The Scoop
The University of Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team will open up their 2017-18 conference slate Sat., Nov. 25 in a post-Thanksgiving meeting with conference rival Bemidji State University, located just 88 miles down U.S. Highway 2.

Previewing the Golden Eagles
Minnesota Crookston enters the weekend with a 2-3 mark after going 2-1 on the week with wins over Oak Hills Christian College and a comeback victory to take down University of Sioux Falls 79-74. The Golden Eagles lost to University of Jamestown 87-85 in the final seconds after leading by 17 points in the second half.
The Golden Eagles look to reining NSIC North Player of the Week Harrison Cleary, who is averaging 25.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. In addition to Cleary, newcomer Alan Hodge, Jr. is off to a strong start to his time at Minnesota Crookston with 19.2 points per game. Hodge is the team's top shooter from distance at 45.5 percent. Freshman Ben Juhl has also been making positive impact for the Golden Eagles. Juhl is averaging 10.6 points per game. He is shooting 38.9 percent from beyond the arc.

Junior Chase Knickerbocker is also off to a strong start to his season. Knickerbocker is a swing player who can play guard and forward. Knickerbocker is tallying 14.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He is shooting 43.8 percent from beyond the arc. In the post, Gable Smith is tallying 5.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. Smith also continues to be a pest defensively in the post has the program's all-time leading shot blocker has notched 12 blocks on the season. Off the bench, Javier Nicolau is coming off his best game as a Golden Eagle with 10 points and seven rebounds on Tuesday against Jamestown. Nicolau is averaging 3.0 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. Chase Johnson comes into the weekend averaging 3.3 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.

The Golden Eagles are averaging 87.4 points per game and allowing opponents to score 82.8 points per game. The key for Minnesota Crookston is improving their defense after losing two games in which they scored 85 points or more. The Golden Eagles are shooting 49.7 percent from the field and 41.3 percent from beyond the arc. Minnesota Crookston is shooting 70.1 percent from the charity stripe. The Golden Eagles are out-rebounding their foes 35.6 to 35.5 on the season.

Previewing the Beavers
Bemidji State comes into the week with a 3-2 mark on the season after defeating Oak Hills Christian 115-50 earlier this week. The Beavers have been led by Lucas Wendt in the post with 15.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. In addition, guard Jai'Vionne Green is averaging 15.0 points and 4.2 rebounds per contest. Green is shooting 44.4 percent from beyond the arc. Guard Sharif Black is also off to a strong start on the season. Black is tallying 12.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Black is shooting 35.7 percent from beyond the arc. Forward Logan Bader is averaging 11.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per contest.

Bemidji State is averaging 83.0 points and allowing their opponents to score 66.8 points per game. The Beavers are shooting 50.5 percent from the field and 39.9 percent from beyond the arc. Bemdiji State is shooting 72.7 percent from the free throw line. The Beavers are out-rebounding their opponents 35.2 to 30.4 on the season.

Oak Creek Connection
Minnesota Crookston sophomore Harrison Cleary and Bemidji State freshman Drew Yetka were teammates at Oak Creek High School in Wisconsin. Both players spent time working out together in summers. Cleary had a strong debut for the Golden Eagles as he was NSIC Freshman of the Year, while Yetka is averaging 10.6 minutes per game off of the bench.

Last Meeting
The Golden Eagles split with the Beavers last season. Minnesota Crookston won 82-81 at home over Bemidji State on a free throw by Gable Smith with three seconds remainign. The Golden Eagles looked to 34 points from Cleary and 24 from Knickerbocker. For Bemidji State, Green had 22, as did graduated senior Ben Best. Sharif Black notched 17. In Bemidji, the Beavers took the win 77-75 on a pair of Green free throws in the final seconds. Bemidji State looked to 20 points off of the bench from Wendt. Black had 17, while Green had 15. The Golden Eagles were led by Cleary with 29 points, Knickerbocker tallied 16 points.

Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Dan Weisse
Record at UMC: 20-68 Season at UMC: Fourth Season

Bemidji State Beavers
Head Coach: Mike Boschee
Record at BSU: 67-77 Season at BSU: Sixth Season

Nov 25 • Crookston, Minn. • Lysaker Gymnasium • 3 p.m. 
Bemidji State at Minnesota Crookston
Video: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/#liveEventsTab
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/mbball/
Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM
Date: Nov. 25, 2017
Time: 3 p.m. C.T.
Site: Crookston, Minn.
Stadium: Lysaker Gymnasium
Capacity: 3,000
Series: Bemidji State leads the all-time series 48-15
Last Year: Each team won one their home court last season

Projected Starters
rojected Starters
So. PG 0 Harrison Cleary, Jr., 6-1, Oak Creek, Wis. 25.8 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 4.0 APG
Jr. SG 1 Alan Hodge, Jr., 6-0, Dallas, Texas 19.2 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 2.2 APG
Fr. 3G 2 Ben Juhl, 6-1, Clive, Iowa 10.6 PPG, 2.6 RPG
Jr. SF 25 Chase Knickerbocker, 6-7, Annandale, Minn. 14.6 PPG, 6.0 RPG
R-Jr. PF 24 Gable Smith, R-Fr., 6-7, Lodi, Wis. 5.8 PPG, 6.8 RPG
Top Bench Players
So. F 21 Chase Johnson, 6-8, La Crosse, Wis. 3.3 PPG, 2.8 RPG
So. F/C 44 Javier Nicolau, 6-10, Castellon, Spain 3.0 PPG, 2.6 RPG
Jr. G 13 Darin Viken, 6-1, Fosston, Minn. 1.5 PPG, 2.5 RPG

Bemidji State
Projected Starters
Sr. PG 11 Christian Pekarek, 6-1, Little Falls, Minn. 5.0 PPG, 5.8 APG
Sr. SG 12 Sharif Black, 6-2, Detroit, Mich. 12.6 PPG, 5.4 RPG
So. 3G 4 Jai'Vionne Green, 6-4, Wauwatosa, Wis. 15.0 PPG, 4.2 RPG
So. SF 1 Lucas Wendt, 6-6, Racine, Wis. 15.6 PPG, 4.8 RPG
So. PF 24 Logan Bader, 6-7, Milltown, Wis. 11.8 PPG, 4.6 RPG
Top Bench Players
Fr. G 20 Mike Shepski, 6-0, Lockport, Ill. 5.8 PPG, 1.4 RPG
R-Fr. G 2 Aage Rovney, 6-3, West St. Paul, Minn. 4.0 PPG, 4.0 APG
So. F 32 Kyle Sorenson, 6-8, Caledonia, Minn. 2.6 PPG, 1.8 RPG
So. G 10 Jacob McNallan, 6-2, Andover, Minn. 3.4 PPG, 1.4 RPG
Fr. G 3 Drew Yetka, 6-6, Oak Creek, Wis. 1.8 PPG, 1.2 RPG

#5StoryLines
1. Can the Golden Eagle defense come up strong against Bemidji State?

2. Will Harrison Cleary continue his strong start to his sophomore campaign?

3. Who will be a presence both offensively and defensively in the post?

4. Who can step up off of the bench?

5. What will the trio of Hodge, Knickerbocker and Juhl put up for the Golden Eagles?

#ShiningAsASophomore

UMC sophomore guard Harrison Cleary has overcome the sophomore slump in his second season as a Golden Eagle. Cleary was NSIC Freshman of the Year last season. He is leading the entire NSIC with 25.8 points per game. Cleary is coming off 36 points against Jamestown. He is shooting 48.0 percent from the field.


#ParaCrookstonDesdeEspana

Minnesota Crookston sophomore transfer Javier Nicolau is improving each game out for the Golden Eagles. The 6-10 giant from Castellon, Spain played last seasons at UCAM Murcia in Spain and in his first year in the maroon and Gold. Nicolau is coming off his best game as a Golden Eagle with 10 points and seven rebounds against Jamestown. He will look to continue to improve and make a positive impact for the Golden Eagles. 

#SinkTheThree
Minnesota Crookston junior transfer Alan Hodge, Jr. has made an instant impact for the Golden Eagles. Hodge is averaging 19.5 points per game on the season. He leads the team with a 45.5 three-point percentage. Hodge transferred from NAIA school Southwestern College in Winfield, Kan. He started 10 games last season and averaged 8.3 points per game. Hodge shot 32.3 percent from beyond the arc. 

#FosstonProud
Minnesota Crookston junior Darin Viken has been a key cog off the bench this season for the Golden Eagles. He won't amaze you with his scoring stats, but Viken has been huge defensively off the bench. Viken has come up with a big offensive rebound a put-back against Sioux Falls. Viken will look to continue to provide energy off the bench this weekend as the Golden Eagles open NSIC play.