Golden Eagle Men Head Back on The Road for Games with Mustangs, Cougars


#TIDBITS

Golden Eagle men's basketball will head back on the road this weekend for an excursion at Southwest Minnesota State and Sioux Falls. Minnesota Crookston is feeling good about themselves after knocking off Concordia-St. Paul to earn their second win in NSIC play. Minnesota Crookston only played one game this past weekend due to COVID protocols. This weekend will be the second straight weekend on the road for Minnesota Crookston.

• CAPITAL MAGIC. If you have followed the Golden Eagles this season, it is easy to sense a common pattern: Almost every game has been a back-and-forth affair. That was no different this past weekend against the young Golden Bears of Concordia-St. Paul. The game was never tied, which is a rarity this season for the maroon and gold, but it did see five lead changes, including the Golden Eagles going on an 11-3 run to finish the game. Minnesota Crookston made some giant defensive plays down the stretch, something it was missing during its nine-game losing streak.

• J ROCKS THE RIM. Speaking of giant plays that helped the Golden Eagles get the win on Friday afternoon, look no further than Jerome Mabry. Mabry played 15 minutes in the win and scored four points on 2-5 shooting from the field with one steal. That steal turned into a huge slam on the other end of the floor, which resulted in giving the Golden Eagles the lead. It was a huge play for a guy who always seems to make one when he is in the game. It just turned out that his steal and slam on Friday was the turning point for the Golden Eagles to earn a hard fought NSIC win.

• B=W. I'm not a math expert, but the equation, b=w means balance translates to wins. That was on display on Friday night as the maroon and gold saw four scorers reach the double-digit plateau. This season, Minnesota Crookston has three wins when four or more scorers are in double-figures. It's no secret, but when the ball is being spread around, the Golden Eagles become a really tough team to defend.

• NEAR THE TOP. This season, Minnesota Crookston's defense has been something to admire. A season ago, the Golden Eagles gave up 81.5 points per game, which was near the bottom of the league, while also allowing opponents to shoot an astonishing 50 percent from the floor, which also ranked near the bottom of the NSIC. This year, Minnesota Crookston is allowing just 71 points per game and is allowing opponents to shoot less than 43 percent, both rank near the top of the NSIC. In the win over CSP, Minnesota Crookston allowed the Golden Bears to shoot 53 percent from the field in the first 20 minutes, but allowed the Golden Bears to shoot 40 percent in the final 20 minutes, allowing the Golden Eagles to pull out the five point win.
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• MR. DO-IT-ALL. We have talked at length about how important redshirt sophomore Uzo Dibiamaka has been to the Golden Eagles this season. Even when he isn't scoring, he is dishing it out, rebounding the ball or guarding the opponents best perimeter player. On Saturday, Dibiamaka showed flashes of being one of the NSIC's best guards in future years, by filling up the stat sheet. The Adelaide, Australia native finished with 15 points on 5-11 shooting from the field, including two makes from deep, while also pulling down six rebounds and dishing out three assists. It's the fifth time this season that Dibiamaka has scored over 10 points and pulled down five rebounds.

• LONG TIME COMING. Since 2004, when Southwest Minnesota State and Minnesota Crookston lace 'em up on the hardwood, it has gone the way of the Mustangs. SMSU has won 22 straight games against the Golden Eagles, with the closest margin of victory for the Mustangs being a pair of three-point wins coming in 2017 and 2006. The last time Minnesota Crookston beat the Mustangs came in January of 2004, a 13-point win for the maroon and gold in Crookston. This weekend is a great chance for the Golden Eagles to knock off a team that has gotten the best of them for quite some time.

• LEAN ON ME, I'M B. Redshirt senior Brian Sitzmann will go down as one of the most impactful players that has ever put on a Golden Eagle uniform. The Savage, Minn., native is a person that Head Coach Dan Weisse has leaned on for four seasons now and has had four straight games with five or more rebounds. Sitzmann has also been leaned upon to score the ball more and he has done that as well, as he currently sits third on the team in scoring. Sitzmann's Golden Eagle career is entering the home stretch.
                          


Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Dan Weisse
Record at UMC: 63-130 Season at UMC: 8th Season


Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs
Head Coach: Brad Bigler
Record at SMSU: 199-159 Season at SMSU: 13th Season


Sioux Falls Cougars
Head Coach: Chris Johnson
Record at USF: 250-179 Season at USF: 14th Season


NSIC Rankings

Scoring Offense: 16th
Scoring Defense: 8th
Scoring Margin: 14th
Free Throw Pct.: 15th
Field Goal Pct.: 15th
Field Goal Pct. Defense: 4th
3-Point Field Goal Pct.: 16th
3-Point Field Goal Pct. Defense: 5th
Rebounding Offense: 9th
Rebounding Defense: 15th
Rebounding Margin: 14th
Blocked Shots: 4th
Assists: 14th
Steals: 11th
Turnover Margin: 15th
Assist/Turnover Ratio: 16th
Offensive Rebounds: 10th
Defensive Rebounds: 8th


#OPPONENTOUTLOOK

SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE. The Mustangs are having a bounce-back year this season in the NSIC. The Mustangs are currently 9-6 overall and have a pair of really nice wins over Winona State and Minnesota State this season. SMSU also played just one game a weekend ago, a win against UMary.

HANGING ONTO THE CLIFF. Cliff McCray, the sophomore from Sioux City, Iowa is currently third on the team in scoring at 10.9 points per game and is one of just three Mustangs averaging in double-figures. McCray is shooting just 27 percent from deep, but is 44 percent from the field and is third on the team in rebounds per game.

NOTHING STRANGE HERE. Senior Kenny Byers has been on a roll as of late, scoring 20 or more points in three straight games, including 20 points in a one point loss at Northern State. Byers scored a season-high 26 points earlier this season against Wisconsin-Parkside. He is outstanding in getting into the paint, as he leads his team in scoring with just three makes from deep on the season. The last time he played the Golden Eagles, Byers went off for 33 points, a win for the Mustangs. Slowing down the Olathe, Kan., native will be the highest priority for Minnesota Crookston this Friday night.

ONE CONSTANT FIGURE. Everyone who follows the NSIC knows the name Brad Bigler. Bigler is a Mustang through and through and has been for the last 24 seasons, whether it has been as a player, assistant coach or his current role, Head Coach. This weekend could be a special one for Bigler, who is one win away from 200 in his coaching career.

SIOUX FALLS. The Cougars are a team who cannot seem to put together consistent play. They come into this weekend one game over .500 (8-7 overall), but are one game below .500 in conference play (4-5). The Cougars might have one of the most impressive wins in all of the nation this year, defeating defending National Champions and No. 2 Northwest Missouri St in the second game of the season. If the Cougars play well, they can beat absolutely anybody in the nation.

WRIGHT GUY FOR THE JOB. Speaking of that win over the Bearcats of Northwest Missouri State, senior guard Matt Cartwright picked a great time to have one of his best games. The Sioux Falls native dropped 29 points and was 6-9 from deep and pulled down seven rebounds. Cartwright currently leads the Cougars with 39 makes from deep on the season. The senior has played his entire collegiate career in his hometown, playing four at crosstown rival Augustana and is now in his first season for the Cougars. Cartwright scored a career-high 37 against Minnesota Crookston in December of 2018 when he was wearing a Viking jersey.

JACK ATTACK.  Jack Thompson is having a really solid sophomore season for the Cougars. Thompson scored 34 points against SMSU the day after New Years Day and followed that up with 21 points in a loss to Northern State. In his 34 point performance against the Mustangs, the Eagan, Minn., native went to the free throw line a career-high 19 times, while also making a career-high 16 of those. The last time Thompson faced the Golden Eagles, he led his team in scoring with 23 points on 10-16 shooting from the field.

NOT AN EASY GUY TO CHASE. Redshirt junior forward Chase Grinde is averaging 12.5 points per game in his last two games and has come off the floor for just three minutes combined in those two games. The Spring Grove, Minn., native is currently second on the team in rebounding per game at 6.7 per game. Grinde scored a season-high 24 points earlier this season against Chadron State and picked up a double-double in a win over Winona State earlier this year. Grinde is very valuable to this Cougar team.