seed will play New Mexico Highlands. Tournament champions St. Cloud State will play Metro State while Winona State will take on Mesa State.

NCAA Division II Central Regional Tournament Field
1. Minnesota State (24-4)
2. Mesa State (22-5)
3. Augustana (22-6)
4. St. Cloud State (25-5)
5. Metro State (24-6)
6. New Mexico Highlands (20-10)
7. Winona State (20-9)
8. Colorado School of Mines (17-11)

St. Cloud State Wins 2nd Straight Tournament Title

March 7, 2010 | Box Score

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – Taylor Witt hit two free throws with 2.3 seconds left to lift No. 2 seed St. Cloud State to a thrilling 68-67 victory over No. 8 seed Southwest Minnesota State in the championship game of the NSIC/Sanford Health Men’s Basketball Tournament on Sunday afternoon in St. Cloud, Minn. It’s the second straight NSIC tournament championship for SCSU, while SMSU falls to 0-4 all-time in NSIC championship games. Matt Schneck, the tournament’s most valuable player, led SCSU with 16 points and 14 rebounds, while Witt added 18 points.

The Huskies (25-5) put together their 15th straight win in front of the home crowd to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Central Regional tournament March 13-16, while the Mustangs (17-12) will await the NCAA selection show tonight at 8:30 p.m. to see if their late season run was enough to make the NCAA Tournament.

This win marks the fourth conference tournament championship won by head coach Kevin Schlagel with the Huskies, while posting a 6-0 record in NSIC tournament play in the team’s first two seasons in the conference.

In a game that featured 19 lead changes and eight ties, SMSU’s Scott Roehl gave SMSU a 67-66 lead, hitting two free throws with 7.9 seconds left in the game. Following a timeout, Witt caught the inbounds pass and drove the length of the court before drawing a foul near the free throw line.

DeAnthony Zanders led SMSU with a career-high 18 points on 6 of 12 shooting, while Kevin Andrews added 15 points and six rebounds. Scott Roehl chipped in with 14 points and eight rebounds to round out the Mustang double-figure scoring. Both Zanders and Andrews were named to the all-tournament team.

SMSU started the game slow taking a quick 2-0 lead, before SCSU answered with 13 straight points to build a 13-2 lead with 14:17 left in the half. SMSU missed seven of its first eight shots from the field to start the game.

The Mustangs answered with a 12-4 run in the next four minutes to cut the deficit to 17-14 with 10:25 left in the half following a traditional three-point play by Nick Dale.

St. Cloud State countered with five straight points to end the SMSU run and eventually extended the lead to 32-22 with 2:03 on the clock before SMSU closed the half on a huge 9-0 run in the final two minutes.

Scott Roehl and Jordan Miller scored consecutive baskets to make it 32-26 with just over a minute remaining, before Andrew Peschong drilled two free throws with 52 seconds left to trim the SCSU lead to 32-28. Following another defensive stop by the SMSU defense, Kevin Andrews drilled his third 3-pointer of the half in the closing seconds to cut the SCSU lead to 32-31 at halftime.

SCSU started the second half strong jumping out on an 11-4 run to take a 43-35 lead with 16:12 left in the game. SMSU then answered with its largest run of the game, a 10-0 spurt in the next six minutes to take its first lead of the half at 45-43 with 10:20 remaining on a jumper by Roehl.

The lead then changed hands several times in the final 10 minutes, with the Mustangs taking their largest lead of the half at three points on two occasions, including 57-54 with 3:46 left on a field goal by Andrews.

SCSU held a one-point lead with under two minutes remaining in the game until Zanders hit two free throws with 1:40 to give the Mustangs a 63-62 lead. Following a SCSU field goal with 1:06 left, Zanders hit another basket with 45 seconds remaining to push SMSU back into the lead at 65-64, but again, SCSU had an answer as Andrew Bernstetter drilled a jumper with 32 seconds on the clock to give the Huskies a 66-65 advantage.

On the next SMSU possession, Zanders missed a jumper with 10 seconds remaining, but Roehl grabbed the rebound and was fouled with 7.9 seconds left and eventually made both free throws to give the Mustangs their last lead of the game.

SMSU finished the game shooting 47.2 percent (25 of 53) from the field, including 5 of 11 from 3-point range and held a 35-31 rebound advantage, but ended with just five offensive rebounds. SCSU ended the game shooting 36.2 percent (21 of 58) from the field, including 6 of 20 on 3-pointers. The Huskies committed just five turnovers in the game, while the Mustangs ended the game with 13 turnovers.

Schneck finished the game with his 18th double-double of the season with 16 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. He also made 10 of 12 from the charity stripe. Witt tied a game-high with 18 points and dished out three assists in all 40 minutes of end-to-end action.

The Huskies shot just 36 percent from the field in the game, but were able to make 20 of 24 free throws in and turned 13 Mustang turnovers into 12 points to help fight off a feisty Southwest Minnesota State squad.

St. Cloud State will now move on to make their 12th NCAA regional appearance in school history, and fourth in the last five years.

The NSIC All-Tournament Team consisted of Schneck, Witt, SMSU's DeAnthony Zanders and Kevin Andrews, and Winona State's Ben Fischer.

NSIC Men's Basketball All-Conference Team Announced

March 4, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

St. Paul, Minn. - The 2009-10 NSIC Men's All-Conference Teams have been announced, as voted on by the league coaches. This year's awards will consist of a ten-member first team and a team-member second team. The coaches also voted on NSIC Player of Year, NSIC Defensive Player of the Year, NSIC Freshman of the Year, NSIC Newcomer of the Year and NSIC Coach of the Year.

NSIC Player of the Year
#50 Matt Schneck
C, 6-8, Sr., Whitefish Bay, Wis. / Whitefish Bay HS)
St. Cloud State

Matt Schneck was voted by the league coaches as the 2009-10 NSIC Player of the Year. Schneck averaged a double double in league play as he scored 18.1 points per game and grabbed 10.0 rebounds. His scoring was eighth best in the league and his rebounding second. He ranked third in the NSIC in field goal percentage knocking down 124 of his 203 shots for a 61.1% clip. Schneck help lead the Huskies to a 16-4 league record and a second place finish. Schneck was named NSIC Player of the Week three times during the season. His best single game performance came against then #4 Minnesota State on February 13th in St. Cloud. Schneck scored a career high 34 points while grabbing 18 rebounds as he hit 14 field goals in the 92-84 win. The 18 rebounds and 14 field goals made were single game highs in league play this year.

Defensive Player of the Year
#4 Jefferson Mason
G, 6-0, Jr., Crystal, Minn. / Robbinsdale Cooper HS
Minnesota State

Jefferson Mason was voted by the league coaches as the 2009-10 NSIC Defensive Player of the Year. Mason led the NSIC in steals with 2.05 per game. He was also fourth in the league in rebounding with 7.9 per game, 5.10 of those on the defensive end. Mason was also 11th in the league in blocked shots with 15 over the 20 game schedule (.750 per game). He recorded seven double doubles on the season and was named NSIC Player of the Week back on December 14, 2009. Mason helped the Mavericks to a 17-3 league record and the NSIC Regular Season Championship this season.

Freshman of the Year
#2 Cameron McCaffrey
G, 6-1, Fr., Hillsboro, Ore. / Century HS
Augustana College
Cameron McCaffrey was voted by the league coaches as the 2009-10 NSIC Freshman of the Year. McCaffrey averaged 13.3 points per game after shooting 52.8% (93-176) from the field. He ranked fifth in the league in three-point field goal percentage as he knocked down 37 of his 76 attempts (48.7%). McCaffrey made a name for himself in big games down the stretch. He scored a career high 29 points in an 82-81 come from behind win against Winona State on February 13th, including the game winning basket in the final seconds. Eleven days later, McCaffrey score 21 points and hit another game winner to down then #5 Minnesota State 72-71. The Vikings finished third in the NSIC standings with a 16-4 record.
Note: ^NSIC Freshman of the year may be any student-athlete competing in their true freshman or redshirt freshman year at an NSIC institution.

Newcomer of the Year
#5 Anthony Moody
G, 6-0, Jr., Appleton, Wis. / Appleton West HS
University of Mary

Anthony Moody was voted by the league coaches as the 2009-10 NSIC Newcomer of the Year. Moody transferred to U-Mary from Lake Region State College in Devils Lake, N.D. Moody made an immediate impact in the NSIC as he led the league in scoring with 19.7 points per game. He scored 20+ points in nine of the twenty league games this year. He was also sixth in the league in assists (3.90) and steals (1.65). Moody scored in double figures in 19 of 20 games this year with a season high 34 points at Northern State. He was named NSIC Player of the Week on January 4th after leading the Marauders to a weekend sweep of Winona State and Upper Iowa.
Note: The NSIC Newcomer of the Year may be any student-athlete competing in his first season of varsity competition at an NSIC institution as a So., Jr. or Sr.

NSIC Coach of the Year
Matt Margenthaler
9th Season
Minnesota State

Matt Margenthaler, in his ninth season as the head coach, led the Mavericks to the NSIC Regular Season Championship with a 17-3 mark in league play. For his accomplishments, Margenthaler was voted by his peers as the NSIC Coach of the Year. This marks the fourth time in his nine year career Margenthaler has been named a league coach of the year. He has led the Mavericks to five straight NCAA National Tournaments coming into this season.

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #6

March 3, 2010 | NCAA Release Tag

INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Committee has released this week’s Division II men’s basketball regional rankings. The top 10 teams in each region are listed below for each of the eight regions. The regional rankings will be released weekly on Wednesdays through March 3, 2010.

Rk	Team	OV Rec	Reg Rec	LW
1.	Minnesota State (NSIC)	21-3	20-3	1
2.	Mesa State (RMAC)	19-4	17-3	2
3.	Augustana (NSIC)	18-5	18-5	3
4.	St. Cloud State (NSIC)	18-5	18-5	4
5.	Metro State (RMAC)	17-6	17-6	5
6.	Winona State (NSIC)	15-8	15-8	10
7.	N.M. Highlands (RMAC)	14-9	14-9	6
8.	U-Mary (NSIC)	13-12	13-12	8
9.	Fort Lewis (RMAC)	16-8	16-8	7
10.	Colo. School of Mines (RMAC)	14-9	14-9	9

Dropped out: None

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 15

March 1, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Players of the Week
#34 Scott Roehl
F, 6-7, 227, Jr.,
Princeton, Minn.
Princeton HS
SMSU

Scott Roehl led SMSU in two victories last week averaging 13.0 ppg and 10.5 rpg, while shooting 69.2 percent (10 of 13) from the field and 8 of 10 from the free throw line. Roehl finished the week with two double-doubles, recording 11 points and 11 rebounds versus Wayne State and 15 points and 10 rebounds versus Northern State. He leads the team with six double-doubles this season.

Tiebreakers - Wayne State had the highest Strength of Schedule of the three teams tied for sixth place.
Concordia-St. Paul defeated SMSU twice this season to win tiebreaker.

MSU Wins Men's Regular Season Championship

February 27, 2010 |Box Scores Tag

Bismark, N.D.. --- Minnesota State junior win Jefferson Mason recorded his 11th double-double of the season as he scored a team-high 17 points and hauled in a game-high 12 rebounds to pace the Mavericks to a 75-63 victory over the University of Mary Saturday afternoon. With the win the Mavericks won their 14th NSIC/NIC regular season championship, their first since the 1978-79 season, their fourth title in head coach Matt Margenthaler’s nine years with the program.

Neither team shot the ball well in the first half as the Mavericks took a 32-20 advantage into the break. MSU shot just 36.7 percent in the first half, however a stingy Maverick defense limited U-Mary to 25 percent shooting.

The Mavericks would open a lead as large as 18 points with 12:06 remaining as junior guard Taylor Morrow drilled a three.

U-Mary answered right back with a 9-0 run to cut the lead to double-digits, and would trim the lead to as little as seven with 3:42 remaining, at 64-57.

Minnesota State regained a double-digit lead when senior guard Jermain Davis converted a traditional three-point play. From that point on, MSU would sink 7-of-9 free throws in the final 101 seconds to ice the victory.

Mason finished the night shooting 5-of-12 from the floor, including 7-of-8 from the free throw line. Senior center Travis Nelson added 12 points and eight rebounds, while Davis poured in 12 points.

Mason also dished out a team-high five assists, while Davis had four.

After shooting just 36.7 percent in the first half, MSU shot a blistering 55.6 percent in the second half to finish the game connecting on 45.6 percent of its opportunities.

The Mavericks dominated the boards, outrebounding the Marauders, 46-34. MSU’s bench ended the night outscoring U-Mary’s, 26-6

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 14 - Updated

February 25, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

Above is a link to the Updated NSIC Men’s Basketball Release. All record, polls, standings and stats have been updated in this release. The NSIC Final Games are this weekend. The NSIC / Sanford Health Men’s Basketball Bracket will be release Saturday night following the 8:00 p.m. game.

Augie's Schilling Featured on "Life to the Max" on WCCO Saturday

February 25, 2010 | Augie Release Tag

Augustana men’s basketball standout Cody Schilling, selected Freshman of the Year in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference last season, is featured on “Life to the Max” to be shown on WCCO-Television (Channel 4) Saturday, February 27, at 11:05 p.m.

Like many rural towns, Ellsworth, Minn., relies on farming, a strong sense of community, and an even stronger work ethic during these tough times. And like other small towns, the boy’s basketball program is a focal point and a tremendous source of pride. In the first segment, host Mike Max introduces fans to Carla and Clayton Schilling’s middle son, Cody, a name that has become synonymous with winning. Visit the high school, the family farm, and see the roots of Minnesota High school basketball’s all-time leading scorer.

Augustana College with an enrollment of 1,800 is nestled in the progressive city of Sioux Falls. A private college with a strong academic reputation, Augustana also has what many describe as one of the premier men’s basketball programs in NCAA Division II. Join the “Life to the Max” crew as they travel to Sioux Falls and continue the story of Cody Schilling. Discover how he is doing at the next level of competition.

Because WCCO-Television is unavailable in South Dakota, the feature will air on Augustana Sportscene next week. Augustana Sportscene can be seen each Saturday at noon on UTV (cable channel 10 in Sioux Falls). It will also be available on Augustana’s athletic web site GoAugie.com.

LifeTouch sponsors the show each week. Paul Harmel, LifeTouch CEO, is a native of Arlington, S.D., and graduated from Augustana in 1972. He played on Arlington High School’s state Class B championship basketball team in 1968, and at Augustana was a teammate of Bill Gross, now the Vikings’ athletic director.

LifeTouch has been in operation for 70 years and has 25,000 employees worldwide. The company specializes in childhood, student, and family photography. LifeTouch also has a media production division.

The Magic of McCaffrey
#19 Augustana Snips #5 Minnesota State 72-71

February 24, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

Mankato, Minn. – Augustana’s Cameron McCaffrey hit a floating jumper from the right baseline with eight seconds remaining to guide the 19th-ranked Vikings to a 72-71 victory over Minnesota State in an epic Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference contest. The McCaffrey game winner was his second in the last four games. He hit a game winner back on Feb. 13th to down Winona State 82-81.

The game was witnessed by a season-high 4,012 fans, the fourth-largest crowd in Taylor Center history. The loss also snapped MSU’s 16-game home winning streak, the second-longest in Taylor Center history.

“We didn’t make enough plays down the stretch,” said head coach Matt Margenthaler. “This game was identical to the type of contest we will face in the NCAA tournament. We have to learn and grow from this and get ready for a tough University of Mary team Saturday afternoon.

The Mavericks and Augustana traded leads throughout much of the first half as the Vikings built their biggest lead at 17-11 at the 10:54 mark. Minnesota State regained the lead when senior guard Jermain Davis hit a jumper. The Mavericks maintained a lead for the rest of the half, taking a 34-28 lead into the break.

Minnesota State maintained a two-possession advantage for the first three minutes of the second half until Augustana went on a 7-0 run to tie the game at 42.

After that both teams traded scores on back-to-back possessions before MSU used a 9-0 run highlighted by a dunk from senior center Travis Nelson and a three-pointer from junior guard Marcus Hill, which pushed the score to 57-48 advantage with 10:03 remaining.

Augustana stormed back with a 12-3 run to cut the Maverick lead to 61-60 with five minutes to go before Hill drained a three point basket from the right wing to open a four-point advantage with 4:38 remaining.

From that point on the two teams traded two ties and three lead changes leading up to McCaffrey’s heroics.

Nelson led MSU with 19 points and nine rebounds, while junior wing Jefferson Mason scored 16 points and hauled in eight rebounds. Hill added 13 and Davis contributed 10 for the Mavericks.

Senior guard Jeremy Clark passed out five assists for MSU who finished the game shooting 41.7 percent from the floor and 58.6 percent from the free throw line.

Augustana was led in scoring by McCaffrey’s 21 points. Minnesota State (23-3, 16-3 NSIC) travels to the University of Mary Saturday for a 4 p.m. contest.

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #5

February 24, 2010 | NCAA Release Tag

Rk	Team	OV Rec	Reg Rec	LW
1.	Minnesota State (NSIC)	20-2	19-2	2
2.	Mesa State (RMAC)	17-4	15-3	1
3.	Augustana (NSIC)	16-5	16-5	4
4.	St. Cloud State (NSIC)	17-4	17-4	3
5.	Metro State (RMAC)	15-6	15-6	5
6.	N.M. Highlands (RMAC)	13-8	13-8	7
7.	Fort Lewis (RMAC)	15-7	15-7	8
8.	U-Mary (NSIC)	12-11	12-11	9
9.	Colo. School of Mines (RMAC)	13-8	13-8	10
10.	Winona State (NSIC)	13-8	13-8	6

Dropped out: None

NSU Coach Don Meyer to retire from coaching, will stay on with University

February 22, 2010 | ESPN Story | Watch Press Conference Tag

ABERDEEN, S.D. – Northern State University President James Smith has accepted the retirement of NSU Men’s Basketball Coach Don Meyer effective at the end of the 2009-2010 season.

“Although Coach Meyer will remain on staff with us here at NSU in Aberdeen, his loss on the basketball court will be felt for years to come,” said Smith. “Don is a legendary coach but, more importantly, a legendary person. His passion for developing young men into extremely successful adults is and always has been his true key to success. I look forward to working more closely with him but am saddened by the thought of not seeing him walking the floor that so proudly carries his name.”

Meyer will remain on staff at NSU in the role of Regent Distinguished Professor. In addition, President Smith will request a change of position for Meyer that will allow him to promote the image of NSU through public speaking, consulting, workshops, seminars, special appearances and fundraising activities.

“After consulting with our physicians and meeting with my family, we have determined that I no longer posses the necessary physical or mental energy to continue administering the NSU basketball program at its highest possible level,” said Meyer. “It is time for someone with more energy and time available to deal with the unique challenges of a basketball program like Northern State.”

In September, 2008, the 65-year-old Meyer was critically injured in an automobile accident that resulted in the loss of part of his left leg. During subsequent surgeries, he also learned he had an inoperable form of cancer. Undeterred, Meyer returned to the sidelines for the start of the season and went on to become the all-time NCAA men’s basketball career wins record holder – a mark he still holds. Heading to the final week of regular season play, Meyer currently has a record of 922 wins and 323 losses.

In July, 2009 Meyer was the recipient of the ESPN Jimmy V. Perseverance Award at the 2009 ESPY Awards. In April, 2010 Meyer will receive the “Legends of the Hardwood Award” at the NCAA Final Four.

The Wayne, Neb. native attended the University of Northern Colorado and graduated in 1967 majoring in physical education and minoring in English. Meyer began his coaching career at Western State (Colo.) where he was an assistant from 1968-70. From there he went to the University of Utah where he served as an assistant basketball coach from 1970-72 and earned a Ph.D. Meyer has spent 38 years as a head coach and has been married to his wife Carmen for 42 years. The couple has three children and eight grandchildren.

A national search for a new head men’s basketball coach will begin immediately.

More information about Coach Meyer can be found at www.coachmeyer.com.

Media Availability:
Coach Don Meyer will be making brief comments to the public at center court following the Men’s Basketball game on Saturday, February 27, 2010 at the NSU Barnett Center. A press conference will be held immediately following those comments to credentialed media ONLY. The press conference on Saturday, February 27 will be the ONLY media availability with Meyer.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 14

February 22, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Players of the Week
#3 Lance Rongstad
G, 6-3, 200, Fr.,
Eleva, Wis.
Eleva-Strum HS
Bemidji State

Rongstad scored a career-high 29 points in a 88-86 victory against Winona State Saturday, guiding the Beavers to a season-sweep of the Warriors for the first time since the 2003-04 season. In the game he shot 7-of-12 from the field, 2-of-4 from beyond the arc and 13-of-15 from the free throw line, establishing career-highs in both free throws made and attempted. In the game’s final 2:31, Rongstad hit 10-of-12 free throws, had a steal and an offensive rebound off a missed free throw to keep the ball on BSU’s end when the score was 87-85 and only four seconds on the clock. In the game he added seven rebounds and two blocks, playing in 37 minutes. BSU went 2-0 on the week as they hosted Finlandia University in a nonconference game, winning by the score of 99-67. For the week, Rongstad averaged 28.5 minutes, 20.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. He shot 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from beyond the arc and 88.2 percent from the charity stripe. BSU is on a four-game winning streak. During that streak, Rongstad is averaging 20.3 points and 6.0 rebounds, shooting 52.2 percent.

Beavers Win Battle with Warriors 88-86; Sweep Season Series

February 20, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

BEMIDJI, Minn. -- Freshman Lance Rongstad (G/F, Eleva, Wis.) dropped a career-high 29 and senior guard Seth Haake (Eden Prairie, Minn.), playing in his final game at the BSU Gymnasium, scored 20 as the Bemidji State University men’s basketball team closed the home portion of the 2009-10 season with a battle against Winona State University, prevailing victorious 88-86. (Read More)

U-Mary Makes it a Season Sweep Over #19 Augie

February 19, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

Bismarck, ND - Jordan Wilhelm was perfect on five shots behind the arc and scored 23 points to lead the University of Mary men's basketball team over #19 Augustana College 71-59. The Marauders move into a tie for fifth place in the Northern Sun with the win. U-Mary also sweeps the season series with the Vikings.

U-Mary is undefeated at home this season in 11 games and now has a 12-game winning streak in the McDowell Activity Center that dates back to last year.

The Marauders defense discombobulated the Vikings offense for the second time this season. Augie could hit only 32.2 per cent of its shots in the game and were especially anemic from behind the arc, making just one of 21 three point attempts. U-Mary won the first meeting of the season 63-49 as Augustana shot just 31.7 per cent and made 3-of-22 trey attempts.

U-Mary exerted its control over Augie early on and led by double digits the last 26 minutes of the game. Behind a 14-2 run, the Marauders raced to a 28-12 lead with just over five minutes remaining to intermission. Behind 15 points from Eric Erdmann, the Marauders led 35-20 at intermission.

Behind an explosive second half by Wilhelm, the Marauders margin grew to 21 points with the Vikings never getting closer than 12 points.

Wilhelm nailed all four of his three-point attempts in the second half and scored 18 of his 23 points after intermission. He ended the night 9-of-12 from the field with six rebounds and two assists.

Erdmann finished the night with 17 points and seven rebounds. He also had two blocks. Anthony Moody finished with 15 points, a career-high nine rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Off the bench, Baley Johnson snared five rebounds, scored six points and made three steals.

Cody Schilling led Augie with 15 points and 14 rebounds. He was 9-of-11 at the free throw line. Cameron McCaffrey and Ethan Thomforde each added 11 points off the bench.

The Marauders, ranked ninth in the Central region, improve to 14-10 overall and 10-7 in the NSIC. Augie, fourth in the region and third in the NSIC, is 19-5 overall and 12-5 in the NSIC.

U-Mary concludes the weekend by hosting Wayne State College on Saturday, February 20. Game time is 8 PM. A Marauders victory over the Wildcats would seal a Northern Sun playoff berth for U-Mary.

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #4

February 17, 2010 | NCAA Release Tag

Rk	Team	OV Rec	Reg Rec	LW
1.	Mesa State (RMAC)	17-2	15-1	1
2.	Minnesota State (NSIC)	19-2	18-2	2
3.	St. Cloud State (NSIC)	16-4	16-4	5
4.	Augustana (NSIC)	15-4	15-4	4
5.	Metro State (RMAC)	14-5	14-5	3
6.	Winona State (NSIC)	13-7	13-7	7
7.	N.M. Highlands (RMAC)	12-7	12-7	8
8.	Fort Lewis (RMAC)	13-7	13-7	6
9.	U-Mary (NSIC)	11-10	11-10	9
10.	Colo. School of Mines (RMAC)	11-8	11-8	10

Dropped out: None

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 13

February 15, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Co-Players of the Week
#32 Craig Heiman
F, 6-5, 230, Sr.,
Marshall, Wis.
Marshall HS
Concordia-St. Paul

Craig Heiman went off for 36 points including 20 in the extra periods to lead CU to a 109-104 win over SMSU in three overtimes. It was his fifth career 30-point performance and tied his career high from his sophomore season. With 20 points against #4 Minnesota State in a hard fought loss on Friday night, Heiman’s 56 point weekend vaults him to fourth on the NSIC’s career scoring list with 1,166 points, just one point shy of third with three NSIC games to play. In the SMSU win, he shot 10-19 from the floor and 13-15 at the foul line while sinking three 3-pointers. He also had six rebounds and four assists with just one turnover in 45 intense minutes. Against the Mavericks, Heiman buried six 3-pointers and knocked down nine for the weekend. His weekend shooting line was 50.0% (17-34) from the floor, 52.9% (9-17) from three and 86.7% (13-15) from the stripe all while averaging 28.0 points against the league’s top defenses.

#50 Matt Schneck
C, 6-8, 235, Sr.,
Whitefish Bay, Wis.
Whitefish Bay HS
St. Cloud State

Matt Schneck shot 4-for-7 from the field to score eight points and also grabbed eight rebounds in just 17 minutes of action in a 64-51 win over SMSU on Friday. Schneck then had a career night in downing No. 4 nationally ranked Minnesota State University, Mankato 92-84 Saturday, scoring a career high 34 points, while grabbing 18 rebounds to help the Huskies to a 12-1 record at home this season. Schneck also made a team-high 14 field goals and dished out a career high five assists to lead all players in both categories. This is Scheck’s third NSIC POW this season.

SCSU Beats #4 Minnesota State - Pull Within Game of 1st

February 13, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

St. Cloud, Minn. – Behind a career night from senior captain Matt Schneck (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) the St. Cloud State men’s basketball team put together its most complete game of the season in downing No. 4 nationally ranked Minnesota State University, Mankato 92-84 Saturday in Halenbeck Hall.

Schneck scored a career high 34 points and grabbed 18 rebounds to help head coach Kevin Schlagel earn the seventh 20-win season of his career and put the Huskies at 20-4 overall and 14-3 in the tough Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.

Schneck also made a team-high 14 field goals and dished out a career high five assists to lead all players in both categories.

With the win, the Huskies handed the Mavericks (22-2, 15-2 NSIC) its second loss of the season and won its 10th straight at home in front of 4,435 fans, while avenging an 88-76 loss to Minnesota State on the road earlier in the season.

After going to-to-toe for over 38 minutes, the Huskies put together an 8-0 run compliments of a six-point play from sophomore Brett Putz (Forest City, Iowa) on an intentional Minnesota State foul to put the game out of reach for the Mavericks.

St. Cloud State shot 52 percent from the field as junior Kyle Ortmann (Buffalo) and Putz both poured in 15 points on the night. Junior Andrew Bernstetter (St. Joseph) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points, while grabbing seven rebounds and blocking three shots on the night.

The Huskies held the Mavericks to just 11 percent from the three-point line after Minnesota State shot 47 percent from beyond the arc in the first meeting between both squads.

The Huskies will put its seven-game winning streak on the line next against the University of Minnesota, Crookston at 4 p.m. on Saturday, February 20 at Halenbeck Hall.

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #3

February 10, 2010 | NCAA Release Tag

Rk	Team	OV Rec	Reg Rec	LW
1.	Mesa State (RMAC)	16-1	14-0	1
2.	Minnesota State (NSIC)	18-1	17-1	2
3.	Metro State (RMAC)	14-3	14-3	3
4.	Augustana (NSIC)	13-4	13-4	4
5.	St. Cloud State (NSIC)	14-4	14-4	6
6.	Fort Lewis (RMAC)	13-5	13-5	7
7.	Winona State (NSIC)	12-6	12-6	8
8.	N.M. Highlands (RMAC)	10-7	10-7	9
9.	U-Mary (NSIC)	11-9	11-9	5
10.	Colo. School of Mines (RMAC)	9-8	9-8	NR

Dropped out: #10 SMSU (NSIC)

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 12

February 8, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#4 Mitch Boeck
G, 6-4, 190, Sr.,
Arlington, S.D.
Arlington HS
Northern State

Mitch Boeck turned in one of the best performances of his career this weekend, averaging 31.0 points per game on 22-for-37 shooting (59.5 percent) from the floor to lead the Wolves to two road wins over Winona State and Upper Iowa. The senior scored 25 points on Friday at Winona State and came up with several key steals down the stretch to preserve the Wolves’ first win at WSU since March 6, 2005. He then returned to score a career-best 37 points in Saturday’s win, including the team’s last 16 points in the final five minutes of the game. For the weekend, Boeck scored 62 points and was 16 of 18 from the free throw line. He also had seven assists, three blocks and three steals while playing 67 of a possible 80 minutes. That performance gives Boeck 993 career points with five games left in the regular season.

Boeck's 37 leads Wolves to 72-64 win over UIU

February 6, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

FAYETTE, Iowa – One day after leading the Wolves to their first road win over Winona State in nearly five years, Northern State University senior Mitch Boeck carried the Wolves to yet another huge road win on Saturday, scoring a career-high 37 points in NSU’s 72-64 win over Upper Iowa University in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference men’s basketball action.

Boeck scored all sixteen of the Wolves’ points in the final five minutes of the half while coming up with several key steals down the stretch to help seal the victory. The career-high 37 point effort was well above his previous best of 28 points, set earlier this season. He also aided his cause with a solid 12-for-14 effort from the free throw line.

NSU, now an even 11-11 overall and 7-8 in NSIC play, moves into a tie for eighth in the conference standings with the victory, their fourth straight road win. The Peacocks, meanwhile, slipped to 10-12 on the year and are also locked in at 7-8 in league action.

Junior Derek Hoellein added 14 points while junior point guard Jordan King racked up his third 10-assist performance in the last three weeks while also grabbing a team-high eight rebounds. Sophomore Casey Becker added nine points in his third straight start.

Warriors Hold Off University of U-Mary

February 6, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

WINONA, MN -- Winona State University and the University of Mary put on a knockdown Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference battle in McCown Gymnasium and it was the Warriors who came out on top by a 71-67 difference.

The game was tied five times and the lead changed six times in the second half. But a 5-0 run by the Warriors broke the last second-half tie and sent WSU into the winners' circle.

With the game tied at 60-all, WSU took off at the 3:50 mark and finished off a two-minute and 33-second run to take a 65-60. During that time the Marauders were held scoreless and remained without a point for the next 20 seconds before finally getting back on the board and cutting WSU's lead to 65-63.

After that the Warriors held UM in check as Joel Armstrong came up with field goal and two free throws and Ben Fischer added another two free throws to complete the WSU scoring.

The first half was a struggle and a total of only 27 points were scored in the first 12 minutes and ten seconds. WSU would go on to lead at halftime 31-27.

Fischer and Jon Walburg each scored 19 points to lead the Warriors, while David Johnson tallied in double figures with 10 points.

Peacocks Pick up Pivotal Win

February 5, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

As the season comes one game closer to its closure, Friday night saw the top two teams in the conference pick up wins, but two of the three teams tied for third took a hit. Winona State lost 69-66 at home to Northern State while Upper Iowa picked up a huge home win over U-Mary (71-65) to keep their post season hopes alive. U-Mary will visit Winona State Saturday night in a pivotal game in the NSIC Standings.

The Upper Iowa men's basketball team opened a pivotal weekend in the Northern Sun Conference with a rematch against the Marauders of the University of Mary. The Marauders used a late 15-0 run to take the first meeting when the two teams met a month ago in Bismarck, N.D. U-Mary entered the game as the #5 team in the latest NCAA Central Region poll.

The Peacocks used a 12-5 advantage in second chance points thanks to 12 offensive rebounds. Upper Iowa got a huge effort from Chris Sullivan off the bench; the junior grabbed five offensive rebounds in fourteen minutes. The home team also registered a 29-0 advantage in bench points. The Peacocks fans saw twelve of the thirteen young men that touched the floor put marks in the scorebook. Upper Iowa held on for a thrilling six point win, 71-65, to improve to 10-11 overall and move back to .500 in the NSIC at 7-7.

The Marauders opened the game with a quick 7-0 run, but the Peacocks were quick to rally and tied the score at 7-7. After U-Mary crept out to a 14-9 lead at the midway point of the first half, back-to-back scores by Tucker Wentzien and Brad Arnold pulled Upper Iowa within one, 14-13. UIU tied the game and took the lead, 21-20, at the five minute mark when Brad Burgus stepped to the line and hit a pair of free throws. Sullivan gave the Peacocks their largest lead of the half, 32-27, with two more free throws with less than a minute to play. U-Mary scored the final points of the half to cut the margin to three, 32-29, as the teams headed to the locker rooms.

Five minutes into the second half, Upper Iowa was holding onto their three-point advantage, 37-34, but a quick 10-0 run gave the home team some breathing room. The Peacock run was fueled by five points from Devin Eighmey and a three-point play by Mike Lafrenz and it gave UIU a 47-34 lead with 11:19 to play.

The Marauders began to chip away at the Peacock lead over the next five minutes using back-to-back three pointers by Danny Sandvig and Jordan Wilhelm to cut the gap to three points, 52-49. U-Mary got even closer, 52-51, on a pair of free throws from the hand of Eric Erdmann, but Wentzien gave Upper Iowa an answer with a jumper at the elbow to restore the three-point lead. The UIU score was the first in nearly three minutes of game action.

The Peacock offense continued to heat up with some big baskets as Keith Steffeck hit a three-pointer and Wentzien scored on a follow-up dunk. A pair of free throws by Jake Hughes put Upper Iowa ahead, 63-57, but Anthony Moody hit his third trifecta of the game to pull the visitors within three. UIU's Matt Lesan and Moody exchanged buckets to keep the difference at three, 65-62, with under a minute to play.

Hughes and Lesan each stepped back to the line for a pair hitting all four to give UIU a seven-point lead, 69-62, with 16 seconds on the clock. U-Mary would not go quietly as Cameron Lee knocked in a long ball, but Hughes, a freshman, calmly stepped back to the line to hit another two free throws for the final points of the game to preserve the win for Upper Iowa, 71-65.

Steffeck led UIU with 12 points, while Lesan added 10 and Hughes and Wentzien each netted 8. Sullivan was top among the Peacocks on the glass with 7 rebounds.

The Peacocks will return to Dorman Gym tomorrow evening for a match up with the Wolves of Northern State University. NSU and UIU will tip at approximately 8 p.m. after the women's game.

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #2

February 3, 2010 | NCAA Release Tag

Rk	Team	OV Rec	Reg Rec	LW
1.	Mesa State (RMAC)	14-1	12-0	1
2.	Minnesota State (NSIC)	16-1	15-1	2
3.	Metro State (RMAC)	12-3	12-3	3
4.	Augustana (NSIC)	12-4	12-4	4
5.	U-Mary (NSIC)	11-7	11-7	5
6.	St. Cloud State (NSIC)	12-4	12-4	7
7.	Fort Lewis (RMAC)	12-4	12-4	6
8.	Winona State (NSIC)	11-5	11-5	9
9.	N.M. Highlands (RMAC)	8-7	8-7	NR
10.	SMSU (NSIC)	7-7	6-7	NR

Dropped out: #8 Colorado Christian & #10 Upper Iowa

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 11

February 1, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#50 Matt Schneck
C, 6-8, 235, Sr.,
Whitefish Bay, Wis. Whitefish Bay HS
St. Cloud State

Matt Schneck finished Friday night one rebound from a double-double, as he scored game high 18 points to go with nine rebounds in a 74-66 win over Wayne State. Schneck shot a solid 6-for-7 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line in just 20 minutes of play. He also added an assist and two steals in the Huskies’ seventh straight home win. On Saturday, Schneck capped off the weekend with his 12th double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds in a 68-58 win over No. 17 Augustana College to take sole possession of second place in the conference. With his sixth point of the game on Saturday, Schneck moved into No. 18 on the St. Cloud State all-time scoring list, passing Matt Siegle (02-06) at 1,293 points. Schneck now has 1,303 points in his career. This marks the second time this season Schneck has been named NSIC Player of the Week (12/21/09).

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #1

January 27, 2010 | NCAA Release Tag

Rk	Team	OV Rec	Reg Rec	LW
1.	Mesa State (RMAC)	12-1	10-0	--
2.	Minnesota State (NSIC)	14-1	13-1	--
3.	Metro State (RMAC)	11-2	11-2	--
4.	Augustana (NSIC)	12-2	12-2	--
5.	University of Mary (NSIC)	9-7	9-7	--
6.	Fort Lewis (RMAC)	11-3	11-3	--
7.	St. Cloud State (NSIC)	10-4	10-4	--
8.	Colorado Christian (RMAC)	6-6	6-6	--
9.	Winona State (NSIC)	10-5	10-5	--
10.	Upper Iowa (NSIC)	9-9	9-9	--

Dropped out: N/A

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 10

January 25, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#32 Eric Erdmann
F, 6-5, Jr.,
Fargo, N.D.
Fargo North HS
University of Mary

Eric Erdmann reached a milestone and propelled the Marauders to two victories over the weekend. The junior forward became the 14th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points when he knocked down a trey early in the first half of a 75-68 win over Concordia University. Erdmann scored 24 points and snared seven rebounds against the Golden Bears and added two assists and two steals. He made 2-of-3 trey attempts and made 10-of-18 from the field. Erdmann started the weekend with a double double in a huge 76-60 win over St. Cloud State, pairing 16 points and 11 rebounds. He also had three steals and two assists. In the two games Erdmann averaged 20 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.0 assists while shooting 48.5 per cent from the field.

#23 Augustana Hands #3 MSU First Loss of Season

January 23, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

Senior Jordan Dalton scored 13 points and dished out three assists in Augie's win over Minnesota State.

Sioux Falls, S.D. - The No. 23 Augustana men’s basketball team handed No. 3 Minnesota State University, Mankato, its first loss of the season in an 83-76 nailbiter Saturday night. The Vikings beat the Mavericks 83-76 in front of a crowd of 2,963 at the Elmen Center.

Augustana improves to 16-2 overall and 9-2 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference with the win. The loss drops MSU to 17-1 and 10-1 in the conference.

MSU started the game off by scoring two buckets in the first two minutes, but Augie quickly answered with a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Cody Schilling and a putback by sophomore center Derrick DeZeeuw to go up 5-4 at the 16:08 mark.

The Mavericks responded with two more buckets, but Augie scored seven unanswered points, including a long tre by freshman guard Cameron McCaffrey. A four-point run by the Mavericks allowed them to take back the lead, 13-12 with 10:31 to play.

A shot by senior guard Jordan Dalton was blocked, but ended up counting after MSU was called for goaltending. Augie was then able to build a three-point lead at 20-17 when senior guard David Foster scored on a fastbreak layup with 7:18 on the clock.

The Mavericks then outscored the Vikings 11-2 in the next five minutes, and with 2:28 to play in the half, held a 28-22 lead.

Augie ended the half by scoring eight unanswered points, regaining a 30-28 lead at the break.

The Vikings were 37.9 percent (11 of 29) from the field in the first half and were 40 percent (4 of 10) from behind the arc. The Mavericks shot 35.7 percent (10 of 28) and made no 3-pointers on seven attempts.

MSU played solid defense in the first half, collecting three steals and four blocks.

The second half stayed close the entire way, with the teams trading leads for the first 3:12. The Mavericks were able to put together two scoring possessions, and took a 40-36 lead at the 16:08 mark. MSU’s senior center Travis Nelson scored nine of Maverick’s first 12 points in the second half.

A bucket by Schilling plus a 3-pointer by Foster regained the Viking’s the lead, but four more points from Nelson gave the Mavericks a 44-43 advantage with 13:52 to play.

Augie made five of four free throws in the next two minutes without allowing the Mavericks to score. Senior guard Elliot Thomas was 4 of 4 from the charity stripe in that stretch, helping the Vikings to retake the lead 48-44.

A basket by Nelson at 8:41 tied the score at 52-52, with Nelson scoring the last 12 points for the Mavericks. Senior guard Jefferson Mason was fouled on a layup with 8:10 remaining. The basket counted and the made free throw after gained MSU a 55-52 lead.

Augie took a 59-55 lead with 6:39 to play by scoring seven unanswered points, capped off by an impressive fight by DeZeeuw, who grabbed an offensive rebound underneath a congested basket and scored a layup.

The Vikings held the lead until the 4:23 mark, when MSU’s Marcus Hill scored back-to-back buckets to give the Mavericks a 64-63 lead.

DeZeeuw scored a layup at 3:52, but a 3-pointer by Hill gave the Mavericks a two-point lead and seemed to deflate the Viking crowd. They weren’t deflated for long however, as Foster sank a tre to give Augie a 68-67 lead with 3:22 to play.

MSU’s senior guard Jermaine Davis was fouled while driving to the basket, but made only one of two free throws, allowing Augie to take the 70-68 lead with a jumper by Schilling with 2:37 remaining.

Mason was fouled on the next possession, but missed both of his free throws, and DeZeeuw’s putback gave Augie a 72-68 lead with 1:11 on the clock.

A basket by Hill moved the Mavericks closer, but Dalton and Elliot Thomas were fouled on back-to-back possessions, each sinking their two free throws. With 47 seconds to play, Augie held the lead, 76-70.

Junior guard Joe Drapcho was fouled by Foster while shooting a three, and made just two of the free throws with 42 seconds to play, allowing Augie to hold on to its lead 76-72.

Dalton was fouled at with 40 seconds left and only made one of the two free throws before Davis was fouled while driving to the basket and made both free shots to make the score 77-74 in favor of the Vikings with 36 seconds remaining.

The Mavericks fouled in desperation, but would only score two more points as the Vikings made six straight free throws to end the game.

Augie shot 49.1 percent (26 of 53) from the field and was 50 percent (7 of 14) from 3-point range. In contrast, the Mavericks shot 46.6 percent (27 of 58) but just 7.1 percent (1 of 14) from behing the arc.

Augie was led offensively by Schilling, who scored 22 points and dished out 5 assists for the Vikings. Foster added 18 points while Dalton contributed 13.

Thomas was clutch for the Vikings from the charity stripe, going a perfect 8 of 8 for the game.

Nelson led all scorers with 23 points and Hill added 14 points. Mason recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

U-Mary Knocks off SCSU 76-60

January 22, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

Bismarck, N.D. – A dominant second half by the Marauders and another explosive game from Anthony Moody propelled the University of Mary men’s basketball team past St. Cloud State University 76-60. Moody scored a game-high 26 points and U-Mary outscored SCSU 42-29 after intermission.

It was another powerful win for U-Mary as the Huskies had entered the contest tied for second in the Northern Sun. The victory pushes the Marauders into sole possession of fifth place in the conference standings. Now 10-7 overall and 6-4 in the NSIC, U-Mary owns wins over three of the four teams ahead of the Marauders in the standings: Winona State, St. Cloud State and Augustana. SCSU slips to third place at 7-3 in the NSIC and 13-4 overall.

Moody knocked down 10-of-16 shots from the field and hit three treys. The junior point guard also added five assists. The leading scorer in NSIC contests, he has now scored 22 points or more in five straight conference games.

Eric Erdmann picked up his second double double of the season and moved within three points of reaching 1,000 in his U-Mary career. The junior forward scored 16 points and snared 11 rebounds. He also had three steals and two assists. Erdmann is looking to become the first U-Mary player to crack 1,000 points since Kurt Schwamp (1998-2000) in 2000 and the 14th Marauder in school history.

Jordan Wilhelm added 11 points for the Marauders and Cameron Lee and Danny Sandvig both had nine. Sandvig also had seven rebounds.
Josh Ortmann led SCSU with 13 points and Matt Schneck had 12 points and 14 boards.

The Marauders clicked along at 50.9 per cent shooting from the field while holding the Huskies to a 38.1 per cent conversion rate.
U-Mary’s push for the win started late in the first half. Trailing 31-27 with under two minutes left, the Marauders ran off a quick seven points. Wilhelm nailed a three and Erdmann followed with a steal and a layup. Moody completed the run with a layup just before intermission.

Back to back Erdmann makes and baskets by Lee and Moody spearheaded the Marauders first double digit lead at 49-39 and the Huskies climbed no closer than seven the rest of the night. U-Mary later sealed the deal with a 15-2 run that pushed the Marauders lead to 21 points.

The win earned the Marauders some revenge from a 66-54 loss to the Huskies at the NSIC Holiday Hoops Classic on November 28.

The Marauders also continue their mastery over the Huskies at home in the McDowell Activity Center. The last time the two teams met in Bismarck, ND, U-Mary dealt SCSU a 77-48 defeat on December 16, 2007. The Huskies were ranked 8th nationally at the time.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 9

January 18, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#14 Andrew VanHavermaet
G, 6-4, So.,
Hawley, Minn.
Hawley HS
MSU Moorhead

Andrew VanHavermaet scored a career-high 30 points in the Dragons’ win over UMC on Saturday. He was 11-for-15 in the game and 8-of-12 from the three-point line. He was one three pointer shy of tying the single game record for three’s made in a game. VanHavermaet scored four three-pointers in each half. He also had three rebounds and three assists.

Hill's Perfect Night Keeps MSU Perfect

January 16, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

Junior Guard Marcus Hill Poured in 22 Points in the Maverick Victory

Mankato, Minn. – Minnesota State junior guard Marcus Hill tied his season and career-high with 22 points as Minnesota State earned a 88-76 wire-to-wire victory over rival St. Cloud State Saturday evening in front of 3,148 fans in the Taylor Center.

Hill, who finished 6-of-6 from the floor, including 4-of-4 from downtown and 6-of-6 from the line, kept Minnesota State’s perfect season in tact and helped the Mavericks tie the school record for the longest winning streak in program history at 16 games.

The first half set the tone for the physical, punishing game as the Mavericks opened a 41-34 lead at the break. The Mavericks – who opened the game on a 7-0 run – led the entire first half thanks in part to 12 points from Hill. Hill was perfect in the first half, hitting all three of his field goal attempts – including two threes – and all four of his free throw attempts.

The Mavericks finished the half shooting 50 percent from the floor, while limiting SCSU to just 43.8 percent.

The second half was much like the first, physical, as the Huskies closed the Maverick lead to six at 66-60 with 7:42 remaining before MSU used an 8-0 run – highlighted by a fast-break highlight reel dunk by senior Jermain Davis - to push the lead back into double-digits and the Mavericks never looked back.

Joining Hill in the scoring column was senior wing Jefferson Masonwho had 18 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the floor and 9-of-10 from the line. Davis added 14 points while Nelson finished with 11.

St. Cloud State won the battle of the boards, outrebounding MSU, 45-27, including 20-4 on the offensive end of the glass. The Mavericks forced 16 Husky turnovers and turned them into 26 points and finished the night passing out 18 assists to SCSU’s nine.

The Mavericks shot 51.9 percent for the game from the floor while SCSU shot just 42.2, including an icy 40.6 percent in the second half.

Minnesota State (16-0, 9-0 NSIC) travels to Wayne State next Friday evening for an 8 p.m., contest against the Wildcats.

UIU Claims First Victory over Ranked Opponent in DII

January 15, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

Upper Iowa's men's basketball team played host to the #18 Vikings of Augustana College in a NSIC game on Friday in Fayette. After trailing by as many as nineteen points in the first half, the Peacocks used physical defense and great shooting in the second half to pull off the upset of the nationally ranked Vikings, 70-67.

Both the Peacock and Viking offenses started slowly as the teams were tied 6-6 after the first five minutes of the game, but Augie began to find their stride as they outscored Upper Iowa 13-4 over the next three minutes to lead, 19-10. The Vikings continued to slowly extend their lead thanks to tough defense that kept the Peacock offense in check. The largest first half lead for the visitors came with 5:05 on the clock when a Kenny Brown jumper gave them a 33-14 lead. Upper Iowa took one point off the deficit as the half wound down and went to the locker room trailing 42-26.

The Vikings shot 54% from the floor including four of seven from beyond the arc. The visitors were led by Brown's 10 points and Cody Schilling's 8 points.

The Peacocks shot only 37% which was low due to a one for nine clip at the three point line. The home team was led by Keith Steffeck's 9 points which included a huge dunk in traffic in the opening minutes.

UIU opened the second half with a 10-3 run to cut the gap back to single digits, 45-36, just three minutes into the second half. The men in white continued to whittle away at the margin. By the time the media timeout came midway through the half, the Peacocks had pulled to within four, 53-49. During the rally, Matt Lesan accounted for eight of the Peacock points.

The Peacocks pulled within one, 55-54, with 6:54 on the clock after Lesan hit a jumper, but David Foster was quick to quiet the crowd with a corner trifecta to give Augie a four-point cushion again. After a pair of free throws by Schilling gave the Vikings a six-point lead with just over four minutes to play, Steffeck sank a three-pointer to cut the margin down to three, 62-59. Mark Lafrenz pulled UIU within one again, 65-64, with 2:08 to play. The Peacocks played strong defense and Lesan earned a trip to the charity stripe where he hit a pair and gave Upper Iowa their first lead, 66-65, since the 17:18 mark in the first half.

Foster put a shot up in traffic that missed, but the Viking guard stayed with it and tipped it home to give Augie the 67-66 lead. On the Peacocks possession, Tucker Wentzien came down with an offensive rebound and found Mark Lafrenz driving to the hoop for the go-ahead score. Upper Iowa needed one last defensive stand and got it as Wentzien once again came down with the board. He was fouled and calmly hit two free throws around a timeout to give the home team a 70-67 lead.

The Vikings' final shot fell short and the tip back was waved off which gave the Peacocks their most notable win in their short NCAA Division II history. The victory improves the Peacocks' record to 7-9 overall and 4-5 in the NSIC and also marks the first time since moving up to NCAA Division II that Upper Iowa has defeated a nationally ranked team.

Augustana was led by Schilling (14 pts), Foster (12 pts), and Lee Stephens (12 pts).

Upper Iowa was led by Steffeck's 17 points, Lesan's 15 points, and Mark Lafrenz's 11 points. Wentzien and Dan Bestul each pulled down 4 rebounds.

The Peacocks will be back on the floor tomorrow evening as they take on the Wildcats of Wayne State College. Tip off will follow the women's game at approximately 8 p.m. in Dorman Gym.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 8

January 11, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#25 Brett Spiker
F, 6-7, Sr.,
Chariton, Iowa
Chariton HS
Drake University
Wayne State

Brett Spiker averaged 20 points and 13 rebounds per game while registering two double-doubles in helping Wayne State post a pair of NSIC home wins over the weekend. Spiker had 21 points and 10 rebounds in Saturday’s 74-56 win over Minnesota, Crookston and added 19 points with 16 rebounds in Sunday’s 62-49 win over MSU Moorhead. Spiker now has six double-doubles on the season and has three double-doubles in his last four games. For the weekend, Spiker shot a sizzling 77.3 percent from the field, making 17 of 22 shots, while also making 6 of 8 free throws for 75 percent.

#7 MSU Edges Winona State 76-71

January 9, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

WINONA, Minn. –Minnesota State senior center Travis Nelson scored a season-high 26 points – 18 of which came in the second half – as Minnesota State earned a 76-71 victory over Winona State Saturday evening in front of 2,488 fans in McCown Gymnasium on the campus of Winona State University.

The win marked Minnesota State’s first victory over Winona State in Winona since Dec. 3, 2004, a span of four contests.

The game opened with both teams trading leads back and forth. With the score tied at 12, Minnesota State 10-2 run to open its largest lead of the game at 22-14 with five minutes and 35 seconds remaining in the half. Winona State would scored 15 of the half’s final 24 points as the Mavericks took a 31-29 lead into the intermission. Neither team shot the ball well in the first half as Minnesota State connected on 38.2 percent of its chances while Winona State hit on 36.7 percent.

Both teams traded the lead a couple of times in the second half. Winona State opened a three point lead at 61-58 with 5:40 remaining in the game, marking the final time it would hold a lead in the game. Minnesota State junior guard Taylor Morrow answered with a three-point basket from the right wing to tie the game on the ensuing Maverick possession.

Junior guard Cameron Hodges knocked down a pair of free throws on MSU’s next trip down the court to give MSU a lead it would not relinquish.

The free throw line played a vital role for the Mavericks down the stretch as Minnesota State connected on all eight of its free throws in the final five minutes.

Nelson’s 26 points led all scorers as he connected on 11-of-20 chances including 4-of-5 from the line. Nelson had a team-high eight rebounds, six of which came on the offensive end of the court .

Senior guard Jesse Clark added 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including all three of his free throws and his only three-point attempt. Clark also added seven helpers.

Minnesota State finished the game with 23 assists, its second-highest total of the season. In addition to Clark’s seven assists, junior Marcus Hill added five helpers and senior Jermain Davis added four assists.

Minnesota State won the battle of the boards, 37-31, including 13-7 on the offensive end. The 13 offensive rebounds resulted in 12 second-chance points for the Mavericks. MSU also outscored WSU, 40-28 in the paint.

Minnesota State finished the night shooting 47.5 percent from the floor while limiting WSU to 43.6 percent.

The Mavericks (14-0, 7-0 NSIC) return to the friendly confines of the Taylor Center Friday for an 8 p.m., contest against Concordia.

Winona Rallies for Win over SMSU

January 8, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

WINONA, Minn. – Winona State rallied from a seven-point deficit with three and a half minutes left in the game to earn a thrilling 69-67 victory over Southwest Minnesota State on Friday night in Winona, Minn. WSU (11-3 overall, 5-2 NSIC) scored the game’s last eight points in the final two minutes to earn its 15th straight victory over SMSU (8-4 overall, 3-3 NSIC).

WSU’s Ben Fischer scored the go-ahead field goal with 21 seconds left to give the Warriors a 68-67 lead. On SMSU’s ensuing possession, DeAnthony Zanders was called for a turnover with 11 seconds left giving the ball back to WSU. Fischer then hit 1 of 2 free throws with 11 seconds left to give SMSU one last chance to tie or win the game but a shot by Zanders with less than a second remaining in the game. SMSU’s last chance to tie the game with a tip-in at the buzzer was intercepted and WSU earned the victory over SMSU. SMSU’s last victory in the series came during the 2002-03 season.

SMSU finished the night shooting 50 percent from the field (30 of 60) and dominated WSU on the boards, finishing with a 40-22 rebound advantage, but SMSU committed 18 turnovers and was just 2 of 5 from the free throw line. WSU was able to connect on 15 of 18 free throws and turned the ball over just 11 times.

Scott Roehl led SMSU with a game-high 20 points on a tremendous 10 of 11 shooting from the field. Taylor Huseby was the only other Mustang to score in double figures with 12 points on 6 of 10 shooting.

SMSU started the game strong jumping out to a 10-2 lead with Scott Roehl scoring the first eight points of the game for the Mustangs. SMSU extended the lead to 13-4 with 16 minutes and 45 seconds left in the half before the Warriors rallied to take it first lead of the game at 24-23 with 8:23 left on a field goal and free throw by Ben Fischer. (Read More)

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 7

January 4, 2010 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#3/5 Anthony Moody
G, 6-0, Jr.,
Appleton, Wis.
Appleton West HS
Lake Region CC
University of Mary

Anthony Moody had a tremendous week in leading the Marauders to three straight home wins, including a NSIC weekend sweep. Over three games, Moody averaged 21.3 points. 3.7 assists, 2.7 rebounds and totaled eight steals while shooting 53.5 percent from the field and 50 per cent on treys. His signature game came in the 87-85 overtime win over Winona State. He led all players with 29 points, including four in overtime, and hit on 5-of-6 three-point attempts. 11-of-17 overall from the field against the Warriors, Moody also paced the team with five assists. The junior point guard scored 18 in the 85-71 win over Upper Iowa, adding five rebounds, four assists and three steals. Moody started the week with 17 points and four steals in a 76-62 win against MSU Billings.

Augie Wins Sixth-Straight with 73-58 Victory over UMD

January 3, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

Nathan Truex scored a career-high 18 points to lead Augustana past Minnesota Duluth Sunday afternoon.

Duluth, Minn. - Behind a career-best scoring performance from Nathan Truex and timely 3-point shooting, Augustana won its sixth-straight game by defeating Minnesota Duluth 73-58 Sunday in Duluth, Minn.

The Vikings, ranked No. 24 in the nation, improved to 11-1 on the season and 4-1 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. Meanwhile, Minnesota Duluth slipped to 6-7 overall and 3-3 in the conference.

Augustana fell behind early in the contest as the Vikings could not get their shots to fall. Augie began the game by making only 2 of its first 17 shots. That enabled Minnesota Duluth, who made 4 of its first 9 shots, to build a 15-6 lead with 12:43 left in the first half.

But the Vikings heated up as Augustana answered with a 10-3 run, capped by back-to-back 3-pointers by David Foster and Jordan Dalton, to trim the deficit to 18-16 with 10:41 left in the half.

Following a 3-pointer by UMD’s Jordan Schade, Augustana scored 11 of the next 13 points to claim a 27-23 lead with 6:38 to play in the period.

Schade again made a 3-pointer but Foster countered with a 3-pointer and Truex added a pair of buckets to stretch the lead to 8 at 34-26 with just over 4 minutes to play in the half. UMD managed to outscore the Vikings 4-0 the rest of the half to cut the Augustana advantage to 34-30 at intermission.

Augustana broke open the game at the outset of the second half. The Vikings, behind 5 points from Truex, opened the half with a 12-3 run to take a 46-33 lead 16:33 left in the game.

Truex, who scored 14 of his career-high 18 points in the second half, helped the Vikings maintain a double-digit lead the rest of the game.

UMD eventually pulled to within 11 points with just over 6 minutes to play. But Truex took over to seal the win. Truex scored 9 points during an 11-2 run to give the Vikings their largest lead of the game at 73-53 with 2:48 left on the clock.

Truex, who also grabbed 7 rebounds, made 7 of 11 shots from the field, including 2 of 4 from 3-point range. Augustana actually shot better outside the 3-point line than inside it. The Vikings shot 36.4 percent (24 of 66) overall from the field, but they were 10 of 17 (58.8 percent) from the 3-point line.

Foster joined Truex in double figures with 14 points. He was 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Lee Stephens added 13 points, while Cameron McCaffrey came off the bench to score 10 points.

Derrick De Zeeuw also had a strong game off the bench. Although he did not score, he ripped down 8 rebounds and blocked 4 shots.

The Vikings also won the rebounding and turnover battles. Augustana outrebounded UMD 44-36. The Vikings also committed only 5 turnovers in the game, while the Bulldogs turned the ball over 13 times.

Ron White led all scorers with 21 points. Rhett McDonald added 11 points in a losing effort for the Bulldogs.

Augustana returns home next weekend for a pair of home NSIC games. On Friday, January 8, Augustana will face Minnesota State Moorhead at 8 p.m. Then on Saturday, January 9, the Vikings will square off against Minnesota, Crookston, at 7 p.m.

MSUM Takes Down Reigning Conference Champions

January 2, 2010 | Box Scores Tag

MOORHEAD, Minn. - Freshman Alex Novak and sophomore Dennis Williamson led the Minnesota State University Moorhead with double-doubles as the Dragons topped the reigning Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference champions, Southwest Minnesota State, 68-55.

The Dragons, down by as much as four in the first six minutes of play, took a 7-6 lead with 13:11 left in the first half and never relinquished it to win by their second largest margin of the year.

MSUM led by as much as 16 in the game and scoring off the bench was key for the team as 23 points came from non-starters. Another key was the Dragons defense as the Mustangs were held to 31 percent shooting from the floor while the Dragons shot nearly 44 percent. MSUM also out-rebounded the SMSU, 42-31.

Novak and Williamson each charted their first double-double of the season. Novak was just shy of his career-high in points and rebounds with 14 of each, while Williamson had 16 points and 10 boards.

Jake Driscoll continued to the lead the Dragons, also leading the field, with 17 points. Xavier Reed had 10 points and five boards.

The Dragons move to 5-7 overall with a 2-3 mark in league play. The Mustangs suffered their third loss of the season, second in the NSIC to move their records to 8-3 and 2-2, respectively.

MSUM will host conference leading Minnesota State Mankato Mavericks at 8 p.m. at Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse on Sunday.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 6

December 21, 2009 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#50 Matt Schneck
C, 6-8, 235, Sr.,
Whitefish Bay, Wis. Whitefish Bay HS
St. Cloud State

Matt Schneck shot a blazing 75 percent from the field and made 10 of 12 free throws this week in two Husky non-conference wins. He also scored more points (46) than the minutes he played (45), while recording his seventh and eight double-double of the season. On Wednesday night, Schneck scored 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds. He was 2-for-3 from the free throw line, while recording one assist, steal and block in just 19 minutes of playing time in a 102-68 win over Judson University. Then on Thursday night, Schneck scored a career high 26 points after shooting 9-for-12 from the field for the second consecutive night and was 8-for-9 from the free throw line. He grabbed 11 rebounds including four offensively, while blocking two shots in a 99-73 win over Cardinal Stritch.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 5

December 14, 2009 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#4 Jefferson Mason
G, 6-6, 200, Sr.,
Crystal, Minn.
Robbinsdale Cooper HS
Minnesota State

Jefferson Mason averaged a double-double this week for the 14th ranked Mavericks, averaging 15.5 points per game and hauling in 11.5 rebounds per game in a pair of wins. In MSU’s 91-75 win over Northern State on Saturday Mason – who had double-doubles in both of MSU’s win – had a double-double in the first half of play with 10 points and 11 rebounds (he finished with 17 & 12). He shot 60 percent from the floor (12-of-20) and was 6-of-8 (.750 percent) from the free throw line on the week.

Hot Shooting Lifts Peacocks over Beavers

December 13, 2009 | Box Scores Tag

Fayette, Iowa - The Upper Iowa University men's basketball team returned to Prochaska Court inside Dorman Gym Sunday afternoon to play host to the Bemidji State University Beavers. UIU defeated BSU, 91-80, to claim their second Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference win of the weekend and move into a tie for second in the NSIC standings.

Hot shooting by both teams dominated the first seven minutes of the contest as the two teams combined to shoot five-of-seven from behind the arc as BSU held a slim 14-11 lead. However, the next four minutes belonged to Bemidji State when they went on a quick run with back-to-back-to-back layups by Seth Haake to run their lead to 23-16. (Read More)

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 4

December 7, 2009 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#24 David Johnson
G, 6-2, Sr.,
Hayfield, Minn.
Hayfield HS
Winona State

Johnson shot .54% from the field (15-28) and from 3-point range (7-12) over the week as the No. 24 Warriors start off the NSIC season with a pair of road wins, including one against No. 19 St. Cloud State. Johnson grabbed 10 (5.0) rebounds and had 3 assists and 2 steals to go with his 50 total points (25.0). He scored a single-game, career high 33 points in the overtime win at Concordia University St. Paul after starting the weekend with 17 points against St. Cloud. He came up with crucial three consecutive free throws after being fouled on a three-point field goal attempt with 18 seconds left in regulation play against CU to send the game into overtime. He then added three more points in the extra period to jump start the Warriors in the overtime stanza.

U-Mary Knocks Augie from Ranks of Undefeated

December 4, 2009 | Box Score Tag

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Sioux Falls, SD - After winning their first game away from home in over 22 months on Sunday, the Marauders waited just five days to pick up their second straight road win. Using a tremendous defensive effort, the University of Mary upset Augustana College 63-49 on opening night of Northern Sun men's basketball play.

The second straight U-Mary victory evens the Marauders record at 3-3 while starting the season 1-0 in the Northern Sun. Undefeated in five games entering the night, the Vikings were receiving votes in national polls and slips to 5-1 and 0-1.

Cameron Lee scored 13 points and spearheaded the U-Mary defensive effort, making seven steals and snaring 10 rebounds. He also had a block, made two assists and made all six free throw attempts as he made an impact in all facets of the game.

Eric Erdmann led the Marauders attack with 23 points, a season high. Anthony Moody picked up 18 points with five rebounds. Jordan Wilhelm had 11 board and six points.

The win was the second straight for the Marauders at the Elmen Center, home of the Vikings. U-Mary defeated Concordia University-St. Paul 83-74 at the Elmen Center on Sunday, a neutral site win for U-Mary at the NSIC Holiday HoopsFest. U-Mary has played three games at the Elmen Center this season to just one at the McDowell Activity Center.

Despite having just five players reach the scoring column and shooting 35.7 per cent, U-Mary's defense contained a potent Vikings attack, limiting the Vikings to 31.7 per cent shooting that included a 3-for-22 effort on treys. Augie averaged 84.4 points per game entering the night.

The Marauders, who commit the fewest turnovers in the NSIC, gave the ball away just eight times to 13 for the Vikings. U-Mary was also nearly automatic at the line, making 16-of-19 free throw attempts.

Tied at 25-25 at intermission, the Marauders slowly pulled away from the Vikings in the second half. Up by three, U-Mary scored eight straight points behind a three by Moody, a layup from Lee and three free throws by Moody to build a double-digit lead at 40-29 with 13:47 remaining in the game.

The Vikings would pull within six points at the 8:47 mark, the closest AC would come the rest of the game. U-Mary made 9-of-10 free throws down the stretch, eliminating any chance of Augustana to make a surge.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 3

November 30, 2009 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#50 Travis Nelson
C, 6-11, 260, Sr.,
Marion, Iowa
Linn-Mar HS
Minnesota State

Travis Nelson averaged 20.0 points per game as Minnesota State downed Northern State and #15 Winona State in the 2009 NSIC Holiday HoopsFest. Nelson opened the two-day event with a 21-point, 10-rebound effort against Northern State and followed it up with a 19-point effort against Winona State. For the weekend he shot 13-of-20 from the floor (.650) and connected on 14-of-16 free throws (.875). In MSU’s win over Northern State, he had six blocked shots.

Augie Knocks #11 St. Cloud State From Ranks of Undefeated

November 29, 2009 | Box Score Tag

Sioux Falls, S.D. - When two undefeated teams meet one must fall. Tonight it was St. Cloud State (3-1) as they fell to Augustana (5-0) at the NSIC Holiday HoopsFest. The Vikings had five players in double figures as they pulled out the 89-80 win. Lee Stephens scored 19 points, Cameron McCaffrey added 18 points and Cody Schilling put in 17 in the win. Matt Schneck added 21 points for the Huskies, but was only 1-of-6 from the charity stripe. Augie, on the other hand, went to the line 46 times, connecting on 38 (82%) in the win.

Mary Beats Concordia at HoopsFest

November 29, 2009 | Box Score Tag

Sioux Falls, S.D. - The University of Mary (2-3) had five players in double figures and they knocked off Concordia University (2-2) 83-74 on day two of the NSIC Holiday HoopsFest. Eric Erdmann led all scorers with 21 points. U-Mary overcame a 22-29 halftime deficit to defeat the Golden Bears with an 11-3 run early in the second half to pull the game to a 39 all tie. Mary would extend their lead to as many as 10 with two minutes to play to come away with the win. CU was led by Sammy Ricks 17 points and Mike Cunninghams 16 points.

MSU Wins Battle of Undefeated

November 29, 2009 | Box Score Tag

Sioux Falls, S.D. - In a battle of 4-0 teams, Minnesota State edged Winona State 81-74 on day two of the NSIC Holiday HoopsFest. The Mavericks had three players in double figures, led by Travis Nelson's 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Jefferson Mason added 18 while Jermain Davis had 17 in the Mavericks fifth win of the season. David Johnson had a game high 31 points for the Warriors in the loss.

UMC Beats NSU for First Time Ever

November 29, 2009 | Box Score Tag

Sioux Falls, S.D. - The University of Minnesota, Crookston (3-1) defeated Northern State University (3-2) in men's basketball for the first time in school history. The Golden Eagles had four players in double figures led by Akeem Cubies 20. Northern State's Mitch Boeck had a game high 28 points on 11-of-21 shooting. The Golden Eagles, who trailed by seven with six minutes to go in the first half, went on a 13-1 run to end the half to lead 21-26 - they never trailed again.

Minnesota State Knocks off NSU at HoopsFest

November 28, 2009 | Box Score Tag

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Minnesota State men’s basketball team opened play in the 2009 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Holiday HoopsFest with a 78-58 victory over Northern State Saturday afternoon in front of 1,117 fans in the Sioux Falls Arena.

The win – which did not count toward the NSIC overall record but does affect regional rankings – pushed MSU’s record to 4-0 on the young season.

The Mavericks opened the game with a 9-0 run which started when senior guard Jermain Davis drained a three-point basket in transition. Senior center Travis Nelson and senior guard Jesse Clark added lay-ups before Davis connected on a jumper, forcing Northern State to call a timeout.

Northern State answered with a 8-0 run before junior guard Taylor Morrow tipped in a put-back to push MSU”s lead to 11-8.

The Wolves would outscore MSU 32-25 in the final 17 minutes of the first half; however the Mavericks led at the break, 36-32. Nine of the 10 Mavericks who played in the first half found the scoring ledger as Nelson led MSU with nine points in the first half to go with five rebounds, four blocks and three steals.

“I thought we let them control the tempo a bit in the first half,” said Minnesota State head coach Matt Margenthaler. “In the second half, we created offense with our defense and it resulted in good things for us.”

The Mavericks used a 12-2 run early in the second half to open a 58-44 advantage and never look back.

Nelson led all scorers with 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor. The 6-11 post also connected on all seven of his free throw attempts and finished the game with 10 rebounds, six blocks and three steals. The six blocks by Nelson marked the second-best single-game tally by a Maverick and was the first time that a Maverick recorded at least six blocks in a game since Eric Mergen did so in 2006 against Winona State.

Davis added 14 points for Minnesota State while senior wing Jefferson Mason contributed 11 points and seven rebounds.

Minnesota State – which shot an icy 39.3 percent in the first half – finished the game shooting 45.9 percent from the floor, thanks in part to a 51.5 percent clip in the final 20 minutes. The Mavericks – who committed just 12 fouls in the game – connected on 18-of-24 free throw attempts.

Minnesota State owned a 41-34 edge on the glass in the victory. All 10 Mavericks who played found their way into the scoring column.

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 2

November 24, 2009 | PDF Release Tag

NSIC Player of the Week
#32 Akeem Cubie
G, 6-5, 187, Jr.,
Minneapolis, Minn.
Washburn HS
Minnesota, Crookston

Cubie led the NSIC in scoring the first week of the season as he scored a league high 27 points against Jamestown College. For the week he averaged 22 points a game, 5.5 rebounds per game and 3.5 steals per game. Cubie was 17-of-31 from the field (.548) and a perfect 8-of-8 from the charity stripe as the Golden Eagles open the 2009-10 season with a 2-0 mark with wins over Minnesota-Morris (80-75) and Jamestown College (74-69).

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 1

November 17, 2009 | PDF Release Tag

St. Paul, Minn. - The 2009-10 NSIC Men's Basketball season tipped off Sunday with seven teams in action. The other half of the league will kick off their seasons later this week. The non-conference season extends until Dec. 4, when the 20-game league schedule begins. Remember to watch all the NSIC home basketball games live and free at www.NorthernSun.tv.

NABC/Division II Pre-Season Coaches Poll

October 27, 2009 | NABC Release Tag

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Two teams that came within a point of advancing to the Elite Eight last season head up the NABC/Division II pre-season coaches poll for the 2009-10 season, which gets underway this weekend with the first of the two Disney Tip-Off Classics in Anaheim, Calif. The NSIC had three teams ranked, including St. Cloud State (#11), Winona State (#20) and SMSU (#22).

BYU-Hawaii, which lost by a point to eventual national runner-up Cal Poly Pomona in the West Regional finals, was picked as No. 1 in the pre-season. The Seasiders have one of the top players in the Division II ranks back in forward Lucas Alves, who averaged nearly 20 points a game in earning All-America honors as a junior.

The Seasiders are followed by Bellarmine, who dropped a one-point decision to NCAA Division II champion Findlay in the title game of the Midwest Regional last March. The Knights bring back a talented roster and were picked to win the East Division in the Great Lakes Valley Conference this season.

Southwest Baptist is third in the pre-season poll follwed by defending national champion Findlay and another team from the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, defending regional champion Central Missouri.

The next five is headed by Cal Poly Pomona – who dropped the national championship game on a buzzer shot last season – Valdosta State, Florida Southern Bentley and Augusta State.

The 11-through-15 spots in the poll are held by St. Cloud State, Metropolitan State, Grand Valley State, Tusculum and Merrimack, while the next five are occupied by Kutztown, Central Oklahoma, Indiana (Pa.), Johnson C. Smith and Winona State. Humboldt State heads the group in the final five slots, followed by Southwest Minnesota State, Northern Kentucky, Delta State and Rollins.

NABC/Division II Coaches Poll (Oct. 27, 2009 – Pre-Season poll)

	Team	Record	Points Pvs*
1	BYU-Hawaii (6)	27-2	198	3
2	Bellarmine, Ky. (1)	26-7	189	18
3	Southwest Baptist, Mo.	26-5	162	7
4	Findlay, Ohio	36-0	161	1
5	Central Missouri	30-5	156	6
6	Cal Poly Pomona	25-8	143	NR
7	Valdosta State, Ga.	24-7	140	NR
8	Florida Southern	29-7	117	11
9	Bentley, Mass.	26-7	115	24
10	Augusta State, Ga.	30-5	109	4
11	St. Cloud State, Minn.	22-9	102	22
12	Metropolitan State, Colo.	27-4	101	8
13	Grand Valley State, Mich.	21-10	99	NR
14	Tusculum, Tenn.	20-11	84	NR
15	Merrimack, Mass.	21-9	83	NR
16	Kutztown, Pa.	28-5	79	20
17	Central Oklahoma	24-6	61	13
18	Indiana, Pa.	22-8	52	NR
19	Johnson C. Smith, N.C.	23-8	51	NR
20	Winona State, Minn.	24-9	50	NR
21	Humboldt State, Calif.	20-12	46	NR
22	Southwest Minnesota State	28-7	45	12
23	Delta State, Miss.	21-9	31	NR
24	Rollins, Fla.	20-10	30	NR
25	Philadelphia, Pa.	25-6	29	NR

Others receiving votes: Northern Kentucky 26, Benedict (S.C.) 19, Catawba (N.C.) 17, Barton (N.C.) 15, Virginia Union 15, West Virginia State 14, LIU-C.W. Post (N.Y.) 13, Georgia College & State 10, Incarnate Word (Texas) 10, Seattle Pacific (Wash.) 7, Massachusetts-Lowell 6, Gannon (Pa.) 4, Arkansas Tech 3, South Carolina Aiken 3, Anderson (S.C.) 2, Fort Hays State 1, Western Washington 1.

Records are from 2008-09 season...previous ranking is from last year’s final poll.

Huskies Hailed in 2009-10 NSIC MBB Preseason Coaches’ Poll

October 15, 2009 | Full Release Tag

St. Paul, Minn. - The St. Cloud State University Huskies were picked as the 2009-10 NSIC Men’s Basketball Preseason favorites, as chosen by the league coaches. The Huskies received four first place votes but tallied 171 points to edge Winona State by two. The Warriors were picked to finish first by six coaches, but only amassed 169 points. That was five points ahead of Minnesota State (164) and 16 ahead of defending NSIC Champions of SMSU (143). Augustana College (136), Concordia-St. Paul (117) and Northern State (113) round out the top half of the teams in the poll.

St. Cloud State, which finished 22-9 a year ago and won the NSIC Tournament and advanced to NCAA Division II tournament, has already been ranked No. 10 in NCAA Division II by The Sporting News Preseason Poll. The Huskies return four starters in 2009-10 led by Matt Schneck (C, Sr., Whitefish Bay, Wis.). Schneck was recently named to The Sporting News Preseason Honorable Mention All-American team.

#50 Travis Nelson (C, 6-11, 260, Sr., Marion, Iowa / Linn-Mar HS) was picked at the 2009-10 NSIC Preseason Player of the Year. Nelson was listed as a Super 16 All-American by the DII Bulletin already this season. He was named to the DII Bulletin Honorable Mention All-American Team last season and was named to the First-Team All-Region squad by the National Basketball Coaches Associations. Nelson, who was named 1st Team All-NSIC and Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Newcomer of the Year in 2008-09, averaged 14.3 points and 5.6 rebounds for Minnesota State last season. He shot .565 from the floor and .831 from the free throw line as the Mavericks finished their season 26-9 overall and 14-6 in the NSIC.

The 2009-10 season begins on Sunday, November 15th.

2009-10 NSIC MBB Coaches
Preseason Poll		Pts
1.	St. Cloud State (4)	171
2.	Winona State (6)	169
3.	Minnesota State (2)	164
4.	SMSU (2)	143
5.	Augustana	136
6.	Concordia-St. Paul	117
7.	Northern State	113
8.	Minnesota Duluth	97
9.	Bemidji State	89
10.	Wayne State	65
11.	MSU Moorhead	60
12.	Upper Iowa	59
13.	University of Mary	45
14.	Minnesota, Crookston	28
( ) First Place Votes

SCSU Ranked Tenth in The Sporting News Pre-Season Poll

October 5, 2009 | Full SCSU Release Tag

The first NCAA Division II men’s basketball pre-season poll is out and The Sporting News has picked St. Cloud State as the tenth-ranked team in its annual NCAA Division II preview. In additon, senior center Matt Schneck (Whitefish Bay, WI) has been named an Honorable Mention Pre-Season All-American.

Bellarmine University was selected as the number one pre-season team. St. Cloud State posted a 22-9 overall record last season and won the NSIC/Sanford Health Postseason Tournament, and automatically qualified for the NCAA tournament. The Huskies made their sixth NCAA tournament appearance since 2000 and 11th overall.

St. Cloud State returns four starters from a year ago including Schneck who averaged 14.0 points and a team high 7.7 rebounds per game. He was a 57 percent shooter from the field. Schneck was named to the NSIC/Sanford Health All-Tournament team and to the NSIC All-Academic team. This is the second straight year that Schneck has been named to an All-American pre-season team. Last year he was named an Honorable Mention Pre-Season All-American by Street & Smith.

St. Cloud State will open the 2009-10 season as host of the Radisson Suite St. Cloud Hoopster Classic on Nov. 20-21. The Huskies will open the Classic against local rival St. John’s University at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 20.

Sporting News Preseason
All-America Honorable Mention Team
Travis Nelson, Minnesota State
Matt Schneck, St. Cloud State
Taylor Witt, St. Cloud State
David Johnson, Winona State

NSIC Holiday HoopsFest Tickets On Sale Now

October 1, 2009 | Full Release Tag

Sioux Falls, S.D. - Tickets for the 2009 NSIC Holiday HoopsFest will go on sale Thursday, October 1, 2009. The NSIC Holiday HoopsFest, sponsored by the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and the Sioux Falls Sports Authority, features NSIC men’s and women’s basketball teams competing on Thanksgiving weekend, November 28 and 29, in games played at the Sioux Falls Arena and the Elmen Center at Augustana College. Tickets will be on sale at the Sioux Falls Arena Box Office or through www.ticketmaster.com. Lower level reserved seat tickets for two-game sessions at the Arena are $12.50 each. Upper level Arena seats are all general admission and are $10 for adults and $5 for students per session. Lower level Arena reserved seat All-Session tickets are $50 and may be purchased by calling the Sioux Falls Sports Authority at (605) 373-2041. Tickets for games played at the Elmen Center are general admission and will be available at the door on game days.

Competing in this year’s NSIC Holiday HoopsFest on the women’s side are the defending NCAA Division II National Champions of Minnesota State University, Mankato along with 2009 NCAA Regional participants Augustana College, Winona State, and St. Cloud State. Concordia-St. Paul, University of Mary, Minnesota, Crookston and Northern State round out the eight teams on the women’s side. On the men’s side 2009 NCAA Regional qualifiers Augustana College, Minnesota State University, Mankato, St. Cloud State, Northern State and Winona State will all be in action along with Concordia-St. Paul, Minnesota, Crookston and the University of Mary.

2009 NSIC HOLIDAY HOOPSFEST GAME SCHEDULE
Visiting Team (D) = Dark Uniform Home Team (W) = Light Uniform
Saturday, November 28, 2009
at Sioux Falls Arena
1 p.m. Northern State Women (D) vs. Minnesota State University, Mankato Women (W)
3 p.m. Northern State Men (D) vs. Minnesota State University, Mankato Men (W)
6 p.m. Augustana College (D) Women vs. Concordia University- St. Paul Women (W)
8 p.m. Augustana College (D) Men vs. Concordia University- St. Paul Men (W)

at Elmen Center
12 p.m. Winona State University Women (D) vs. University of Minnesota Crookston Women (W)
2 p.m. Winona State University Men (D) vs. University of Minnesota Crookston Men (W)
5 p.m. University of Mary Women (D) vs. St. Cloud State University Women (W)
7 p.m. University of Mary Men (D) vs. St. Cloud State University Men (W)

Sunday, November 29, 2009
at Sioux Falls Arena
1 p.m. Minnesota State University, Mankato Women (D) vs. Winona State University Women (W)
3 p.m. Minnesota State University, Mankato Men (D) vs. Winona State University Men (W)
6 p.m. St. Cloud State University Women (D) vs. Augustana College Women (W)
8 p.m. St. Cloud State University Men (D) vs. Augustana College Men (W)

at Elmen Center
12 p.m. University of Minnesota Crookston Women (D) vs. Northern State Women (W)
2 p.m. University of Minnesota Crookston Men (D) vs. Northern State Men (W)
5 p.m. Concordia University- St. Paul Women (D) vs. University of Mary Women (W)
7 p.m. Concordia University- St. Paul Men (D) vs. University of Mary Men (W)

Stemen Resigns as SMSU Men's Basketball Head Coach

September 30, 2009 | Full Release Tag

MARSHALL, Minn. - Greg Stemen, who has served the past eight seasons as the head men’s basketball coach at Southwest Minnesota State University, has resigned from his position effective immediately to become a physician recruiter for Medcenter One in Bismarck, N.D.

SMSU director of athletics Chris Hmielewski announced that associate head coach Brad Bigler has been named interim head coach.

A press conference will be held today on the second floor of the SMSU Student Center beginning at 2 p.m. and is open to the public. Stemen, Bigler and Hmielewski will all speak at the press conference.

“There is never an ideal or good time to make a move like this,” Stemen said. “A number of factors have played into this decision. One of the most important factors is that the Mustang basketball program has always been about the people who comprise the program. At no other time have I felt more comfortable and confident that this program, as a whole, is ready to take another step forward under the direction of coach Bigler, and under the leadership of seven seniors and juniors who continually demonstrate a commitment to excellence that is second to none.”

The winningest coach in school history, Stemen posted a 141-97 career record, which included six winning seasons, three 20-plus win seasons, one Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference championship, one NCAA region championship and an appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight. SMSU finished in the top half of the NSIC in six of his eight seasons, including a pair of second place finishes, while making two appearances in the NSIC tournament championship game. The Mustangs also hosted an NSIC tournament quarterfinal game six times during his tenure. Following the 2008-09 season, Stemen was named NSIC Coach of the Year and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Central District Coach of the Year after leading SMSU to a school record 28 victories including a conference and NCAA region championship. (Read More)

2008-09 Men's Basketball Archive

2007-08 Men's Basketball Archive

2006-07 Men's Basketball Archive

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National Association of Basketball Coaches
www.NABC.com

Basketball - Men's

Schedules (Archive) | Stats (Archive) | Releases (Archive) | Standings | Main

NABC Top 25 National Rankings

NSIC Leads Nation in Men's Basketball Attendance Northern State Leads Nation for Third Straight Year

Walthall Named MSUM Dragons Head Men's Basketball Coach

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 18 SCSU Falls 76-70 in Elite 8 Final Four

#16 St. Cloud State 70 vs. #2 Indiana (Pa.) 76 NCAA DII Men's Basketball Final Four

#16 St. Cloud State vs. #2 Indiana (Pa.) - 5:00 p.m. Today NCAA DII Men's Basketball Final Four

#16 St. Cloud State 92, #3 Midwestern State (TX) 88 Taylor Witt Drops 43 in NCAA Elite 8 Quarterfinals

SCSU's Schneck, MSU's Nelson Earn All-American Honors

MSU's Nelson Scores 15 in Fifth Annual NABC/NCAA DII All-Star Game

NSU Announces Paul Sather as Men's Basketball Coach

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 17 SCSU Advances to Elite 8 - Will Face Midwestern State (TX)

SCSU Triumphs in Overtime Over Augie 84-75 Huskies Advance to Elite 8

SCSU Stops Minnesota State - Advances to Region Championship

Augie Scores 60 in 2nd Half to Down Mesa State 95-84

St. Cloud State Defeats Metro State 82-77

Minnesota State Rallies to Defeat CSM 84-80

Winona State Falls 73-68 to Mesa State in Regional

Augie Defeats N.M. Highlands 87-73 in Regional

Daktronics All-Region Team Announced

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 16 NCAA MBB Central Region Teams Announced

St. Cloud State Wins 2nd Straight Tournament Title

NSIC Men's Basketball All-Conference Team Announced

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #6

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 15

MSU Wins Men's Regular Season Championship

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 14 - Updated

Augie's Schilling Featured on "Life to the Max" on WCCO Saturday

The Magic of McCaffrey #19 Augustana Snips #5 Minnesota State 72-71

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #5

NSU Coach Don Meyer to retire from coaching, will stay on with University

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 14

Beavers Win Battle with Warriors 88-86; Sweep Season Series

U-Mary Makes it a Season Sweep Over #19 Augie

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #4

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 13

SCSU Beats #4 Minnesota State - Pull Within Game of 1st

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #3

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 12

Boeck's 37 leads Wolves to 72-64 win over UIU

Warriors Hold Off University of U-Mary

Peacocks Pick up Pivotal Win

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #2

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 11

NCAA Central Region MBB Rankings #1

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 10

#23 Augustana Hands #3 MSU First Loss of Season

U-Mary Knocks off SCSU 76-60

Hill's Perfect Night Keeps MSU Perfect

UIU Claims First Victory over Ranked Opponent in DII

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 8

#7 MSU Edges Winona State 76-71

Winona Rallies for Win over SMSU

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 7

Augie Wins Sixth-Straight with 73-58 Victory over UMD

MSUM Takes Down Reigning Conference Champions

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 6

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 5

Hot Shooting Lifts Peacocks over Beavers

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 4

U-Mary Knocks Augie from Ranks of Undefeated

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 3

Augie Knocks #11 St. Cloud State From Ranks of Undefeated

Mary Beats Concordia at HoopsFest

MSU Wins Battle of Undefeated

UMC Beats NSU for First Time Ever

Minnesota State Knocks off NSU at HoopsFest

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 2

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 1

NABC/Division II Pre-Season Coaches Poll

Huskies Hailed in 2009-10 NSIC MBB Preseason Coaches’ Poll

SCSU Ranked Tenth in The Sporting News Pre-Season Poll

NSIC Holiday HoopsFest Tickets On Sale Now

Stemen Resigns as SMSU Men's Basketball Head Coach

NSIC Leads Nation in Men's Basketball Attendance
Northern State Leads Nation for Third Straight Year

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 18
SCSU Falls 76-70 in Elite 8 Final Four

#16 St. Cloud State 70 vs. #2 Indiana (Pa.) 76
NCAA DII Men's Basketball Final Four

#16 St. Cloud State vs. #2 Indiana (Pa.) - 5:00 p.m. Today
NCAA DII Men's Basketball Final Four

#16 St. Cloud State 92, #3 Midwestern State (TX) 88
Taylor Witt Drops 43 in NCAA Elite 8 Quarterfinals

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 17
SCSU Advances to Elite 8 - Will Face Midwestern State (TX)

SCSU Triumphs in Overtime Over Augie 84-75
Huskies Advance to Elite 8

NSIC Men's Basketball Weekly Release No. 16
NCAA MBB Central Region Teams Announced

The Magic of McCaffrey
#19 Augustana Snips #5 Minnesota State 72-71