• The Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team opens up 2019 at Lysaker Gymnasium as they host St. Cloud State University Fri., Jan. 4 at 7:30 p.m., and University of Minnesota Duluth Sat., Jan. 5 at 5:30 p.m. The Golden Eagles have dropped their last two meetings against the Huskies. Minnesota Crookston last defeated St. Cloud State University Jan. 7, 2017 in Crookston, Minn. Minnesota Duluth won the last meeting over the Golden Eagles. Minnesota Crookston last picked up a win over the Bulldogs Dec. 2, 2017 in Crookston, Minn. 

•  GREAT START. The Golden Eagles are off to an identical start to the 2017-18 season, as they have posted an 8-6 mark. Minnesota Crookston is just two wins shy of their school-record of 10 victories, set during the 2017-18 season. The Golden Eagles are currently 2-4 in the NSIC, coming off a 72-51 win over Bemidji State University. Minnesota Crookston is currently in sixth place in the NSIC North. They are one game back from MSU Moorhead, Minnesota Duluth, and UMary, who are in a three-way tie for third place. The Golden Eagles are looking to post a better mark in the second half compared to last season. Minnesota Crookston went 2-12 in their last 14 games of the 2017-18 season.

• CHASING GREATNESS. Harrison Cleary has had an incredible start to his career. The junior already has 1,646 career points for the Golden Eagles. Cleary needs 272 points to surpass Minnesota Crookston great Joe Hasz as the all-time leading scorer. In addition, Cleary is already 15th all-time in NSIC scoring. The Golden Eagle junior recently surpassed Eric Erdmann of UMary, Assem Marei of Minnesota State, Jordan Miller of Southwest Minnesota State, Larry Grimes of Michigan Tech, and Amry Shelby of Wayne State, on the conference scoring chart. He needs 27 points to surpass Craig Heiman of Concordia-St. Paul, and 31 points to surpass Clayton Vette of Winona State. Cleary is currently 342 points from surpassing Daniel Jansen of Augustana for the conference scoring record. 

• REDEMPTION SONG. Minnesota Crookston redeemed themselves as they avenged an early-season loss to Bemidji State with a convincing 72-51 victory over the Beavers to close out 2018. The Golden Eagles have had a strong record against BSU under Head Coach Dan Weisse, as they are currently 5-5 in his five seasons on the sidelines for Minnesota Crookston.

• RECORD-CHASER. Gable Smith has already shattered the school's blocks mark with 267 career blocks. He is now attempting to get into the Top 10 for points, where he needs just 10 points to surpass Bilal Hill for 10th all-time. Inaddition, Smith recently moved up to third all-time for steals with 108, surpassing Akeem Cubie with 100 steals. He needs 22 steals to surpass Almir Krdzalic for second all-time.  Earlier this season, Smith became the school's all-time leading rebounder. He currently has 538 career rebounds. Smith had a major impact in the win over Bemidji State, as he led the team with 10 rebounds, four assists, and three blocks. 

• KNICKERBOCKER...THAT'S A FUN NAME TO SAY. Chase Knickerbocker has quite the catchy name, and he has made quite the impact as a senior for the Golden Eagles. The Annandale, Minn., native had 10 points, including two treys, in the win over Bemidji State. Knickerbocker is second on the team in scoring, averaging 11.9 points per game. He is shooting 40.5 percent from beyond the arc on the 2018-19 season. Knickerbocker currently ranked eighth in scoring. He needs 13 points to surpass Bryce Cummings for seventh all-time. In addition, Knickerbocker is ninth all-time in rebounds. He needs 30 boards to move past Tyler West, Jr. for eighth all-time in career rebounds. 

• FRIENDLY CONFINES. Minnesota Crookston has found great success playing at Lysaker Gymnasium this season. The Golden Eagles enter the weekend with a 5-1 mark at home. Minnesota Crookston's only loss at home came Dec. 8 to Northern State. The Golden Eagles are averaging 90.0 points per game this season at Lysaker Gymnasium.

• ON THE CHASE. Minnesota Crookston redshirt sophomore Chase Johnson had a strong game off the bench against Bemidji State. The La Crosse, Wis. native had eight points on 3-of-3 from the field. Johnson has continued to come into his own after missing the entire 2017-18 season due to injury. Johnson is tallying 3.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per game on the 2018-19 season. 

• DEFENSE DEFENSE DEFENSE.  The Golden Eagles aave found great success when they have limited their opponent offensively. Minnesota Crookston is 6-0 when holding their foes under 70 points. The Golden Eagles had a great defensive effort against Bemidji State, as they limited the Beavers to just 51 points. The performance was the third-lowest output an opponent has had this season against the Minnesota Crookston defense. The game was key as the Golden Eagles had been struggling defensively in conference play. Entering last Sunday, Minnesota Crookston had allowed 87.0 points per game to their opponents.
 
•  TURNING THE CORNER.  The Minnesota Crookston men's basketball team has made big strides as a program in the last 1.5 years. The Golden Eagles have posted a 18-25 mark in their last 43 games, a vast improvement from where the program was prior to Coach Dan Weisse as they went 8-46 in the two seasons prior to his arrival. The Golden Eagles will look to continue to make the next step as a program as they continue the 2018-19 season.

•  THREE BALL.  The three ball has been of vital importance for the Golden Eagles as they come into the weekend in fifth in the NSIC in three-point shooting percentage at 40.6 percent. The Golden Eagles are averaging 9.4 three-pointers per game. Minnesota Crookston has been led by Harrison Cleary from beyond the arc, as he is shooting 50.6 percent to lead the way. Ben Juhl comes in shooting 41.2 percent from beyond the arc, while Darin Viken is hitting at 50.0 percent clip. Chase Knickerbocker comes in shooting 40.5 percent from behind the three-point line on the 2018-19 season.

Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Dan Weisse
Record at UMC: 36-90 Season at UMC: Fifth Season

St. Cloud State Huskies
Head Coach: Matt Reimer
Record at SCSU: 83-54 Season at SCSU: Fifth Season

Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs
Head Coach: Justin Wieck
Record at UMD: 6-4 Season at UMD: First Season

St. Cloud State at Minnesota Crookston
Date: Fri., Jan. 4
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/mbball
Series Record: St. Cloud State leads 24-3
Last Meeting: St. Cloud State won 71-55 in St. Cloud, Minn. Jan. 6, 2018
Trends: St. Cloud State has won the last two games

Minnesota Duluth at Minnesota Crookston
Date: Sat., Jan. 5
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/mbball
Series Record: Minnesota Duluth leads 30-4
Last Meeting: Minnesota Duluth won 75-71 Jan. 5, 2018 in Duluth, Minn.
Trends: Minnesota Duluth won the last game in the series

Minnesota Crookston
Projected Starters
Jr. PG 0 Harrison Cleary (6-1 180, Oak Creek, Wis.) 21.7 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.8 APG
So. SG 2 Ben Juhl (6-1 186, Clive, Iowa) 10.8 PPG, 2.3 RPG
Sr. SF 25 Chase Knickerbocker (6-7 210, Annandale, Minn.) 11.9 PPG, 4.4 RPG
Sr. PF 30 Josh Collins (6-6 230, Minneapolis, Minn.) 6.0 PPG, 4.3 RPG
R-Sr. C 24 Gable Smith (6-7 225, Lodi, Wis.) 5.4 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 2.5 BPG
Top Bench Players
R-Fr. SG 14 Brian Sitzmann (6-4 192, Savage, Minn.) 6.1 PPG, 2.4 RPG
R-Jr. G/F 12 Malcolm Cohen (6-6 210, Detroit, Mich.) 8.1 PPG, 2.4 RPG
Sr. G 13 Darin Viken (6-1 200, Fosston, Minn.) 3.7 PPG, 2.4 RPG
R-So. F 21 Chase Johnson (6-8 240, La Crosse, Wis.) 3.3 PPG, 4.0 RPG

St. Cloud State
Projected Starters
Jr. PG 4 Trevon Marshall (6-0 160, Evanston, Ill.) 8.6 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 2.3 APG
SG 10 Brindley Theisen (6-2 190, St. Cloud, Minn.) 12.9 PPG, 2.3 RPG
3G 20 Gage Davis (6-4 185, Bolingbrook, Ill.) 21.8 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 2.6 APG
Jr. SF 42 Diamond Onwuka (6-8, Barcelona, Spain) 6.2 PPG, 4.8 RPG
Sr. PF 40 Sean Smith (6-8 195, Athens, Ga.) 16.2 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 3.0 APG, 4.7 BPG
Top Bench Players
Sr. G 22 Jace Kitchen (6-6 200, Dekalb, Ill.) 8.4 PPG, 3.0 RPG
Sr. G 12 Adam Heede-Andersen (6-0 190, Copenhagen, Denmark) 4.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG

Minnesota Duluth
Projected Starters
Fr. PG 3 Hunter Plamann (6-1 180, Appleton, Wis.) 5.3 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 2.7 APG
Jr. SG 1 Logan Rohrscheib (6-2 185, Eau Claire, Wis.) 12.5 PPG, 1.0 RPG
Sr. 3G 4 Mamadou Ngom (6-3 170, Minneapolis, Minn.) 6.9 PPG, 2.9 RPG
Sr. SF 11 Sean Burns (6-5 213, Robbinsdale, Minn.) 13.3 PPG, 7.4 RPG
Jr. PF 10 Brandon Myer (6-7 195, Superior, Wis.) 20.3 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 3.3 APG
Top Bench Players
Jr. G 2 Trevor Entwisle (5-11 170, Neenah, Wis.) 3.0 PPG, 1.7 RPG, 2.5 APG
Fr. G 23 Mason Steffen (6-4 190, Waunakee, Wis.) 2.0 PPG, 0.9 RPG
Jr. G 25 Cody Tomlinson (6-3 180, Ashland, Wis.) 2.6 PPG, 0.4 RPG

ST. CLOUD STATE HUSKIES. St. Cloud State comes into the weekend with a 9-3 (4-2 NSIC) mark. The Huskies are currently second in the NSIC North coming into Friday and Saturday. St. Cloud State has been led by Gage Davis with 21.8 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. In addition, Sean Smith has been of vital importance both ofensively and defensively. Smith is tallying 16.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, and a league-high 4.7 blocks per game. The Huskies are averaging 81.4 points per game, while allowing 73.3 points per game to their foes. St. Cloud State comes in shooting 48.5 percent from the field, 34.6 percent from beyond the arc, and 67.9 percent from the foul line.

CHECK YOUR GAGES. St. Cloud State senior Gage Davis has been one of the best offensive players in the league with 21.8 points per game on the 2018-19 season. Davis is shooting 50.5 percent from the field, and 37.5 percent from beyond the arc. Davis posted a season-high 28 points on two occasions this season, against Minnesota State and Minot State. He has scored in double-figures in all 12 games for the Huskies. Davis has also been a great facilitator for the team, with 2.6 assists per game.

DENIED. Sean Smith has been a blocking machine for the Huskies this season. The St. Cloud State big man has 56 blocks on the year for 4.7 blocks per game. Smith has also been of great importance offensively, as he is notching 16.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game on the season. He has been very efficient as he is hitting 57.7 percent of his shots on the year.

SHOOTER'S TOUCH. Brindley Theisen has been the best long-range shooter for the Huskies this season. He comes in hitting 44.2 percent of his three-point shots on the year and averaging 2.8 three-pointers per game. Theisen is tallying 12.9 points per game on the 2018-19 season.

MINNESOTA DULUTH BULLDOGS. Minnesota Duluth is in their first season under Head Coach Justin Wieck, who was previously an assistant at MSU Moorhead. It will be a match-up of two former Dragon assistants this weekend with Wieck and Weisse. Wieck actually took Weisse's post as lead assistant at MSU Moorhead after Weisse became head coach at Minnesota Crookston. The Bulldogs enter the weekend with a 6-4 (3-3 NSIC) mark. Minnesota Duluth is averaging 74.9 points per game, while allowing 66.0 points per tilt to their foes. The Bulldogs are shooting 45.3 percent from the field, 35.2 percent from beyond the arc, and 71.2 percent from the foul line.

MISTER BURNS. Minnesota Duluth forward Sean Burns has had an outstanding season for the Bulldogs. Burns is tallying 13.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Burns is shooting 60.9 percent from the field. He notched a season-high 21 points against UMary, and is coming off 20 points against St. Cloud State last week.

TOP DOG. Minnesota Duluth has been led on the season by Brandon Myer, who has been the top Bulldog this season. He is notching a double-double of 20.3 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. Myer is shooting 48.9 percent from the field, and 37.5 percent from beyond the arc. Myer scored a season-high 31 points against St. Cloud State University. He has tallied over 20 points on four occasions this seasn, and has tallied four double-doubles.

LONG BALL FOR LOGAN. Logan Rohrscheib has attempted the most triples for the Bulldogs this season. He comes in shooting 41.4 percent from beyond the arc for Minnesota Duluth. Rohrscheib is averaging 12.5 points per game for UMD. Rohrscheib hit six treys against St. Scholastica, and five three-pointers. versus Sioux Falls. 

#5StoryLines
1. Can Minnesota Crookston limit the St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth offenses?

2. Can the Golden Eagles control the scoring of Gage Davis for the Huskies and Brandon Myer of the Bulldogs?

3. Can Harrison Cleary put up another big game for the Golden Eagles?

4. Can the Golden Eagles knock down the three ball this weekend?

5. Who will step up off the bench for Minnesota Crookston?