Minnesota Crookston Finishes 2021 with Rival Bemidji State
After a ton of uncertainty in the preseason, the Golden Eagles men's basketball team heads into the final games of the regular season; without having a weekend postponed or cancelled. That's a pretty impressive feat. The Golden Eagles will travel to Bemidji to try and knock off the Beavers.

Last Friday night, the Golden Eagles were down 70-51 with just six minutes left, but the Golden Eagles would go on a 17-0 run over the next six minutes to trail by just two with under one minute left. The Huskies would make clutch free throws to avoid the upset bid. On Saturday, the Huskies would use a dominant second half to walk out of Crookston with a sweep.

The Golden Eagles will look to win in Bemidji for the first time since 2017, when they knocked off the Beavers by double-digits. These two programs have been fairly even in the past. The Beavers and Golden Eagles have split the last two seasons, with each team winning on its home floor. Minnesota Crookston will look to buck that trend this weekend.

BISHOP STRONG
The Golden Eagles family is dealing with a major loss to its family. Former KROX announcer Matt Bishop passed away in December after a long battle with cancer. Matt loved announcing Golden Eagle games and will always be a part of the Golden Eagle family.

HIGHWAY-2 RIVALS
There's no doubt that the Golden Eagles and Beavers always seem to play exciting games on the hardwood. These two teams know each other well. Whichever team is playing the other team on their home floor, it's a good bet that they will walk off after 40-minutes victorious. Dating back to the 2015-16 season, both of these teams have split the season series, with both teams winning on their home floor. The 2017-18 season is the outlier; The Golden Eagles swept the Beavers, winning both games by double-figures.

CATCHING FIRE
Ever since being inserted into the starting lineup in the third game of the season, Leonard Dixon has shown glimpses of being a special player for Dan Weisse. Dixon has six games of 10 or more points, including two games scoring over 20 points. Dixon's streak of burying a shot from deep came to end on Saturday against St. Cloud State, where he shot 0-3 from deep. Dixon's 13 straight games with a make from deep is the third longest streak in school history. Harrison Cleary has the record with 23 straight games with a make from deep to start the season.

THE WAY OF MORGAN
Last Saturday afternoon, Porthcawl, Wales native Morgan Carter played the best game of his Golden Eagle career. The Wales native tied a career-high with eight points on 4-5 shooting from the field, while also tying a career-high in minutes played with 24. Carter also pulled down four rebounds, the third such time he has done that this season. Carter may be starting to come into his own as a Golden Eagle.


FIRST CAREER START FOR Z
Due to some injuries, West Fargo, N.D., native Zach Westphal earned his first career start on Saturday afternoon. Westphal earned a career-high 29 minutes, while scoring three points on 1-5 shooting from the field. Westphal's only field goal of the game was a make from deep, making it the first time in his career that Westphal has a make from deep in back-to-back games. Westphal has made big strides in year number three as a Golden Eagle.

COMEBACK KIDS
Although Minnesota Crookston wasn't able to come back from 19 points down on Friday night, the young Golden Eagles showed fight. Minnesota Crookston went on an unreal 17-0 run late in the second half to cut the Husky lead to just two with 47 seconds to go. The Golden Eagles caught fire late in the game, burying three shots from deep, accounting for nine of the 17 points during that run.

FINISH THE POSSESSION
The big issue this season for Minnesota Crookston has been the ability to finish the defensive possessions after an opponent's miss. On Friday night, Minnesota Crookston gave up a season-high 20 offensive rebounds, leading to 14 second chance points for the Huskies. In six games this season, Golden Eagle opponents have brought down 10 or more offensive rebounds. Rebounding will be key this weekend against BSU.

Game Information
Friday, Feb. 19
6 P.M.
Minnesota Crookston at Bemidji State
BSU Gymnasium
Live Stats – http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=323729
Live Video - https://nsicnetwork.com/bsubeavers/
Listen Live - http://beaverradionetwork.com/
 
Saturday, Feb. 20
3:30 P.M.
Minnesota Crookston at Bemidji State
BSU Gymnasium
Live Stats – http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=323729
Live Video - https://nsicnetwork.com/bsubeavers/
Listen Live - http://beaverradionetwork.com/


2020-21 NSIC Rankings
Scoring Offense: 15th
Scoring Defense: 13th
Scoring Margin: 15th
Free Throw Pct.: 8th
Field Goal Pct.: 15th
Field Goal Pct. Defense: 16th
3-Point Field Goal Pct.: 14th
3-Point Field Goal Pct. Defense: 7th
Rebounding Offense: 14th
Rebounding Defense: 14th
Rebounding Margin: 14th
Offensive Rebounds: 12th
Defensive Rebounds: 13th
Blocked Shots: 10th
Assists: 15th
Steals: 13th
Turnover Margin: 12th
Assist/Turnover Ratio: 13th 



Weekly Snapshot

Minnesota Crookston
Projected Starters
Jr. PG 1 George Darwiche (6-1 188, Bucharest, Romania) 6.0 PPG, 1.8 RPG
R-So. G 2 Zach Westphal (6-2, 155, West Fargo, N.D.) 2.2 PPG
Fr. G 12 Josh Dilling (6-4, 180, Oshkosh, Wis.) 13.2 PPG, 4.1 RPG
Sr. PF 10 Ibu Jassey Demba (6-7 200, Birmingham, England) 8.3 PPG, 5.5 RPG
Jr. F 3 Leonard Dixon (6-7, 200, Demascus, Ore.) 10.4 PPG, 4.6 RPG
Top Bench Players
R-Jr. SG 14 Brian Sitzmann (6-4 192, Savage, Minn.) 11.1 PPG, 3.1 RPG
Jr. F/C 23 Morgan Carter (6-7, 215, Porthcawl, Wales) 2.9 PPG, 2.5 RPG
Jr. G 11 Ethan Channel (6-4, 190, Beaverton, Ore.) 10.0 PPG, 4.9 RPG
So. G/F 22 Quintin Winterfeldt (6-4 195, Waupun, Wis.) 4.5 PPG, 1.5 RPG
Bemidji State University
Projected Starters
Sr. F 2 Derek Thompson (6-8, 220, Cold Spring, Minn.) 15.9 PPG, 6.0 RPG
Jr. G 3 Mohamed Kone (6-2, 170, Apple Valley, Minn.) 11.5 PPG, 6.2 RPG
Jr. F 15 Cody Landwehr (6-7, 230, St. Cloud, Minn.) 8.1 PPG, 6.1 RPG
Sr. G 25 Griffin Chase (6-3, 195, Nevis, Minn.) 7.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG
Sr. G 30 Nick Wagner (6-4, 195, Galesville, Wis.) 13.7 PPG, 34 3-Point Makes
Top Bench Players
Jr. G 1 Edgars Kaufmanis (6-4, 195, Valmeria, Latvia) 1.4 PPG
Sr. G 12 Tyler Behrendt (5-11, 175, Germantown, Wis.) 6.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG



STUDY THE OPPONENT

Bemidji State
 
This is a big weekend for the Beavers. Although the Beavers are on the outside looking in at the NSIC North top four, the Beavers could still get in with two wins this weekend and some help elsewhere in the NSIC North. It might be a make or break weekend for the Beavers of Bemidji State.

LEAD THE WAY
 
The Beavers have three guys that can score at any time for the Beavers. BSU currently has three scorers averaging double-figures, led by senior Derek Thompson, who is averaging over 15 points per game on the season. Mohamed Kone and Caleb Wagner are also dangerous scorers for BSU. Wagner is currently third in the conference with 34 makes from deep, sitting behind Kevion Taylor of Winona State and Joe Smoldt of Upper Iowa. It will be a big test defensively this weekend for the Golden Eagles.

COMING IN HOT
 
The Beavers have played excellent ball the past two weekends. BSU will head into this weekend, winners of three out of their last four games, including three double-digit wins over St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth. The Beavers are coming into their own down the stretch of the season.

FINISH THE POSSESSION
 
Rebounding will be a giant thing to watch this weekend. Bemidji State is one of the best defensive rebounding teams in the conference, coming in fourth in the entire conference in rebounding on the defensive side of the ball. The Beavers currently have three starters averaging six or more rebounds per game on the season. The two games this weekend could come down to rebounding.

WHAT TO WATCH
1. Finish the season on a high note

2. Last weekend of 2021

3. Can the Golden Eagles put 40 minutes together?

4. Golden Eagles looking for a win in Bemidji

5. How well can the Golden Eagles rebound?