GAME NOTES

THIS WEEK: As the University of Mary men's basketball team moves into the final month of the season, the Marauders begin a four-game road trip. U-Mary opens up against the Golden Eagles of the University of Minnesota Crookston on Friday, February 3, at 8 PM. The weekend concludes against the MSU Moorhead Dragons on Saturday, February 4, at 6 PM.

THE RECORDS / LAST WEEKEND: The Marauders are 4-15 overall and 3-12 in the Northern Sun. U-Mary lost twice at home last weekend, 72-65 to Bemidji State and 87-81 to Minnesota Duluth... The Golden Eagles are 6-12 and 2-12, a game behind the Marauders in the NSIC standings.... The Dragons are 13-5 and fourth in the NSIC at 9-5... In their lone game of the weekend, the homestanding Golden Eagles upset travel partner Dragons 82-79.  

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... Minnesota Crookston finished 7-19 overall and 14th in the NSIC at 3-19... MSU Moorhead was 15-12 and 12-10 in the NSIC and lost at U-Mary in the first round of the NSIC tournament.
 
HISTORY / LAST MEETING:
U-Mary vs. Minnesota Crookston: Since joining the Northern Sun, the Marauders are 7-3 against the Golden Eagles. U-Mary is 4-1 at home and 3-2 at UMC... The Golden Eagles pulled out a 56-53 road win over the Marauders on January 8. Jacolby Anderson scored 27 points for UMC to win NSIC Player of the Week honors. Damon Smith posted a double double for U-Mary, pairing 19 points and 11 rebounds while hitting 7-of-8 shots from the field. Josh Turner hit four treys and scored 18 points. Jalen Jaspers dished seven assists.

U-Mary vs. MSU Moorhead:  In the all-time series between U-Mary and MSU Moorhead, the Marauders hold a 11-7 edge. Since joining the NCAA and NSIC, U-Mary is 6-5 against MSU Moorhead. The Marauders won the first conference matchup with a 75-72 win at MSUM on January 16, 2007. The Dragons followed with five straight wins, including an overtime victory, one win by one point and another by two points. The Marauders snapped the Dragons streak with a decisive 74-58 win at home on Jan. 30, 2010, and now have won the last five meetings... U-Mary upset #19 MSU Moorhead 72-51 on January 7. A 22-2 run in the first half pushed the Marauders into the lead. Damon Smith led U-Mary with 20 points and Alex Dorr added 17. Josh turner had 13 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Jake Lindfors led MSUM with 17 points and Alex Novak had 12 rebounds. MSUM shot just 28.8 per cent, U-Mary's best defensive effort of the season.
SECOND TIME AROUND: The Marauders began their second tour of the Northern Sun last weekend at home against Bemidji State and Minnesota Duluth. There are four teams U-Mary will not play twice in NSIC play: Winona State, Upper Iowa, Southwest Minnesota State and Minnesota State.  

FULL 40 x 2: Damon Smith played a full 40 minutes in back to back games against Northern State and Bemidji State. The 6-7 senior scored 19 points, including the winning points, garnered eight rebounds and dished out four assists in a win against the Wolves. Smith popped for a career-high 29 points vs. the Beavers.  

CAREER NIGHT: Damon Smith set a career-high in scoring with a 29 point outburst in an 87-81 loss to Bemidji State. The senior forward knocked down 12-of-17 shots from the field, procured six rebounds, dished two assists and blocked three shots while playing the full 40 minutes for the second straight game.

FINE NINE: The Marauders have drilled nine three pointers in each of the last four games.

EIGHT STRAIGHT: Alex Dorr had an impressive streak behind the arc, making eight straight three pointers. He was a perfect 4-of-4 on treys in back-to-back games against Northern State and Bemidji State.

BENCH BOOST: Darius Robinson exploded for 23 points off the bench against Minnesota Duluth. He knocked down five treys and hit 9-of-16 shots in 25 minutes of play.

TOUGH LOSS x 8: The Marauders have come up short eight times in games decided in the final minute of play. Four of the last minute losses have come in U-Mary's last seven games. Against Minnesota Duluth, the Marauders pulled within two points with 35 seconds remaining in the game.

SHARP SHOOTING: U-Mary is outshooting its opponents this season, making 46.3 per cent of its shots to 45.1 per cent for the opposition.

DOMINATING DAMON: Damon Smith scored 19 or more points in five of his last seven games to continue a tremendous all-around season. The senior forward is ranked among NSIC leaders in several categories. Smith is 1st in blocks per game (1.89), 7th in field goal percentage (54.8), 9th in rebound per game (6.4) and 11th in scoring (14.6 PPG). Six times he has scored 20 or more points in a game and he has two double doubles.

OPEN DORR POLICY: JR F Alex Dorr continues to shoot the ball well. In his last 10 games he is making 61.2 per cent (41-of-67) of his shots, including 21-of-32 on three point attempts, and is averaging 11.4 points per game. For the season, Dorr is averaging 9.2 points, 5.8 rebounds (14th in the NSIC) and is making 52.5 per cent of his shots from the field (13th), hitting 48.1 per cent on trey attempts (4th) and shooting 77.4 per cent at the free throw line.

TURNING THE CORNER: JR G Josh Turner is posting a strong season offensively for the Marauders. He is second on the squad with 13.5 points per game (19th in the NSIC). The Aurora, CO, native is an accurate shooter, making 45.9 per cent of his attempts from the field, including 44.1 per cent behind the arc. 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 is second in the NSIC in treys made per game with 2.74. He is 10th in three-point shooting percentage at 44.1. Darius Robinson is 10th in made treys (1.72). Alex Dorr is fourth in three-point field goal percentage.

GET OUTTA HERE! Damon Smith leads the Northern Sun in blocks with 1.89 per game. The senior forward 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 also 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 31st in NCAA Division II in blocks with 1.9 per game.

BLOCK PARTY: The Marauders are fourth in the NSIC in blocks with an average of 3.11 rejections per game. Much of the damage is done by Damon Smith, who has posted 36 of the squad's 59 blocks. Baley Johnson is next with 11 blocks.

NCAA TEAM RANKINGS - TOP 100:
• 29th in three-point field goal percentage (39.1)
• 67th in three pointers made per game (7.2)
• 76th in field goal percentage (46.3)

NCAA INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS:
• Josh Turner 26th in three point field goal percentage (44.1)
• Josh Turner 43rd in three pointers made per game (2.7)
• Damon Smith 31st in blocked shots (1.9)
• Damon Smith 45th in field goal percentage (54.8)
WORTH THE TICKET: If you attend a U-Mary men's basketball game, make sure you stay until the end. Eleven of the 19 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.
U-Mary had possession with a chance to tie the game or take the lead in the final 30 seconds of a 78-73 loss at Minnesota State.
Marauders hold off Northern State 70-69.
U-Mary pulls within two points of Minnesota Duluth with 35 seconds left in the game.

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 1-9 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: 1-9
The Marauders once won 27 straight home games for Coach Bortke at the MAC (February 19, 1976 thru November 11, 1978).

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.  

BOARD BUDDIES: The Marauders are just one of three teams to have two of the top 14 rebounders in the Northern Sun (MSU Moorhead and Northern State are the others). Damon Smith is 11th overall with 6.3 rebounds/game and Alex Dorr is 14th with at 5.6.

BALANCE: Six different Marauders have reached double digits in points this season. Josh Turner leads the way with 13 double digit games. Damon Smith has posted 12 or more points 10 times, Jalen Japers nine times, Darius Robinson and Alex Dorr eight apiece and Lamada Williams has two.

LEADERS: Four different players have led the Marauders in scoring this season. Including shared game highs, Damon Smith has led the team in scoring eight times, Josh Turner six and Darious Robinson six each and Jalen Jasers once.

SHARING THE LOAD: Three Marauders are averaging double figures in points. Damon Smith leads the team with 14.6 points per game, followed by Josh Turner at 13.5. Darius Robinson checks in at 10.8.   

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 12th in the NSIC with 1.28 steals per game.  
 
TV TIME: The Marauders have two televised games remaining this season. The next appearance is February 17 on Midco Sports Net against Concordia University - St. Paul. The last broadcast is February 18 on the NBC ND Sports Network (KFYR-TV in Bismarck, KMOT-TV in Minot, KUMV-TV in Williston, and KQCD-TV in Dickinson) against St. Cloud State. U-Mary already appeared on Midco against Winona State on January 2 and University of Minnesota Duluth on January 28.

TEN: Sophomore guard Mike Johnson has started ten 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.

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.

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.