• THE MINNESOTA CROOKSTON women's basketball team heads into the final weekend of the regular-season with a lot on the line. The Golden Eagles come in with a 10-16 (9-11 NSIC) record. Minnesota Crookston is currently ranked sixth in the NSIC North. They are fighting for an NSIC Tournament berth. The Golden Eagles could still possibly host a first round game in the NSIC Tournament if they win both this week, and MSU Moorhead and Northern State lose both. The only scenario where they could be the No. 5 seed is if one of Northern State and MSU Moorhead get swept and the Golden Eagles win both, and the other team of Northern State and MSU Moorhead wins either one game or both. In addition, Minnesota Crookston can't lose both games and have Minot State University win both games this weekend, in that event Minot State would have the tiebreaker on the Golden Eagles and would receive the berth to the NSIC Tournament. Minnesota Crookston has won 10 or more games for the first time since the 2018-19 season. Minnesota Crookston has three-consecutive NSIC Tournament quarterfinal berths from 2015-17. 

• AGAINST THE OPPOSITION. The Golden Eagles were swept earlier this season by Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State. UMN Crookston has lost their last eight games against the Bulldogs. Their last win at home against the Bulldogs came January 5, 2019 with a 66-61 result. St. Cloud State has won the last five games in the series. Minnesota Crookston last defeated the Huskies at home February 22, 2020 with a 79-72 win. 

·   MILLER TIME. Emma Miller has been a major impact for the Golden Eagles as a freshman. Miller leads UMN Crookston 
averaging 18.8 points per game. She is second in the NSIC with 18.8 points per game. Miller currently has 488 points this season. She is 92 points from the single-season record for scoring set by Jessica Forsline during the 2001-02 season. Miller broke into the Top 10 for single-season scoring, surpassing Karna Plaine, Jamie Zelinsky, and Alexa Thielman. She is fifth all-time in single-season scoring at UMN Crookston. She needs just three points to move past Alison Hughes and six points to surpass Kari Score. Miller had a school-record 37 points in a win over Bemidji State University February 17. She was just shy of her record, scoring 34 points on the road versus Augustana. Miller has 11 games with 20 or more points this season. She had 30 points against Minot State University, and is coming off 21 versus Northern State University. 

·  DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE. Bren Fox has already secured 10 double-doubles during the 2022-23 season. Fox has been a rebounding machine for the Golden Eagles. Fox was named the NSIC North Division Player of the Week January 30 after 
averaging 16.5 points, 12.0 rebounds, and 3.0 blocked shots per game. Fox has 14 games with double-digit rebounds this season. Fox has scored 845 points in her career, and has 755 career rebounds. Fox moved up to second all-time in career rebounds three weeks ago, surpassing Laurie Tyson and Katrina (Moenkedick) Nordick. She is 31 rebounds away from surpassing her former teammate Isieoma Odor for the career mark. Fox needs to average 15.5 rebounds per game over the last two games of the
 regular-season to accomplish the goal. If the Golden Eagles play in at least one tournament game, she would need to only 
average 10.3 rebounds per game. Fox currently leads the NSIC in rebounding with 9.5 rebounds per tilt. In addition, Fox is just two games away from setting the school record for games played in a career, surpassing her former teammate Caitlin Michaelis. She is currently tied for second with Karna Plaine, Stephanie Mayclin, Emily Gruber, and Micaela Noga. 

• TURN THE PAGE. Minnesota Crookston sophomore Alex Page is having a strong sophomore season. Page comes into Friday notching 9.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. Page is second on the team in scoring. She comes in shooting 44.0 percent from the field, and 37.7 percent from beyond the arc. Page is also an 85.9 percent free throw shooter. She scored a career-high 29 points in a win over Upper Iowa January 7. Page has 12 double-figure scoring games this season. She averaged 11.5 points and three rebounds last weekend against MSU Moorhead and Northern State.

·  JAZZED ABOUT JANIE. Minnesota Crookston freshman forward Janie Tormanen has continued to come into her own as a player throughout the season. The native of Menahga, Minn., is averaging 8.3 points per game over the last six tilts for the 
Golden Eagles. She averaged 8.0 points and 5.0 rebounds last weekend against MSU Moorhead and Northern State. Her best game came with 12 points against UMary February 3. She will be a crucial component the rest of the way for the Golden Eagles and heading into the 2023-24 season.

• DON'T HURT US FROM DEEP. Minnesota Crookston continues to prevent opponents from shooting the long ball well. The Golden Eagles are holding foes to just 27.8 percent from beyond the arc this season. Teams are just averaging 6.- three-pointers per game. Minnesota Crookston has held nine opponents under 30.0 percent this season. Their best performance defensively came when they limited Bemidji State to 20.0 percent from the field November 22. The Golden Eagles were able to limit Sioux Falls to 23.1 percent. In their last game, the Golden Eagles held Northern State to 20.0 percent from deep. 

• HITTING THE FREE ONES. Minnesota Crookston has made it count at the charity stripe this season. The Golden Eagles lead the conference with a 78.0 free throw percentage this season. They have made 269-of-345 shots this season. Erika Lane leads the team with a 90.0 percent clip this season. Bren Fox comes in shooting 87.3 percent. Alex Page is hitting at an 85.9 percent clip, while Emma Miller is connecting at a 79.7 percent rate this season. 

MINNESOTA DULUTH. The Bulldogs come into the week as the top team in the NSIC. Minnesota Duluth is 22-3 (19-1 NSIC). They are currently ranked No. 6/11 nationally. The Bulldogs enter Crookston on a four-game winning streak. Their only loss in conference play came at the hands of Augustana University. The Bulldogs are outscoring their foes 68.0 to 55.0. Minnesota Duluth is shooting 46.0 percent from the field, 31.4 percent from beyond the arc, and 75.3 percent from the foul line. 

BROOKE CAN PLAY. Minnesota Duluth star player Brooke Olson is one of the top players in the NSIC and has 
Minnesota Duluth heading toward great things as the Bulldogs get ready for the postseason. Olson leads the NSIC in scoring with 20.4 points per game. She is also notching 7.4 rebounds per tilt. Olson is shooting an impressive 53.7 percent from the field. Olson is a 33.3 percent three-point shooter, and a 78.6 percent free throw shooter. Olson has 13 games with 20 or more points this season.

MAKING IT WITH MAESYN.  Maesyn Theisen is the straw that stirs the drink. She gets everything going as the 
facilitator for the offense. Theisen has a team-high 90 assists for 3.6 assists per game. She is averaging 7.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. She will be crucial down the stretch for the Bulldogs. 

ELLA OFF THE BENCH.  Ella Gilbertson has been a major piece playing mostly off the bench this season. Gilbertson is Minnesota Duluth's top scorer not named Brooke Olson. She is tallying 9.8 points and 3.2 rebounds per tilt. Gilbertson is shooting 47.5 percent from the field, and 40.5 percent from beyond the arc.

ST. CLOUD STATE. St. Cloud State comes into the final regular-season weekend as the No. 2 seed in the NSIC North with a 16-8 (13-7 NSIC) record. The Huskies have gone 1-3 in their last four games. They had a win last Saturday over 
UMary. They are currently a game ahead of UMary in the standings, and could possibly still drop in the standings heading into the NSIC Tournament. The Huskies come in averaging 62.5 points per game, and allowing 56.6 points per tilt. St. Cloud State is notching 40.6 percent from the field, 34.6 percent from beyond the arc, and 64.4 percent from the stripe.

KATRINA. Katrina Theis leads the Huskies this season with 16.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per tilt. Theis comes in shooting 54.7 percent from the field. Theis had a huge game in the first meeting with the Golden Eagles. She notched 36 points and eight boards. Theis has 19 double-figure scoring games this season.

JADA FROM THREE. Jada Eggebrecht is a major threat from beyond the arc for the Huskies. She is shooting 43.7 percent from the field, and 41.0 percent from beyond the arc. Eggebrecht comes in notching 13.2 points per tilt this season.

WHAT WILL DRU DO?. Dru Henning comes in averaging 7.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game for St. Cloud State this season. She can also be a threat from deep, as she is notching 42.5 percent from deep for St. Cloud State. Henning had 11 points and eight boards last Saturday against UMary. 

GAMEDAY

#6/11 Minnesota Duluth @ Minnesota Crookston
DATE: Thursday, February 16
TIME: 7:30 p.m.
SITE: Crookston, Minn.
ARENA: Gary Senske Court at Lysaker Gymnasium
Watch Live: https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
Live Stats: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
TWITTER: @UMNCrookstonATH/@UMNCrookstonWBB

Minnesota Crookston @ St. Cloud State
DATE: Saturday, February 18
TIME: 5:30 p.m.
SITE: St. Cloud, Minn.
ARENA: Halenbeck Hall
Watch Live: https://nsicnetwork.com/scsuhuskies/
Live Stats: https://scsuhuskies.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
TWITTER: @UMNCrookstonATH/@UMNCrookstonWBB


WEEKLY SNAPSHOT

MINNESOTA CROOKSTON
Projected Starters
Fr. PG 1 Emma Miller (5-1, Albertville, Minn.) 18.8 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 3.2 APG
Fr. SG 3 Taryn Frazer (5-4, Cass Lake, Minn.) 5.8 PPG, 2.4 RPG
So. SF 20 Alex Page (6-0, Grand Forks, N.D.) 9.3 PPG, 3.5 RPG
Jr. PF 4 Nicole Hernandez (6-2, Oak Creek, Wis.) 3.8 PPG, 4.6 RPG
R-Sr. C 23 Bren Fox (6-3, Norwood Young America, Minn.) 9.4 PPG, 9.5 RPG
Top Bench Players
So. G 5 Erika Lane (5-10, Breezy Point, Minn.) 5.4 PPG, 2.2 RPG
R-Jr. SF 21 Abigail Leach (6-0, Wyoming, Minn.) 2.2 PPG, 2.0 RPG
Fr. F/C 15 Janie Tormanen (6-0, Menahga, Minn.) 4.7 PPG, 2.7 RPG
Fr. G 11 Natalie Mikrot (5-6, Willow River, Minn.) 3.0 PPG, 0.8 RPG

MINNESOTA DULUTH
Projected Starters
Gr. PG 32 Maesyn Thiesen (5-7, Sauk Centre, Minn.) 7.5 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 3.6 APG
Sr. SG 0 Taytum Rhoades (5-9, St. Paul, Minn.) 7.7 PPG, 4.9 RPG
Sr. 3G 23 Kaylee Nelson (5-8, Roseville, Minn.) 3.2 PPG, 2.2 RPG
Sr. SF 22 Madelyn Granica (5-11, Amery, Wis.) 6.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG
Gr. PF 24 Brooke Olson (6-2, Rice Lake, Wis.) 20.4 PPG, 7.4 RPG
Top Bench Players
Jr. G/F 31 Ella Gilbertson (6-0, Lake Zurich, Ill.) 9.8 PPG, 3.2 RPG
Jr. G 3 Taya Hakamaki (5-9, Cromwell, Minn.) 8.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG
Fr. F 42 Lexi Karge (6-2, Mankato, Minn.) 4.7 PPG, 2.2 RPG

 
ST. CLOUD STATE
Projected Starters
5th PG 32 Kelsey Peschel (5-6, Sauk Centre, Minn.) 5.3 PPG, 2.0 RPG
Fr. SG 11 Jada Eggebrecht (5-9, Phillips, Wis.) 13.2 PPG, 2.2 RPG
Jr. 3G 21 Tori Peschel (5-9, Sauk Centre, Minn.) 3.8 PPG, 8.4 RPG
Jr. SF 34 Dru Henning (5-10, Mukwanago, Wis.) 7.5 PPG, 3.1 RPG
5th 45 Katrina Theis (5-11, Maple Grove, Minn.) 16.2 PPG, 7.8 RPG
Top Bench Players
Fr. F 40 Ashley Sawicki (6-1, Waunakee, Wis.) 4.7 PPG, 3.2 RPG
Jr. G 22 Makenna Vanzant (5-7, Farmington, Ark.) 3.9 PPG, 2.0 RPG
Jr. F 33 Jasmine Litt (6-0, Pulaski, Wis.) 3.0 PPG, 1.7 RPG
Sr. G 25 Abigail Groeneweg (5-8, Forest Lake, Minn.) 2.4 PPG, 1.7 RPG