CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team will take on Minot State University and University of Mary this weekend as they finish up the regular-season. The Golden Eagles will face Minot State Fri., Feb. 17 at 8 p.m. The Beavers will take on U-Mary Sat., Feb. 18 at 6 p.m.
Minnesota Crookston comes into the weekend with a 7-19 (3-17 NSIC) mark. The Golden Eagles are battling for the No. 7 slot in the NSIC North. Minot State enters the weekend with a 12-14 (8-12 NSIC) record, while U-Mary is 11-15 (9-11 NSIC) entering the weekend.
Saturday will be Senior Day for UMC as they honor seniors Xavier Hall (G, Woodbury, Minn.) and Riley Rice (F/C, Woodbury, Minn.), who will play their final games at Lysaker Gymnasium this weekend.
Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Dan Weisse
Record at UMC: 17-63 Season at UMC:Third Season
Minot State Beavers
Head Coach: Matt Murken
Record at MINOT: 59-79 Season at MINOT: Fifth Season
U-Mary Marauders
Head Coach: Joe Kittell
Record at U-Mary: 30-27 Season at U-Mary: Second Season
Feb. 17, 2017 • Crookston, Minn. • Lysaker Gymnasium • 8 p.m.
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/#liveEventsTab
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/mbball/
Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM
Feb. 18, 2017 • Crookston, Minn. • Lysaker Gymnasium• 6 p.m.
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/#liveEventsTab
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/mbball/
Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM
Weekly Snapshot
Minnesota Crookston
Projected Starters
So. PG 13 Kobe Critchley (6-0 173, Roseville, Minn.) 7.5 PPG, 3.2 APG
Fr. SG 0 Harrison Cleary (6-1 175, Oak Creek, Wis.) 21.5 PPG, 3.6 RPG
So. 3G 25 Chase Knickerbocker (6-6 189, Annandale, Minn.) 10.8 PPG, 4.1 RPG
Fr. SF 21 Chase Johnson (6-6 207, La Crosse, Wis.) 5.7 PPG, 5.0 RPG
R-So. PF 44 Gable Smith (6-7 215, Lodi, Wis.) 7.1 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 2.4 BPG
Top Bench Players
R-Fr. G 1 Connor Gamble (6-0 157, Stillwater, Minn.) 8.5 PPG, 1.0 RPG
Sr. G 14 Xavier Hall (6-1 170, Woodbury, Minn.) 3.1 PPG, 1.6 APG
Sr. F/C 24 Riley Rice (6-6 234, Mullen, Neb.) 1.9 PPG, 1.3 RPG
Minot State
Projected Starters
Jr. PG 11 Luis Ricci Maia (5-11 190, Franca, Brazil) 13.1 PPG, 4.3 APG
Sr. SG 14 Nathan Mertens (6-3 190, Devils Lake, N.D.) 10.8 PPG, 4.3 APG
Jr. 3G 20 Russ Davis (6-3 220, Chandler, Ariz.) 9.6 PPG, 3.4 RPG
R-Fr. SF 21 Trevor Rothstein (6-7 200, St. Michael, Minn.) 4.4 PPG, 3.4 RPG
Jr. PF 24 Tyler Rudolph (6-6 230, Bismarck, N.D.) 9.8 PPG, 3.1 RPG
Top Bench Players
Jr. G 0 Nathaniel Moore (6-1 160, Milwaukee, Wis.) 9.8 PPG, 3.1 RPG
Jr. F 4 Stevan Jovanovic (6-8 225, Novi Sad, Serbia) 8.4 PPG, 3.7 RPG
U-Mary
Projected Starters
Sr. PG 4 Pat Thomas (6-3 197, Adelaide, South Australia) 7.7 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 4.2 APG
Sr. SG 2 Damonta Henry (6-0 175, Chicago, Ill.) 16.7 PPG, 2.4 RPG
Sr. 3G 1 Rickey Suggs (6-4 205, Woodbury, Minn.) 10.5 PPG, 4.4 RPG
Sr. SF 10 Bryan Jefferson (6-7 205, Aurora, Ill.) 15.9 PPG, 7.5 RPG
Sr. PF 33 Isaac Lindquist (6-9 235, Milbank, S.D.) 8.9 PPG, 3.2 RPG
Top Bench Players
Sr. G 5 Erron Collins (6-0 180, Mandan, N.D.) 2.8 PPG, 0.5 RPG
Jr. G 20 Luke Scott (6-2 185, Minneapolis, Minn.) 3.9 PPG, 1.4 RPG
Jr. F 14 Trevor Zacher (6-5 210, Beluah, N.D.) 7.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG
Fr. G 0 Jaylan White (5-10 170, St. Charles, Iowa) 2.6 PPG, 0.8 RPG
#5StoryLines
1. Can UMC play a full 40 minutes of basketball?
2. Can
Harrison Cleary make a big impact for UMC?
3. Can the Golden Eagles slow down Tyler Rudolph after he had a big game in Minot against Minnesota Crookston?
4. Can the Golden Eagles slow down Damonta Henry and Bryan Jefferson for U-Mary?
5. Who will make the big play for Minnesota Crookston?
#OnTheOffensive
Smith has become known for his blocking of shots, in which he leads the NSIC with 2.4 per game this season. However, with 15 points on 7-of-11 from the field versus MSU Moorhead and 17 points earlier this season against St. Cloud State, Smith has started to show his offensive promise. He will look to continue to show his strong offensive potential heading into the final weekend of the season.
#ItIsVeryCleary
It is very clear who the biggest scoring threat for UMC is and that is freshman guard
Harrison Cleary. Cleary is second in the league in scoring with 21.5 points per game. He is averaging 25.1 points per game over the last six games. Cleary has had two of his best performances of his career in the last six games. He set the school record with 42 points against Minnesota State and tallied 33 versus Northern State.
#TheChaseIsOn
UMC freshman forward
Chase Johnson has made a big impact for UMC in recent games. Johnson is averaging 8.0 points and 7.2 rebounds per game over the last six games. Johnson's biggest game came with a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds versus Wayne State. The UMC freshman has only just begun to touch his potential. Johnson will look to have a strong final two regular-season games of the season.
#OnPoint
UMC sophomore
Kobe Critchley had a strong performance against Northern State last weekend. Critchley had 12 points, including the game-tying shot in regulation against the Wolves. Critchley averaged 10.5 points in two games last weekend versus MSU Moorhead and Northern State. Critchley has led the team from his point guard position, averaging 3.2 assists per game, but last weekend he showed the offensive threat he can be. The Golden Eagles will look to get more production out of Critchley this weekend.
#Tidbits
- Minnesota Crookston comes into the weekend with a 7-10 (3-17 NSIC) mark on the season. The Golden Eagles are
currently tied for seventh in the NSIC North. Minnesota Crookston is tied with University of Minnesota Duluth for seventh. Both teams have a 3-17 mark on the season. UMC will look to put themselves in a spot to earn the No. 7 seed in the NSIC North. Minnesota Duluth has lost 12-straight games. The Bulldogs head into the final weekend playing Northern State University and Minnesota State University Moorhead.
- Minnesota Crookston continues to be right there as they have lost 10 games this season by 10 or less points.
However, they are still looking to get over the hump and get the big victory. The Golden Eagles came close against Northern State, leading by 11 with 5:45 remaining. Minnesota Crookston would force overtime after the Wolves came back, but Northern State would come away with the 85-80 win.
- The Golden Eagles are led by
Harrison Cleary's 21.5 points per game.
Chase Knickerbocker comes into the weekend averaging 10.8 points per game, while
Connor Gamble is averaging 8.5 points per game. Minnesota Crookston is
averaging 73.1 points per game and giving up 78.9 points per game to their foes. The Golden Eagles are shooting 44.7 percent from the field, 36.6 percent from beyond the arc and 70.2 percent from the charity stripe.
- Minnesota Crookston will honor seniors
Xavier Hall and
Riley Rice on Senior Day Saturday. Hall and Rice both came to Minnesota Crookston from North Platte Community College two years ago. The pair of teammates have been strong leaders and impact players off of the bench for the Golden Eagles. They will be honored for the role they have played in helping to shape Minnesota Crookston in their time with the Golden Eagles as the program con
- The Beavers have posted a 12-14 (8-12 NSIC) record. Minot State is led by post player Tyler Rudolph, who has been one of the best players in the conference this season. He is averaging 20.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. At point guard, Luis Ricci Maia is tallying 13.1 points and 4.3 assists per game. The Beavers are shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 42.0 percent from beyond the arc.
- The senior-laden U-Mary squad comes in with a 11-15 (9-11 NSIC) mark. The Marauders have been led by Damonta Henry's 16.7 points per game. He shoots 38.0 percent from beyond the arc. In addition, forward Bryan Jefferson is tallying 15.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. U-Mary is shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 36.6 percent from beyond the arc.
