Men's Basketball | 11/18/2025 9:59:00 AM

Golden Eagle men's basketball is home for the first time of 2025 this Wednesday night when they host Oak Hills Christian for the home opener. This is the first meeting in seven years between the Golden Eagles and the Wolfpack and the fourth overall. In their previous three meetings, Minnesota Crookston has defeated the Wolfpack by an average of 47 points. The Golden Eagles defeated the Wolfpack by 61 the last time these two teams met, the largest margin of victory in school history.
 
·   GRAB THE MISS. That's exactly what Landon Dimler did on Saturday night against Northeastern State. The sophomore from Mankato was outstanding on Saturday, finishing with a career-high 14 rebounds, including two offensive rebounds. To put that in perspective, Dimler had 14 rebounds combined in the Golden Eagles last eight games a season ago. Dimler's previous career-high was ten rebounds on the road in his hometown at Minnesota State.
 
• DID-IT-ALL. Kazadi Mukoma, Jr., played his best game as a Golden Eagle on Saturday, albeit in a two game sample size. The junior from Nebraska scored 21 points on 6-14 from the field, 2-6 from deep and 7-8 from the charity stripe, all of which were career bests. The Golden Eagles expect a lot out of #10 and he delivered last Saturday.
 
·  THAT WAS NICE, NEZ. Donez Lindsey got his first two starts as a Golden Eagle as a freshman and he played well. The Stockton, Calif., native averaged 12.5 points per game through two games and was 9-22 from the field in two games, with four makes from long range and averaged 2.5 steals per game.
 
·   KEEP LAUNCHING.  It wasn't a good weekend for the Golden Eagles from long range. Minnesota Crookston shot just 18 percent from long range in two games and shot just 35 percent from the field in general. That percentage would be ranked 270^th in the nation, but their 25.5 attempts per game would put them in the top-75 in the nation. Again, it's a small sample size. Minnesota Crookston has to continue to keep shooting and the numbers will turn in their favor.
 
·    I'LL TAKE SOME CHARITY PLEASE. Minnesota Crookston did a really nice job on Saturday in their loss in getting to the charity stripe and cashing in when they got there. The Golden Eagles shot 32 free throws in the loss, making 23 of those. The 32 attempts were the most by a Golden Eagle team since 2019-20, when they shot 32 on two different occasions; once on the road at Sioux Falls and one at home against Wayne State College. The Golden Eagles have to like their ability to get down hill and get easy points at the stripe.
 
·   CLEAN THE GLASS. In almost every statistical category on Saturday night against Northeastern State, Minnesota Crookston won the battle. That includes the rebounding battle. Minnesota Crookston controlled the glass against the Riverhawks 40-31, which included 13 offensive rebounds. On Friday night, the Golden Eagles had 12 offensive rebounds against Central Oklahoma. That's a good sign for the maroon and gold who will need to rebound the ball well and finish possessions.
 
Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Bryan Beamish
Record at UMC: 13-73 Season at UMC: 12th Season (Fourth as Head Coach)
 
Oak Hills Christian College Wolfpack
Head Coach: Daved Lundeen
 
Oak Hills Christian College @ Minnesota Crookston
Date: Friday, Nov. 19
Time: 6:00 P.M.
Place: Crookston, Minn. / Gary Senske Court at Lysaker Gymnasium
Watch: https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
Stats: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary
Series Record: Minnesota Crookston is 3-0 all-time against Oak Hills Christian College
Last Meeting: Minnesota Crookston won 107-46 in 2018 in Crookston
 
 Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Projected Starters
So. G 20 Hunter Lorenson (5-11, Lake City, Minn.)                              4.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG
Jr. F 10 Kazadi Mukoma, Jr. (6-8, Grand Island, Neb.)                         14.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG
Fr. G 2 Donez Lindsey (6-0, Stockton, Calif.)                                         12.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG
R-Jr. G 15 Alijah Washington (6-4, San Bernardino, Calif.)                 13.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG           
Fr. F 23 Brayden Carlson (6-9, Woodbury, Minn.)                               1.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG
Top Bench Players
Sr. G 3 GD Deng (6-4, Des Moines, Iowa)                                               
Fr. G 11 Caiden Swenby (6-3, Fertile, Minn.)                                        1.0 PPG, .5 RPG
Fr. F 1 Spencer Swenson (6-8, Sauk Rapids, Minn.)                             6.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG
Jr. G/F 21 J.D. Roberts (6-6, Parkville, Mo.)                                           4.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG
Fr. G 13 Quincy Everson (6-2, Goodyear, Ariz.)                                     4.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG
Fr. G 12 Landon Dimler (6-5, Mankato, Minn.)                                     3.0 PPG, 9.5 RPG
Oak Hills Christian
Projected Starters
Jr. G 1 Tyrecke Francois (5-11, Pompano Beach, Fla.)                        23.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG
Sr. G 2 Keith Wilson (5-7, Pompano Beach, Fla.)                                 12.0 PPG, 2.3 RPG
Jr. G/F 5 Nate Vinson (5-10, Maple Grove, Minn.)                              13.0 PPG, 3.7 RPG
Jr. F 11 Lanygel McCracken (6-5, Pensacola, Fla.)                                14.0 PPG, 11.3 RPG
Fr. F 30 Joshua Deckert (6-3, Devils Lake, N.D.)                                    6.7 PPG, 4.0 RPG
Top Bench Players          
Sr. F 4 Bryson Keepers (6-2, Sheldon, Wis.)                                           2.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG
Jr. F 21 Trent Huonder (6-3, Milaca, Minn.)                                           3.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG
 
KNOW THE OPPONENTS
 
Oak Hills Christian. The Wolfpack are a somewhat familiar opponent for the Golden Eagles, but you must go all the way back to the Harrison Cleary era since these two teams have met. It's been seven years since these two teams have met and dating back to 2016, the Golden Eagles are 3-0 against the school based in Bemidji. Oak Hills is 0-3 on the season, previously losing to Minnesota Morris on Monday night.
 
STRUGGLE FROM DEEP. Oak Hills has really struggled to make the long ball this season. The Wolfpack are shooting just 25 percent from deep on the season and in every game, they have had more than 20 attempts from deep, but have made just double-digit threes in just one game on the year and that was a 10-35 performance from deep in their season opener against Kuyper.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLE GUY. Junior forward Lanygel McCracken is a 6-5 forward, so he will be outsized against his matchup on Wednesday night, but that might not stop him from putting up impressive numbers. The Pensacola, Fla., native is averaging 14 points per game and 11 rebounds per game. McCracken has two games this season with more than 10 boards, with a season-high 13 against Kuyper College (Mich.). McCracken scored 21 points in a tight loss to Crown College earlier this year.
 
CAN WE KEEP IT CLOSE? Keeping it close against the Golden Eagles has not been the story for the Wolfpack in the past. The last time these two teams met, it was a 61 point rout for the Golden Eagles. The Golden Eagles are 3-0 all-time in the series and their average margin of victory is 47 points. The Wolfpack will look to keep it closer tomorrow night in Crookston.