Minnesota Crookston will head on the road for one final time of the regular season for two games with the reigning NSIC postseason champions, St. Cloud State.

This past Saturday, Minnesota Crookston did all they could to upset No. 6 Minnesota Duluth. Minnesota Crookston got within as little as one point in the final quarter, but the Bulldogs were able to escape with an eight point win to remain undefeated.

This weekend, Minnesota Crookston will look to make it two wins in a row over the Huskies. On senior day a season ago, Minnesota Crookston buried eight three's to upset the Huskies at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Golden Eagles are still in the hunt in the NSIC North, so this is a huge weekend for the Golden Eagles.

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.

ALL THE DOGS COULD HANDLE
After losing by double-digits on Friday night, the Golden Eagles were able to make adjustments on Saturday and gave the nationally ranked Bulldogs all they could handle. Trailing by 11 at the end of the first quarter, the Golden Eagles were propelled by an Alyssa Peterson three to help the Golden Eagles trail by just four at the half. Minnesota Crookston would get within one point late in the fourth quarter after a Jes Mertens three, but the Bulldogs would pull away late to remain undefeated. The Golden Eagles have to like the way they were able to bounce back on Saturday afternoon, even if it ended up in a loss.

IS THERE A THEME TO THIS SCHEDULE?
This weekend, the Golden Eagles will once again play a school that has a dog as their mascot. That's a nerd stat and it happens every year, but still kind of interesting. On the court however, St. Cloud State might be one of the best teams in the NSIC. If Minnesota Crookston wants to keep pace in the NSIC, the Golden Eagles will look to knock off the Huskies inside Halenbeck Hall.

BREN WAS BIG
Junior Bren Fox might have had her best game on Saturday afternoon. The Norwood Young America, Minn., native scored 16 points on 7-9 shooting from the field, while also gathering eight rebounds and dishing out two assists. The junior also had to match up with two of the best forwards in the nation in Sarah Grow and Brooke Olson. If Fox can consistently put together a game like that, the Golden Eagles have to really like their chances moving forward.

FOURTH QUARTER MAGIC
The Bulldogs were able to stretch their lead to as many as 13 early in the fourth quarter, but the resilient Golden Eagles were able to bounce back and make it a game, in large part to their shooting in the fourth quarter. The Golden Eagles were 9-16 from the field in the final stanza, including burying three makes from deep after making just two in the previous two quarters. Through six games this season at home, Minnesota Crookston has shot the ball well and that continued in the fourth quarter of Saturday afternoon's game.

SATURDAY SUCCESS
Freshman Jes Mertens leads the Golden Eagles in scoring at 11.5 PPG on the season. Mertens must also really like Saturday afternoon games. In six Saturday afternoon games, the Devils Lake, N.D., native is averaging 14.5 points per game, including a 19 points per game average over her last two Saturday games. Mertens is also 6-7 from deep in her last two Saturday games.

SUFFOCATING THE OPPONENT
The Golden Eagles defense has drastically improved from a season ago. A big reason for that has been the forced turnovers they have forced against their opponents. Minnesota Crookston forces a whopping 18 turnovers per game, which is second in the conference, just behind Minnesota State, who forces their opponents into over 20 turnovers per game.

Game Information
Friday, Feb. 12
6 P.M.
Minnesota Crookston at St. Cloud State
Halenbeck Hall
Live Video - https://nsicnetwork.com/scsuhuskies/
Live Stats - https://scsuhuskies.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
Listen Live- https://tunein.com/radio/St-Cloud-State-Basketball-s308057/?_branch_match_id=729112476213252440
 

Sat., Feb. 13
4 P.M.
Minnesota Crookston at St. Cloud State
Halenbeck Hall
Live Video - https://nsicnetwork.com/scsuhuskies/
Live Stats - https://scsuhuskies.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
Listen Live- https://tunein.com/radio/St-Cloud-State-Basketball-s308057/?_branch_match_id=729112476213252440


2020-21 NSIC Rankings
Scoring Offense: 15th
Scoring Defense: 11th
Scoring Margin: 15th
Free Throw Pct.: 7th
Field Goal Pct.: 15th
Field Goal Pct. Defense: 15th
3-Point Field Goal Pct.: 6th
3-Point Field Goal Pct. Defense: 10th
Rebounding Offense: 16th
Rebounding Defense: 13th
Rebounding Margin: 16th
Offensive Rebounds: 16th
Defensive Rebounds: 16th
Blocked Shots: 11th
Assists: 16th
Steals: 3rd
Turnover Margin: 7th
Assist/Turnover Ratio: 16th 


Weekly Snapshot

Minnesota Crookston
Projected Starters
So. G 4 Emma Carpenter (5-10, Eagan, Minn.) 5.3 PPG, 1.6 RPG
Jr. G 5 Kylie Post (5-7, Corcoran, Minn.) 9.8 PPG, 3.3 RPG
R-So. G/F 14 Mary Burke (5-11, Virginia, Minn.) 10.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 21 3-Point makes
Fr. G 21 Jes Mertens (5-9, Devils Lake, N.D.) 11.5 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 3.6 SPG
Fr. F 30 Haylee Wheeler (6-2, Lakeville, Minn.) 5.1 PPG, 3.4 RPG
Top Bench Players
So. G 3 Alyssa Peterson (5-7, Menahga, Minn.) 3.4 PPG
Sr. F 10 Ashley Freund (5-11, Jordan, Minn.) 1.3 PPG
Jr. G 11 Kylea Praska (5-8, Thief River Falls, Minn.) 1.0 PPG
Fr. F 32 Eden Golliher (6-0, Iron River, Mich.) 2.4 PPG, 2.4 RPG
Jr. F 23 Bren Fox (6-3, Norwood Young America, Minn.) 9.8 PPG, 5.4 RPG
Jr. F 31 Julia Peplinski (5-10, Hustisford, Wis.) 3.2 PPG, 3.3 RPG
St. Cloud State University
Projected Starters
Sr. G 2 Tori Wortz (5-8, Hutchinson, Minn.) 15.0 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 19 3-Point Makes
Sr. G 5 Erin Navratil (6-0, Albany, Minn.) 6.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG
Jr. G 10 Brehna Evans (5-8, De Pere, Wis.) 16.4 PPG, 3.5 PPG
Sr. G 23 Caitlyn Peterson (5-11, Lakeville, Minn.) 6.1 PPG, 5.5 RPG
Sr. F 40 Niki Kilboten (6-2, Eau Claire, Wis.) 10.1 PPG, 5.9 RPG
Top Bench Players
Fr. G 4 Morgan Draheim (5-6, Hortonville, Wis.) .5 PPG
Fr. G 21 Tori Peschel (5-9, Sauk Centre, Minn.) 2.6 PPG, 4.3 RPG
Jr. G 32 Kelsey Peschel (5-6, Sauk Centre, Minn.) 3.4 PPG, 1.3 RPG
Jr. F 45 Katrina Theis (5-11, Maple Grove, Minn.) 5.9 PPG, 3.1 RPG


STUDY THE OPPONENT

St. Cloud State
 
The Huskies are winners of three out of their last four, including coming off of a sweep of Bemidji State a weekend ago. At the time, the Beavers were at the top of the NSIC North at 6-0. Halenbeck Hall is a tough place to play. The last time Minnesota Crookston won in Halenbeck Hall was January 9^th of 2015, with the Golden Eagles leaving St. Cloud with a 91-68 victory.

THE TOUGH TRIO
 
St. Cloud State is led by the trio of Brehna Evans, Tori Wortz and Niki Kilboten. All three are upperclassmen and all three are the only Huskies averaging double-figures on the season. Both Evans and Wortz are top ten in the NSIC in scoring, each averaging 15 points or more per game. Wortz is also dangerous from behind the arc, as she currently sits fourth in three-point makes per game. The Huskies offense is dangerous and the trio of Evans, Wortz and Kilboten lead the way.

WINNING PEDIGREE
 
Kelsey Peschel, a native of Sauk Centre, Minn., knows how to win. In high school, the former Sauk Centre Mainstreeter played in the Minnesota State AA Championship in back-to-back seasons, losing in the state title game as a junior, but winning as a senior. Peschel was a former high school teammate with Maesyn Theisen, a starter at Minnesota Duluth. Peschel started winning in high school and that has carried over into her high school career at St. Cloud State.

LEADER OF THE PACK
 
This weekend will be yet another tough test for the Golden Eagles in terms of trying to score the basketball. SCSU simply does not let one score many points. The Huskies give up just 54.4 points per game on the season and have held their opponents to less than 55 points in four of their seven wins this season. The magic number for opponents is 60. The Huskies have lost all three of their games when they give up 60 or more points.
 

WHAT TO WATCH
1. Can the Golden Eagles get back in the win column this weekend?

2. Keep pace in the NSIC North

3. Minnesota Crookston looking to get back-to-back wins over SCSU

4. SCSU reigning NSIC postseason champions

5. Can the Golden Eagles get their first win on the road?