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University of Minnesota Crookston Athletics

The Official Athletics Site of the University of Minnesota Crookston
Chase Johnson

Men's Basketball Shawn Smith, Sports Information Director

UMC Men's Basketball Treks to Northern State and No. 24 MSU Moorhead for Final Regular-Season Road Games


CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team heads to Aberdeen, S.D. and Moorhead, Minn. to wrap up the road portion of the 2016-17 regular-season NSIC schedule. They will take on Northern State University at 8 p.m. Fri., Feb. 10 in Aberdeen, S.D. They will then take on No. 24 Minnesota State University Moorhead Sat., Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. in Moorhead, Minn.

The Golden Eagles are 7-17 (3-15 NSIC). Northern State enters the weekend with a 18-6 (14-4 mark), while MSU Moorhead is 20-4 (15-3 NSIC) on the season.

Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Dan Weisse
Record at UMC: 17-61 Season at UMC:Third Season

Northern State Wolves
Head Coach: Paul Sather
Record at NSU: 122-76 Season at NSU: Seventh Season

MSU Moorhead Dragons
Head Coach: Chad Walthall
Record at MSUM: 161-55 Season at MSUM: Seventh Season

Feb. 10, 2017 •  Aberdeen, S.D. •  Wachs Arena • 8 p.m. 
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/northern/
Live Stats: http://sidearmstats.com/northern/mbball/


Feb. 11, 2017 •  Moorhead, Minn. •  Nemzek Fieldhouse • 6 p.m. 
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/msum/index.htm
Live Statshttp://web.mnstate.edu/livestats/basketball/xlive.htm
Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM

Weekly Snapshot

Minnesota Crookston
Projected Starters

So. PG 13 Kobe Critchley (6-0 173, Roseville, Minn.) 7.3 PPG, 3.3 APG
Fr. SG 0 Harrison Cleary (6-1 175, Oak Creek, Wis.) 21.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG
So. 3G 25 Chase Knickerbocker (6-6 189, Annandale, Minn.) 11.1 PPG, 3.9 RPG
Fr. SF 21 Chase Johnson (6-6 207, La Crosse, Wis.) 5.6 PPG, 4.9 RPG
R-So. PF 44 Gable Smith (6-7 215, Lodi, Wis.) 6.8 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.4 BPG
Top Bench Players
R-Fr. G 1 Connor Gamble (6-0 157, Stillwater, Minn.) 8.8 PPG, 1.1 RPG
Sr. G 14 Xavier Hall (6-1 170, Woodbury, Minn.) 2.9 PPG, 1.6 APG

Northern State
Projected Starters

R-So. PG 0 Ian Smith (5-10 165, Champlin Park, Minn.) 14.8 PPG, 5.5 RPG
Sr. SG 3 Mack Arvidson  (6-2 190, Grand Forks, N.D.) 16.2 PPG, 1.5 RPG
R-Jr. 3G 11 D.J. Pollard (6-4 180, St. Louis Park, Minn.) 13.9 PPG, 6.4 RPG
Fr. SF 21 Gabe King (6-5 185, Irene, S.D.) 4.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG
Jr. PF 35 Logan Doyle (6-8 225, Alexandria, Minn.) 14.6 PPG, 8.8 RPG
Top Bench Players
Jr. F/C 54 Carter Evans (6-10 250, Rochester, Minn.) 7.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG
So. F 15 Bo Fries (6-4 195, Langford, S.D.) 6.1 PPG, 2.2 RPG
So. F 23 Justin Decker (6-7 225, Huron, S.D.) 5.8 PPG, 2.3 RPG
Fr. G/F 24 Jonny Dahl (6-4 200, Keokuk, Iowa) 2.3 PPG, 1.1 RPG

MSU Moorhead
Projected Starters

Jr. PG 3 Tanner Kretchman (6-0, Fargo, N.D.) 15.7 PPG, 6.6 APG
Sr. SG 14 Aaron Lien (6-4, Moorhead, Minn.) 18.8 PPG, 4.8 RPG
Sr. 3G 10 Jon Doss (6-4, Chicago, Ill.) 10.8 PPG, 4.5 RPG
Sr. SF 5 Ayob Ayob (6-7, Winnipeg, Manitoba) 15.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG
Sr. PF 13 Matt Nelson (6-9, Rosemount, Minn.) 4.3 PPG, 3.8 RPG
Top Bench Players
So. F/C 41 Addison Park (6-8, Sioux Falls, S.D.) 7.8 PPG, 4.4 RPG
R-Fr. F 12 Matt Anderson (6-7, Fall Creek, Wis.) 7.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG
Fr. G 24 Evan Hines (6-3, Skokie, Ill.) 4.4 PPG, 2.1 RPG
Fr. G 1 Johnny Beeninga (6-1, Maple Grove, Minn.) 4.1 PPG, 1.1 RPG

#5StoryLines
1. Can UMC play a full 40 minutes of basketball?

2. Can Harrison Cleary make a big impact for UMC?

3. Can Connor Gamble follow up his career-high 22 against Wayne State?

4. Can the Golden Eagles shut down the Dragons from beyond the arc?

5. Can UMC slow down Northern State sharp-shooter Mack Arvidson?

#ChaseIsOnTheCase
UMC sophomore wing Chase Knickerbocker continues to become a more 
polished offensive player as the season goes along. Knickerbocker is averaging 13.0 points per game over the last three for the Golden Eagles. He had  21 points on 6-of-14 from the field and 4-of-8 from beyond the arc in a win over Concordia-St. Paul. Last weekend, Knickerbocker tallied 16 points against Augustana. 

#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 21.3 points per game. He had a school record 42 points two weekends agao against Minnesota State. Cleary is averaging 25.2 points per game over the last six games. He is shooting 85.2 percent from the charity stripe and 47.5 percent from the field. 

#ChasingDownTheBoards
UMC freshman forward Chase Johnson has made a big impact for UMC over the last four games. Johnson tallied his first career double-double with 14 points and 12 boards against Wayne State. He is averaging 7.0 points and 6.5 rebounds over the last four games. Johnson also had 12 rebounds against Concordia-St. Paul in a win for UMC. He will look to continue to make an impact for UMC as they take on Northern State and MSU Moorhead. 

#TakeAGamble
UMC redshirt freshman guard is coming off a career-high 22 points on 7-of-13 from the field and 5-of-10 from beyond the arc against Wayne State. He is averaging 10.3 points per game over the last four. Gamble has become a bigger scoring threat for UMC as the season has continued. He is shooting 44.3 percent from beyond the arc on the season. 


#Tidbits
- Minnesota Crookston comes into the weekend with a 7-17 (3-15 NSIC) mark. The Golden Eagles continue to battle in their games as the young team has lost nine games this season by 10 or less points. UMC's seven wins this season
 matches their mark of seven wins from the 2014-15 season for the best wins total since the 2000-01 season for the 
Golden Eagles. UMC is just two wins away from tying the school record of nine wins tallied during the 2000-01 season. Minnesota Crookston remains in a tie for seventh place with Minnesota Duluth. 

- The Golden Eagles are averaging 73.0 points per game and giving up 77.0 points to their opponents. UMC is shooting 45.2 percent from the field and 37.0 percent from beyond the arc. The Golden Eagles are hitting 70.7 percent of their shots from the charity stripe. Opponents are shooting 47.9 percent against UMC. 

- Northern State enters the weekend with an 18-6 (14-4 NSIC) mark. The Wolves have won sixth straight. They last lost Jan. 14 to Augustana by the tune of 80-66. Northern State is led by guard Mack Arvidson's 16.2 points per game, while point guard Ian Smith is tallying 14.8 points per game. In the post, South Dakota State transfer Logan Doyle leads the way with 14.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, while D.J. Pollard is averaging 13.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per contest.

- The Wolves are averaging 85.7 points per game and giving up 78.0 points per game to their opponents. They are shooting 49.9 percent from the field and 42.3 percent from beyond the arc. Northern State shoots 74.3 percent from the charity stripe. Their opponents are shooting 45.9 percent from the field on the season. 

- The Dragons come into the weekend with a 20-4 (15-3 NSIC) mark. MSU Moorhead is currently ranked No. 24 in the nation. The Dragons look to four players averaging double-figure scoring. MSU Moorhead is led by Aaron Lien's 18.8 points per game, including shooting 45.4 percent from beyond the arc. Ayob Ayob has been big for the Dragons. Golden Eagle fans have nightmares of Ayob after he hit a buzzer-beater from beyond the three-point line to win the game earlier this year at Lysaker Gymnasium. Ayob is averaging 15.8 points per game. Point guard Tanner Kretchman is tallying 15.7 points per game, while Jon Doss is averaging 10.8 points per game.

- MSU Moorhead is averaging 89.4 points per game and giving up 79.3 points per game to their opponents. The Dragons are shooting 51.3 percent from the field and 42.6 percent from beyond the arc. They are allowing opponents to shoot 45.5 percent from the field. 
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Players Mentioned

Xavier Hall

#14 Xavier Hall

G
6' 1"
Senior
Chase Knickerbocker

#25 Chase Knickerbocker

G/F
6' 6"
Sophomore
Gable Smith

#44 Gable Smith

F
6' 7"
Redshirt Sophomore
Harrison Cleary

#0 Harrison Cleary

G
6' 1"
Freshman
Chase Johnson

#21 Chase Johnson

F
6' 6"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Xavier Hall

#14 Xavier Hall

6' 1"
Senior
G
Chase Knickerbocker

#25 Chase Knickerbocker

6' 6"
Sophomore
G/F
Gable Smith

#44 Gable Smith

6' 7"
Redshirt Sophomore
F
Harrison Cleary

#0 Harrison Cleary

6' 1"
Freshman
G
Chase Johnson

#21 Chase Johnson

6' 6"
Freshman
F
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