Sodexo Tip-Off Classic
Nov. 14 - vs. Central Washington, 5 p.m. C.T., Brougham Pavilion, Seattle Wash.
Live Stats:http://www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbb/
Video: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/spu/
Nov. 15 - vs. No. 22 Seattle Pacific, 9 p.m., C.T., Brougham Pavilion, Seattle, Wash.
Live Stats:http://www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbb/
Video: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/spu/

CROOKSTON, Minn. –  The University of Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team will officially open the season at the Sodexo Tip-Off Classic at the Brougham Pavilion on the campus of Seattle Pacific University in Seattle, Wash. The Golden Eagles will face-off with Central Washington University Fri., Nov. 14 at 5 p.m. C.T. and will take on No. 22 Seattle Pacific at 9 p.m. C.T. Sat., Nov. 15.

The Golden Eagles took on University of Wisconsin-Superior last Saturday and fell 69-65 in a hard-fought game but a lack of defense in the second half allowed the Yellowjackets to come away with the victory. Derrick Redd, Jr. (Jr., G, Menifee, Calif./Sports and Rec Management) led the way for UMC, shooting 8-of-12 on the game to finish with 19 points. In addition to Redd, senior Tim Lubke (G, St. Paul, Minn./Sports and Rec Management) came off the bench for 11 points, while Tyler West, Jr. (Sr., F, Portland, Ore./Communications) added 10 points and five boards.

UMC was 23-of-50 for 46.0 percent from the field and 5-of-16 for 31.3 percent from beyond the arc. The Golden Eagles played strong offensively, but gave up a lot defensively, allowing Wisconsin-Superior to shoot 42.9 percent from the field and 38.1 percent from beyond the arc. The Golden Eagles will look to improve their team defense as they head into the regular season against Central Washington and Seattle Pacific this weekend.

Senior Leadership
The Golden Eagles have a huge senior class this season with seven seniors on the roster including Lubke, West, Giorgi Koguashvili (Sr., G, Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia/Agricultural Business), Kevin Larson (Sr., G, New Ulm, Minn./Sports and Rec Management), Sam Howell (Sr., G, Seattle, Wash./Sports and Rec Management), Lucas Reller (Sr., G, Lead, S.D./Management) and Tomas Parker (Sr., F/C, Pequot Lakes, Minn./Management). The seven seniors will play key roles both on-and-off the court in the first year of the Dan Weisse era.

New Era
Dan Weisse will coach his first two regular-season games as a head coach this weekend against Central Washington and Seattle Pacific. Weisse takes over a program that won only four games. He will look to steady the ship and help the team improve in year one. Weisse comes over after seven years in the Fargo-Moorhead area where he was an assistant coach under Chad Walthall at Minnesota State University Moorhead for three years and prior to that was the Director of Operations for Saul Phillips at North Dakota State University. Weisse has brought in two talented young minds as well, as former Colorado State University player Mike Annese comes over from Truman State University. Annese previously was an assistant coach at Iowa Lakes Community College, where Larson, UMC's point guard, was a player. In addition to Annese, Bryan Beamish comes over. The former University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point player, spent last season as a graduate assistant at the University of Miami.

Homecoming
UMC senior guard Sam Howell will have the opportunity to play in front of his family and friends this weekend as the Seattle native returns home. Howell is familiar with the Seattle Pacific gymnasium as he would actually shoot hoops in it during his youth. Howell provided a spark for UMC off the bench in the exhibition and will look to do so in his hometown Friday and Saturday.

Young Players
Despite having an overall senior-laden roster, UMC does have some young talent to watch this season. Alec Koepp (So., F/C, Belle Plaine, Minn./Software Engineering) should get the start at center. Koepp earned a few starts last season due to his hard work and will look to improve in his sophomore campaign. Joining him at center will be Jim Warmack (Fr., F/C, East Grand Forks, Minn./Management), who had seven points and three rebounds against Wisconsin-Superior. In addition, Brian Enriquez (Fr., G, Lakewood, Calif./Health Science) should see some time as the back-up point guard for UMC.

Central Washington
The Central Washington Wildcats won their only exhibition against the Team Another Level Blue Angels. Central Washington was led by 5-9 guard Jordan Russell, who had 24 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field. He was 6-of-6 from beyond the arc. In addition to Russell, 6-8 forward Drake Rademacher added 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field off the bench, while 6-2 guard Gary Jacobs also had 16 points. Central Washington was 44-of-79 for 55.7 percent from the field and shot 18-of-31 for 58.1 percent from beyond the arc. The Wildcats went 12-14 last year with an 8-10 mark overall.

Seattle Pacific
Seattle Pacific runs a similar style to the one UMC is trying to implement, running the swing offense. The No. 22 ranked team in the nation, split with Pacific Lutheran University and Brigham Young University in their exhibition season. Against BYU, Seattle Pacific was led by 10 points on 5-of-14 shooting from 6-8 center Cory Hutsen, while 6-5 forward Mitch Penner added 10 points off the bench. SPU was 17-of-50 for 34.0 percent from the field and 3-of-12 for 25.0 percent from beyond the arc. Seattle Pacific went 26-6 last season and lost in the first round of the NCAA Division II Tournament. Former Utah Jazz and Gonzaga University star John Stockton's nephew, Riley Stockton, plays for the Falcons.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.
 
Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.
 
The University of Minnesota, Crookston is an NCAA Division II Institution and a member of the Northern
Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The Golden Eagle Equestrian team is a member of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA).