CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team will play host to Upper Iowa University and WInona State University this weekend at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Golden Eagles will take on Upper Iowa at 8 p.m. Fri., Jan. 29 and then will take on Winona State at 6 p.m. Sat., Jan. 30.
The Golden Eagles come into the weekend with a 3-15 (1-13 NSIC) mark, while Upper Iowa is 11-12 (7-7 NSIC) and WInona State is 8-10 (7-7 NSIC).
Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Dan WeisseRecord at UMC: 10-35
Season at UMC: Second Season
Upper Iowa Peacocks
Head Coach: Brooks McKowen
Record at UIU: 44-39
Season at UIU: Third Season
Winona State Warriors
Head Coach: Todd Eisner
Record at WSU: 8-10Â
Season at WSU: First Season
Jan. 29 • Crookston, Minn. • Lysaker Gymnasium • 8 p.m.
Upper Iowa at Minnesota CrookstonVideo: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/#liveEventsTabLive Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/mbball/Jan. 30 • Crookston, Minn. • Lysaker Gymnasium • 6 p.m.
Winona State at Minnesota Crookston
Video: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/#liveEventsTabLive Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/mbball/Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM (Chris Fee, Play by Play)
#5StoryLines1. Can
C.J. Polk continue his solid play of late?
2. What kind of impact will
Kobe Critchley have at the point guard spot?
3. Can the UMC big men find success especially against Winona State's bigs?
4. Can UMC match up with the guard-oriented line-up of Upper Iowa?
5. Who will have a breakout game for the Golden Eagles?
#Tidbits- The UMC men's basketball team comes into the weekend with a 3-15 record on the season with a 3-15 overall mark and 1-13 mark in the NSIC. The Golden Eagles are in their second season under Head Coach
Dan Weisse. UMC is coming off a strong overall weekend against nationally ranked Minnesota State University Moorhead and Northern State University. The Golden Eagles were able to take the Wolves to overtime Saturday, where Northern State would hang on for an 84-80 win. UMC will look to get on a winning track as they take on Upper Iowa University and Winona State University this weekend. The Golden Eagles have been right there in a lot of their games this season, losing 10 games by 10 points or less.
- The Golden Eagles have just two players in
Derrick Redd, Jr. and
Jim Warmack, who played in games last season, while
Gable Smith and
A.J. Walton both redshirted. The other 10 players on the team are newcomers. UMC is currently starting four players who are in their first seasons playing NCAA Division II basketball. The upside is that UMC has just one senior and four-of-five starters who are either freshmen or sophomores with
C.J. Polk,
Kobe Critchley,
Gable Smith and
Nate Lorenz. In addition, key bench players
Chase Knickerbocker and
Jim Warmack have their best years in front of them, while junior college transfers
Xavier Hall and
Ben Grygiel will still have one year to play for UMC.
-
Gable Smith has been a blocking machine for the Golden Eagles in his first season playing with UMC after redshirting his initial season. Smith is leading the NSIC with 34 blocks this season.
- The UMC offense has shown a lot of improvement in Coach Weisse's second season. UMC is averaging more than 10 points a game more over last season as they have increased their scoring average from 58 to 68.7. In addition, the Golden Eagles are a better three-point shooting team, as they are hitting at a 36.1 clip up from 32.2 percent. They are also an improved shooting team overall, improving from 38.7 to 42.7 percent as a team.
- Upper Iowa enters Friday with an 11-12 (7-7 NSIC) mark. The Peacocks are in their third year under Brooks McKowen. Upper Iowa plays small with their tallest starter being 6-5. They are balanced overall with four players averaging 10 or more points. Jimmy Roth leads the team with 12.9 points per game, while Carson Parker is averaging 11.5 points per game. In the post, Josh Weeber is averaging 11.5 points per game, while Luke Lenhart is the deadliest three-point shooter at 43.4 percent and is averaging 11.0 points per game.
- Winona State is in their first season under Head Coach Todd Eisner. The Warriors are led by versatile post player Kyle Bauman, who is averaging 14.9 points per game and also shooting 47.9 percent from beyond the arc. In addition to Bauman, Riley Bambenek comes in averaging 11.1 points per game, while Mark Blacklock is averaging 9.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
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