CROOKSTON, Minn. - The Minnesota Crookston women's basketball team returns home on Fri., Jan. 10 and Sat., Jan. 11 to take on Northern State University at 5:30 p.m., and Minnesota State University Moorhead at 3:30 p.m. The Golden Eagles are looking to split the season series with both schools as they played the Wolves and Dragons on the road Dec. 6 and Dec. 7. Minnesota Crookston fell to Northern State 74-64 in a close game, and were defeated by MSU Moorhead 89-43. The Golden Eagles are currently 1-2 at Lysaker Gymnasium this season, including a win over Wayne State College.

• DEAR ABBY. Minnesota Crookston junior Abby Guidinger has become Minnesota Crookston's go-to scoring option as evidenced by her 15 points per game in the last five games for the Golden Eagles. Guidinger had 19 points last Saturday against Minnesota Duluth, in a game in which the Golden Eagles fell by just one point, 68-67, as the Bulldogs hit a free throw with four seconds remaining. Guidinger is tallying 9.7 points per game on the 2019-20 season. She comes into the weekend shooting 45.4 percent from the field. Her best game of the season came at home in a win over Wayne State with 20 points on 9-of-15 from the field.

• BURKE OFF THE BENCH. Mary Burke has shown great signs of a strong future in her first competitive season with the Golden Eagles after redshirting during the 2018-19 slate. Burke is coming off 16 points on 6-of-8 from the field and 4-of-5 from beyond the arc in a narrow loss to Minnesota Duluth last Saturday. Burke is notching 6.7 points and 3.4 rebounds per game off the bench this season. She has continued to look for her shot from three and found the net against the Bulldogs at an 80.0 percent clip. Burke has two double-figure scoring performances this season with the 16 against UMD, and 13 in the season opener against Nebraska Kearney. She will continue to look for her shot and continue to improve starting with this weekend.

• FOX IN THE BOX. Bren Fox continues to develop as a post player for Coach Mike Roysland and the Golden Eagles. She is averaging 7.3 points and 7.1 rebounds per game during her sophomore season. Fox has had three games with double-figure scoring this season and has also notched seven games with eight or more rebounds. Her best game came in the season opener with 23 points against Nebraska Kearney. Fox tallied a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Chaminade.

• FRESHMEN.  Minnesota Crookston has moved to starting a pair of freshmen this season, as Mattea Vetsch and Alyssa Peterson have both moved into the starting line-up recently. Vetsch, a native of Devils Lake, N.D., has started nine games on the season, while Peterson has started seven games for the Golden Eagles. Vetsch is great on the defensive end, and has shown off her ability to shoot the ball, including a season-high 17 points against Northern State. Vetsch was an impressive 5-of-7 from beyond the arc at Wachs Arena against Northern State the first time around and will look for her shot again this weekend against the Wolves. Peterson also is a strong shooter for Minnesota Crookston. She had a season-high 15 points on the road at Minnesota State University Moorhead with 15 points, including 3-of-8 from behind the three-point line.  Peterson also had a strong performance with 17 points, including going 5-of-9 from beyond the arc against St. Cloud State last Friday. Vetsch is notching 4.5 points per game on the season, while Peterson is tallying 5.8 points per game in her inaugural season. Both Peterson and Vetsch will be key players for Coach Mike Roysland's squad moving forward.

• FINDING THE THREE BALL.  Minnesota Crookston has continued to try to find their three-point shot this season. The Golden Eagles are currently shooting 28.5 percent from beyond the arc on the season. Minnesota Crookston had a strong night from deep against Minnesota Duluth, as the Golden Eagles hit on 8-of-20 from beyond the arc for 40.0 percent versus the Bulldogs. They also had a strong night from behind the three-point line earlier this season in their road tilt with Northern State, as they hit 14-of-30 for 46.7 percent from beyond the arc. Minnesota Crookston will look to channel their performance against the Wolves the first time, as they hit eight 3-pointers in the first quarter at Wachs Arena.

• AGAINST THE WOLVES.  Northern State has won the last two meetings between the two teams. The Golden Eagles are 4-14 since 2010 against the Wolves with one win at home during that stretch coming over Northern State Dec. 8, 2018 with a 61-54 victory. 

• BATTLING THE DRAGONS.  MSU Moorhead has won the last four games in the series against Minnesota Crookston. The Golden Eagles last picked up a win Dec. 8, 2017, with a 69-65 victory at Nemzek Fieldhouse over the Dragons. Minnesota Crookston had back-to-back wins at Lysaker Gymnasium over the MSU Moorhead Jan. 22, 2016 and Dec. 21, 2015. They have won four times since 2010 over the Dragons.

#Tidbits

NORTHERN STATE. Northern State enters the weekend with a 9-5 (5-3 NSIC) mark on the 2019-20 season. The Wolves are currently sitting in a tie for third place in the NSIC North. Northern State had wins over Winona State University and Upper Iowa University last weekend. The Wolves overcame an 18-point deficit in the first quarter Dec. 7 to pick up a win over Minnesota Crookston at Wachs Arena in Aberdeen, S.D. Northern State is currently in their second season under Head Coach Paula Krueger.

A LOT TO LIKE ABOUT LEXI. Lexi Wadsworth has been the go-to play for Northern State this season. The forward comes in averaging 14.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. She can be an inside-out player for the Wolves, as she is hitting at a 50.0 percent clip with 20 makes from beyond the arc. Wadsworth had 20 points in a win over Winona State last Saturday.

THE KUSLER EFFECT. Brianna Kusler does a lot of things for Northern State from scoring points, getting boards, and dishing out assists. She has a big impact on her team and the teammates that play around her. Kusler comes in with 41 assists through 13 games on the 2019-20 campaign. She is also notching 12.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game on the season. Kusler also the ability to hurt you from beyond the arc, where she is hitting 33.9 percent of her shots this season.

MSU MOORHEAD. Minnesota State Moorhead enters this weekend with an 11-4 (6-2 NSIC) mark. The Dragons are currently in second in the NSIC North standings. MSU Moorhead has been dominant in the NSIC North in recent years as they have won at least a share of the last four NSIC North Championships. The Dragons are averaging 72.2 points per game, while allowing 55.4 to their opponents this season. MSU Moorhead is shooting 44.5 percent from the field, and 36.0 percent from beyond the arc.

I WILL GIVE YOU A HINTZ. I will give you a little hint, the key player for MSU Moorhead is Hintz. Megan Hintz, that is. The forward comes in notching 15.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game on the 2019-20 season. Hintz is hitting 57.2 percent of her shots this season. She will be the key player to stop for Minnesota Crookston's defense.

IMPACT TRANSFER. North Dakota State transfer Sarah Jacobson has had an instant impact on Karla Nelson's squad for the Dragons. Jacobson is averaging 10.0 points and 6.1 rebounds, and also has 49 assists on the 2019-20 season. Jacobson has a strong outside shot, as she is hitting at a 34.6 percent clip from behind the three-point line this season.
 

GAMEDAY

NORTHERN STATE at MINNESOTA CROOKSTON
DATE: Fri., Jan. 10
TIME: 5:30 p.m.
SITE: Crookston, Minn.
ARENA: Lysaker Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
LIVE VIDEO: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/
RADIO: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM
TWITTER: @UMNCrookstonATH/@UMNCrookstonWBB

MINNESOTA CROOKSTON at MINNESOTA DULUTH
DATE: Sat., Jan. 11
TIME: 3:30 p.m.
SITE: Crookston, Minn.
ARENA: Lysaker Gymnasium
RADIO: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM
LIVE STATS: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
LIVE VIDEO: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/
TWITTER: @UMNCrookstonATH/@UMNCrookstonWBB