Men's Basketball | 12/11/2024 10:29:00 AM
#TIDBITS
Golden Eagle men's basketball will look for some stockings under the tree this Saturday as they host the University of Mary for their final home game of the semester. It's a big stretch for the Golden Eagles, who are home this weekend against the Marauders and then head to Wachs Arena to take on Northern State next Friday, then head to MSU Moorhead for their final game before Christmas. Minnesota Crookston will look to rack up the wins and that starts this weekend against the Marauders, whom they lost to on the road a season ago in the lone meeting between the two programs.
· SHINING FIVE. Since the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference switched their 'Player of the Week' award to include a 'Shining Five' at the start of last seasons, the Golden Eagles have had just one player named to the Shining Five;
Blaize Sagna, who was named to the list twice as a senior last season. The Golden Eagles can now claim a second player to that list in senior
Reid Grant. The Johnston, Iowa native averaged 20.5 points per game in the two games against Bemidji State and St. Cloud State, while also playing all but four minutes in the two games. Grant also shot 46 percent from the field, while also pulling down 5.5 rebounds and dishing out six assists per game. Grant currently leads the NSIC in minutes played for the second straight season and is second in assists and assists per game. Grant could make a case for Player of the Week if his play continues on this trajectory.
• MR. STOKES. Andrew Stokes has played in every game this season and has played meaningful minutes from the get-go. In the last three games for the Golden Eagles, he has started and holy cow, what an impact he has made for the maroon and gold. Stokes averaged 16.5 minutes per game in the previous six games all off the bench, but has averaged 26 minutes per game over the last three and has double-figures in every game he has started. In three conference games, Stokes is averaging 12.0 points per game, good for second on the Golden Eagles. This past weekend, Stokes averaged 15 points per game and shot 69 percent from the field against the Beavers and Huskies.
· MASSIVE MOMENT FOR THE LOCAL PRODUCT. If you're looking at
Caiden Swenby's overall stats from this weekend, you'd see that he played a minute each against the Beavers and Huskies, but his play down the stretch helped halt a five game losing streak. With the Golden Eagles needing a stop and maybe even a steal, the freshman from Fertile, Minn., made the biggest play of his young career, forcing a turnover with less than 20 seconds left, allowing the Golden Eagles to eventually win the game. Swenby doesn't get credit for the steal, but it was the lanky freshman who made the biggest play of the season for the Golden Eagles.
· FREE FOR CB. The play by Swenby preceded the win for the Golden Eagles. The Golden Eagles took over with less than 15 seconds to go in the game and needed a bucket, trailing by one. Christian-Bowen Webb would get fouled on the possession and would need to bury a pair of free throws to help give the Golden Eagles the win. He would indeed bury them, his first free throw makes of the season, helping the Golden Eagles win the game by a point. It was a massive moment for the junior and a huge confidence builder for a team that has seen games like that slip away. Bowen-Webb averaged 7.5 points per game this past weekend and tied his career-high for makes from long range, going a perfect 3-3 from deep.
· VALUE OF J-MITCH. Along with Stokes, the Golden Eagles have to love who they have controlling the paint and protecting the rim in the frontcourt, as
Jordan Mitchell makes a solid duo with Stokes. Mitchell, much like Stokes, has scored in double-figures in three straight games, including a career-high 19 against UTampa, earlier this year. Mitchell played 39 minutes in that game against the Spartans and played 38 minutes against the Huskies last weekend. Mitchell is so valuable to what the Golden Eagles do on both ends of the floor.
· FREE POINTS. The Golden Eagles struggled early on this season at the charity stripe. Minnesota Crookston started out the season with two games in a row where they made more than 10 free throws, then went four games in a row where they made six or less. The last three games have seen the Golden Eagles improve at the line. The Golden Eagles made 13 against Tampa, 10 against Bemidji State and then finished with 14 last weekend, tied for a season-high as a team. The Golden Eagles have also shot better than 73 percent in their last three games, as well. Points are so crucial at the free throw line and they helped win the game on Friday against Bemidji State.
• ARE WE PLAYING OURSELVES? Numbers between the Golden Eagles and their opponents are eerily similar. The Golden Eagles shoot 43 percent from the field, their opponents shoot 44 percent. The Golden Eagles have 109 assists as a team, their opponents have five less. The Golden Eagles have 113 turnovers, their opponents have 10 less. The scary number comes at the three-point line. Minnesota Crookston is 67-200 from the three-point line, their opponents are 67-200 at the three-point line. Those numbers prove that the games are tight and come down to a play, here and there.
Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Bryan Beamish
Record at UMC: 10-53 Season at UMC: 11th Season (Third as Head Coach)
University of Mary Marauders
Head Coach: Jack Nelson
Record at UMary: 32-61 Season at UMary: 4th Season
UMary @ Minnesota Crookston
Date: Saturday, Dec. 14
Time: 4 P.M.
Place: Crookston, Minn. / Lysaker Gymnasium
Watch:
https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
Stats:
https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary
Series Record: UMary leads all-time series, 24-10
Last Meeting: 70-65 win for the Marauders in Bismarck
Weekly Snapshot
Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles (2-7)
Projected Starters
Sr. G 3
Reid Grant (6-3, Johnston, Iowa) 15.0 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 5.6 APG
R-So. G 5
Chandler Meeks (6-1, Omaha, Neb.) 11.2 PPG, 1.8 RPG
Jr. F 25
Andrew Stokes (6-5, Westchester, Ill.) 9.9 PPG, 3.4 RPG
Jr. G 13
Micah Garrett (6-3, Portland, Ore.) 10.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG
R-Jr. F 10
Jordan Mitchell (6-8, Columbus, Ohio) 9.2 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 1.9 BPG
Top Bench Players
Sr. F 33
Ben Hoverson (6-6, Grand Forks, N.D.) 3.7 PPG, 1.6 RPG
Jr. G 1
Christian Bowen-Webb (6-2, Atchison, Kan.) 5.4 PPG
Fr. F 23
Brayden Carlson (6-9, Woodbury, Minn.) .9 PPG
Fr. G 12
Landon Dimler (6-5, Mankato, Minn.) 3.6 PPG, 2.9 RPG
University of Mary Marauders (3-8)
Projected Starters
Gr. G 2 Kevin McGaskey (6-0, Missouri City, Texas) 11.8 PPG, 2.4 RPG
R-So. G 4 Jeremiah Jones (6-3, South Holland, Ill.) 13.3 PPG, 6.0 RPG
So. G 11 Alex Mattes (6-3, Woodbury, Minn.) 6.8 PPG, 1.9 RPG
Jr. G 14 Ty Rogers (6-7, Aurora, Ill.) 11.4 PPG, 4.0 RPG
Jr. F 23 Xavier Lewis (6-6, Lynwood, Ill.) 6.2 PPG, 4.6 RPG
Top Bench Players
Jr. G 3 Marquel Saleek (6-0, Villa Park, Ill.) .7 PPG, .9 RPG
Jr. G 13 Gunner Swanson (6-5, Bismarck, N.D.) 1.8 PPG, 1.5 RPG
Sr. F 10 Rich Ashu (6-8, London, England) 6.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG
Jr. G/F 22 Ty Johnson (6-6, Chicago, Ill.) 1.9 PPG, 2.5 RPG
Jr. G 24 Caden Redfield (6-5, Hardin, Mont.) 6.0 PPG, 1.1 RPG
Fr. G 34 Tamarrein Henderson (6-5, West Salem, Wis.) 2.5 PPG, 1.1 RPG
KNOW THE OPPONENTS
University of Mary. The Marauders and Golden Eagles will meet for the first of two times this Saturday in Crookston. This will be the first time the Marauders have played in Crookston since 2022, when they defeated the Golden Eagles by four. UMary is currently 3-8 on the year and plays Minot State on Wednesday.
JJ. The Marauders rank near the bottom in the Northern Sun in scoring offense, averaging a tad better than 68 points per game. The Marauders will look to redshirt sophomore Jeremiah Jones for a lot of their offense. Jones leads the Marauders in scoring at 13.3 points per game and has double-figures in seven of their 11 games. Jones is also their leading rebounder at exactly 6.0 per game. The last five games from long range have been a struggle for the Illinois native, as he is just 3-17 from deep in that stretch. Jones also leads the NSIC in steals with 28.
SECOND CHANCE OPPORTUNITIES. The Marauders are a really good offensive rebounding team. In fact, they are the third best team in the NSIC with nearly 12 offensive rebounds per game and are just one per game behind Sioux Falls in that category. UMary has double-digit offensive rebounds in seven of their 11 games, including a season-high 21 in a seven point loss to Valley City State, earlier this season. The Marauders will look to crash the boards early and often this season.
THE ROGERS CENTER. Ty Rogers has been a pretty solid third scorer to compliment the likes of Jones and Kevin McGaskey, who rank 1-2 in scoring on the Marauders. Rogers is third on his team in scoring with just below 12 points per game and has been really good as of late. In the Marauders last four games, the junior is averaging 15.3 points per game and is shooting 63 percent through that stretch, including three-straight games with exactly seven made field goals. Rogers finished with three points and a season-high eight rebounds against nationally-ranked MSU Moorhead last time out for the Marauders.
