GAME NOTES

THIS WEEK: Fresh off four games at home in seven days, the University of Mary men's basketball team heads to southern Minnesota for a two-game set. The Marauders first face the Mustangs of Southwest Minnesota State University on Friday, January 14, at 7 PM. The weekend concludes against Minnesota State University at 6 PM on Saturday, January 15.  

THE RECORDS / LAST WEEKEND: The Marauders are 3-11 overall and 2-8 in the Northern Sun after splitting two games at home last weekend. U-Mary defeated #19 MSU Moorhead 72-51 before getting nicked 56-53 by the University of Minnesota Crookston... The Mustangs are 7-6 overall and tied for fourth in the NSIC at 6-3. In its lone game of the weekend, SMSU defeated Minnesota State University 82-63 at home... The Mavericks are 4-9 overall and 3-6 in the NSIC. MSU suffered an 82-63 setback on the road at SMSU last Saturday.

LAST YEAR: U-Mary finished 23-6 overall and placed second in the Northern Sun at 18-4. The Marauders qualified for the NCAA tournament and were ranked as high as 14th in the nation before finishing 18th in the final poll... Southwest Minnesota State finished 12-14 overall and 9-13 in the NSIC... Minnesota State went 28-5 and 19-3, winning the NSIC title and advancing to the NCAA semifinals.

HISTORY / LAST MEETING:
U-Mary vs. Southwest Minnesota State University: U-Mary is 1-7 all-time against SMSU and has yet to win in Marshall, MN, losing all four games. The series began in the 2005-06 season with a 74-49 home win for SMSU, the first of seven straight wins for the Mustangs. The Marauders captured their first win  on 1.14.11 in Bismarck, ND... Anthony Moody led all players with 18 points as U-Mary defeated SMSU 60-48 on 1.14.11 in Bismarck, ND, for the Marauders first win in the series. U-Mary gained the lead with nine minutes remaining in the first half and maintained its advantage the remainder of the game. Eric Erdmann and Baley Johnson each added 10 points. Scott Roehl had 10 points and 10 rebounds for SMSU and Matt Zager had 12 points off the bench.  

U-Mary vs. Minnesota State University: The Marauders trail 1-4 all-time in their series with the Mavericks. The two teams first met Dec. 12, 2008, in Bismarck with the Mavericks winning 83-61. U-Mary snapped its four-game losing streak against MSU with an 84-69 home win on 1.15.11...  Behind an early barrage of three pointers from Anthony Moody and Jordan Wilhelm, U-Mary rolled to an 84-69 victory over #10 Minnesota State University on 1.15.11 at home. Moody hit eight treys and scored 31 points and Wilhelm added five three pointers and 17 points. Eric Erdmann added 14 points and 10 rebounds. Jefferson Mason, Cameron Hodges and Marcus Hill all had 13 points for MSU and Mason added 10 boards.
ONE AND DONE: For the second straight season the Marauders face the Mustangs and the Mavericks once each.  

ONE YEAR LATER: Last season Minnesota State captured the NSIC regular season championship and U-Mary finished second with both teams advancing to the NCAA tournament. After both teams suffered heavy losses to graduation, the Mavericks are ninth in the NSIC this season and U-Mary is one win behind MSU and 12th in the standings.

WELCOME HOME: Marauders head coach Jevin Budde is a 2004 graduate of Minnesota State University and played basketball two seasons for the Mavericks. After transferring from Creighton, he led MSU in assists in 2001-02 and 2002-03.

MARAUDERS ROUT #19 MSU MOORHEAD: Damon Smith and Alex Dorr combined to score 37 points and U-Mary ran roughshod 72-51 over #19 MSU Moorhead, one of the last unbeaten teams in the nation. Smith scored 20 points and Dorr hit five three-pointers and posted 17 points. Josh Turner added 13 points and seven assists. The Marauders shut down the Dragons attack as MSUM shot just 28.8 per cent from the field.

RANKED WIN: The Marauders 72-51 win over #19 MSU Moorhead on 1.7.12 was the first U-Mary win over a ranked opponent since defeating Minnesota State University 84-69 on 1.15.11. U-Mary is 5-17 all-time against ranked NCAA D2 foes.

RANKED FOES: The Marauders faced two nationally ranked teams in three games last week. U-Mary held a first half lead against #11 Winona State before suffering an 83-72 loss on Monday. The Marauders rebounded to defeat #19 MSU Moorhead 72-51 on Saturday. Earlier in the season U-Mary also hosted a ranked Augustana squad.

HOME BREAKTHROUGH: The 72-51 win over #19 MSU Moorhead was the Marauders first home win this season. U-Mary is 1-7 at the MAC in 2011-12 after winning 23 of 26 home games the past two seasons.  

COMPRESSION: U-Mary did its part to keep NSIC teams bunched together last week. The Marauders defeated the last unbeaten team in the Northern Sun, knocking off #19 MSU Moorhead 72-51. At the other end of the spectrum, the Marauders sandwiched losses to Upper Iowa and Minnesota Crookston around the Dragons victory. The wins over U-Mary are the lone conference victories for the Peacocks and the Golden Eagles.    

DOMINATING DAMON: SR F Damon Smith had another dominating weekend in the paint, leading the Marauders to a 72-51 upset of #19 and NSIC-leading MSU Moorhead before recording a double double against Minnesota Crookston. The Milwaukee, WI, native opened the weekend with 20 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals against the Dragons while making 9-of-13 shots from the floor. Smith then posted 19 points and 11 rebounds against the Golden Eagles, adding two more assists and hitting 7-of-8 field goal attempts. In the two games combined, he averaged 19.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting an impressive 76.2 per cent. For the year he has hit for 20 or more points four times and has recorded two double doubles.

OPEN DORR POLICY: JR F Alex Dorr scored a career-high 17 points in U-Mary's 72-51 win over MSU Moorhead. Dorr drained all five of his three-point attempts in the game and made 6-of-7 shots total from the field. He knocked down two more trey attempts and scored nine points against Minnesota Crookston. In the two games he was a deadly 7-of-9 behind the arc. After reaching double figure points three times in four games last week, Dorr is averaging 8.9 points and 5.9 rebounds (13th in the NSIC), and shooting 50.6 per cent from the field (15th).  

TURNING THE CORNER: JR G Josh Turner has been tremendous his last six games, averaging 17.3 points per game and 3.8 three-pointers while shooting 50.7 per cent overall and 50 behind the arc. Last week the Aurora, CO, native hit a double double against Upper Iowa, posting career-high numbers with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Turner had 13 points, seven assists and six rebounds in the upset of #19 MSU Moorhead. Turner closed the week by making 4-of-7 treys and scoring 18 points against Minnesota Crookston. For the season he is averaging 15.1 points per game, shooting 50 per cent from the field and making 46.6 per cent of his three-point attempts. Turner made his mark early this season when he hit a game-winning three pointer at Chadron State with two seconds left in the contest.

ARC LEADER: Josh Turner leads the NSIC in treys made per game with 2.93. He is seventh in three-point shooting percentage at 46.6 and has taken twice as many attempts as anyone ahead of him. Darius Robinson is 7th in made treys (1.69) and 15th in three point percentage (42.3).

GET OUTTA HERE! Damon Smith is third in the Northern Sun in blocked shots. The senior forward is averaging 1.71 per game. He blocked a career-high six shots in the Marauders 58-55 home loss to Wayne State College, the most by a U-Mary player since the Marauders began NCAA Division II play in 2006-07. The senior forward had four blocks on the previous game against #16 Augustana. Smith's biggest block of the season was a rejection of a three-pointer as time expired to secure a three-point win for the Marauders at Concordia - St. Paul.
 
GET OUTTA HERE -  NCAA VERSION: Damon Smith is 50th in NCAA Division II in blocks with 2.2 per game.

BLOCK PARTY: The Marauders are fifth in the NSIC in blocks with an average of 3.14 rejections per game. Much of the damage is done by Damon Smith, who has posted 24 of the squad's 44 blocks. Baley Johnson is next with eight blocks.

NCAA TEAM RANKINGS:
• 38th in three-point field goal percentage (39.2)
• 45th in free throw percentage (73.6)
• 90th in three pointers made per game (6.9)

NCAA INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS:
• Josh Turner 22nd in three point field goal percentage (46.6)
• Josh Turner 27th in three pointers made per game (2.9)
• Damon Smith 50th in blocked shots (1.7)
• Damon Smith 57th in field goal percentage (55.3)

THE FINAL COUNTDOWN: Twice in three games last week a Marauders game came down to the final minute. Jalen Jaspers hit two free throws with 16 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime in a 76-72 loss to Upper Iowa. In a 56-53 loss to Minnesota Crookston, the Marauders had opportunities to force overtime in the final minute of play.

WORTH THE TICKET: If you attend a U-Mary men's basketball game, make sure you stay until the end. Eight of the 14 Marauders games have come down to the final minute.
* U-Mary defeated Chadron State 73-72 when Josh Turner hit a game-winning three- pointer with two seconds left in the game.

* The Minot State game went into double overtime after the Beavers hit a trey with four seconds left in regulation.

* MSU Billings hit the go-ahead basket with a minute left in the game.

* The Marauders defeated Concordia University 67-64 when Jalen Jaspers made four free throws in the final 24 seconds and Damon Smith blocked a three point attempt to even the score as time expired.

* U-Mary had possession with the chance to tie the game in the final seconds of a 58-55 loss to Wayne State.

* In a loss at Minnesota Duluth, the Marauders were within two points in the final minute of the game.   

* The Marauders lost in overtime to Upper Iowa.

* U-Mary had possession in the final minute with a chance to tie the game in a 56-53 loss to Minnesota Crookston.

TOUGH LOSSES: The Marauders have come up short six times in games decided in the final minute of play.

THE BORTKE COURT MAC ATTACK: After a tremendous home court advantage the last two years, U-Mary is struggling at the McDowell Activity Center (MAC) in 2011-12. The Marauders are 1-7 on Bortke Court in the MAC this season, the lone win a 72-51 win over #19 MSU Moorhead. Christened Bortke Court in honor of long-time U-Mary men's basketball coach and athletic director Al Bortke in July 2009, the Marauders won 23-of-26 at home the last two years. Here is the Marauders NCAA Division II home record:
2006-07: 5-7
2007-08: 4-7
2008-09: 7-5
2009-10: 11-2
2010-11: 12-1
2011-12: 1-7
The Marauders once won 27 straight home games for Coach Bortke at the MAC (February 19, 1976 thru November 11, 1978).

FIVE ALIVE: Sophomore guard Mike Johnson has started five straight games for the Marauders, allowing U-Mary to bring Darius Robinson off the bench to provide a scoring punch. Johnson's best two scoring games are against the top two teams in the NSIC. The Grand Rapids, MN, native made both his three-point attempts and scored six points against #11 Winona State. He scored eight points against #19 MSU Moorhead, hitting 2-of-4 shots from behind the arc.

BOARD BUDDIES: The Marauders are just one of three teams to have two of the top 13 rebounders in the Northern Sun, along with MSU Moorhead and Northern State. Damon Smith is 11th overall with 6.5 rebounds/game and Alex Dorr is 13th with an average of 5.9.

BALANCE: Six different Marauders have reached double digits in points this season. Josh Turner leads the way with 12 double digit games. Damon Smith has posted 10 or more points eight times, Darius Robinson and Jalen Jaspers have seven each, Alex Dorr four and Lamada Williams one.

LEADERS: Three different players have led the Marauders in scoring this season. Including shared game highs, Darius Robinson, Josh Turner and Damon Smith all have led the team in scoring five times.

SHARING THE LOAD: Three Marauders are averaging double figures in points. Josh Turner leads the team with 15.1 points per game, followed by Darius Robinson at 11.8 PPG and Damon Smith at 13.6 PPG. All three are in the NSIC's top 26.   

STOP THIEF! Baley Johnson had four steals against Minot State, the fifth best total for a U-Mary player in the past six seasons. Impressively, the senior owns two of the team's four top totals as he has had posted five steals twice. Johnson leads U-Mary and is 10th in the NSIC with 1.29 steals per game.  
 
FIRST: Jevin Budde picked up his first collegiate head coaching win when the Marauders defeated Chadron State College 73-72 on November 15.      

2 to 12: After finishing second in the Northern Sun last season, the Marauders are picked 12th in he NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll after graduating four starters and six seniors.

WELCOME BACK! Damon Smith is the lone returning Marauders starter. A senior from Milwaukee, WI, the 6-7 forward joined U-Mary last year and helped the Marauders post one of the best seasons in school history. A transfer from Ellsworth Community College, Smith started all 29 games and averaged 6.7 points per game and 4.0 rebounds and shot 60 per cent from the field in 2010-11. Alex Dorr, Jalen Jaspers and Baley Johnson all played key roles for the Marauders last season. A 6-6 junior forward, Dorr averaged 4.4 points and 3.9 rebounds while shooting 62 per cent from the field in his first season at U-Mary after transferring from Iowa State. Jaspers, a sophomore guard, contributed 3.8 points per game as a freshman. Johnson, entering his third year with the Marauders, was a front-line reserve and picked up 2.3 points per game.