Against St. Cloud State U-Mary had a season-high 29 turnovers to St. Clouds' 13. For the game U-Mary actually out shot SCSU 48 to 30 percent from the field. The Marauders also out shot the Huskies from beyond the arc (33 to 25). From the line, however, St. Cloud held a distinct advantage in attempts and percentage. SCSU hit 28-41 (.683) free throws compared to U-Mary's 6-11 (.545). Against Minnesota Duluth the Marauders shot 54 percent in the first half but poor second half shooting (35 percent) was too much to overcome as they lost they closed out the weekend without a win.

This weekend the Marauders will look to snap their two game skid as they host Winona State and Upper Iowa.

THE RECORDS: At 11-3 overall and 5-2 in the Northern Sun Winona State is receiving votes in the national poll. At 1-6 Upper Iowa has struggled in Northern Sun play and is 4-10 overall on the season.

PRIMETIME: The NBC North Dakota Sports Network will broadcast the Marauders doubleheader against Upper Iowa University on Saturday, January 12. The broadcast will originate from KFYR-TV in Bismarck, ND, and can also be viewed on KMOT-TV in Minot, KUMV-TV in Williston, and KQCD-TV in Dickinson... KFYR-TV sports director Lee Timmerman, a multiple recipient of the North Dakota Sportscaster of the Year honor and other awards, will handle the play-by-play. Scott Westerberg, KFYR-TV weekend sports anchor and the host of “Marauders Weekly,” provides the color commentary. Joining the broadcast team once again is former U-Mary women's basketball coach Fred Fridley, who directed the Marauders to their first NCAA playoff berth last spring. This is the second Marauders game televised on the NBC North Dakota Sports Network this season.

HISTORY: Winona State holds a 7-4 lead in the all-time series with U-Mary. U-Mary, however, won both meetings last season. U-Mary holds an 8-2 advantage in the series with Upper Iowa and has won the last six meeting between the teams.

RECENT HISTORY: Last season the Marauders won both games against Winona State including a 76-67 win in the opening round of the NSIC Tournament. Playing all 40 minutes in the game Ali Collins finished with 15 points, six rebounds and five assists. U-Mary flew by Upper Iowa last season 73-53. All five of this years starters (Foster and Haag off the bench) scored at least 10 points in the game.

BLOCK PARTY: With 4.9 blocks per game the Marauders are 18th in the country and tops among Northern Sun teams. U-Mary recorded 19 of their 64 this last weekend alone. The Marauders 10 blocks against St. Cloud State ties U-Mary's game record since joining the NCAA. Incidentally the other time the Marauders had 10 blocks was also against St. Cloud State (2/18/12).

BOMBS AWAY: With 8.5 three-point field goals per game the Marauders average the 12th most in the country. U-Mary has attempted 20 or more three pointers in nine of their 13 games this season. One of the two game in which they did not attempt 20 was in their 14 of 19 effort against Dakota State. On the season the Marauders are 6-0 when they make 10 or more three-point field goals. In U-Mary's eight wins they have shot 48 percent from deep, but in their three losses have shot just 27 percent. The Marauders are 16th in the nation in three-point percentage at 37.7. 

SIXTH WOMAN: It appears as though red-shirting Britney Dietz last year has paid dividends this year for the Marauders. Despite not starting a game this year Dietz is playing the third most minutes and has scored the fourth most minutes on the team. Dietz's versatility has allowed Head Coach Rick Neumann to play her in multiple positions increasing her value even further. 

500: With 17 rebounds this past weekend, Shaunna Knife has now amassed the 500 rebound mark for her career. With 501 career rebounds Knife sits at 12th all-time for the Marauders and with nine rebounds this weekend she will pass Jolene Gartner and move into 11th place. 

800: Ali Collins also hit a milestone scoring her 800 point against Minnesota Duluth. A transfer from Illinois Central, the senior point guard is now 26th all-time on the Marauders scoring list. Collins needs just 15 points this weekend to move into the top 25. 

HEATING UP: After an up and down first five game to the season Ali Collins appears to have heated up just in time for conference action. Averaging 11.4 points per game prior to the conference season, Collins has averaged 18.3 in the Marauders five Northern Sun games. Averaging 6.7 assists per game in NSIC play, Collins in leading the league. 

COLLINS HONORED: On 12/17 Ali Collins was named NSIC Player of the Week for her efforts in wins over Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston. Collins averaged 21 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 6.5 steals, and one block. Shooting 48 percent from the field, Collins connected on 12 of 13 attempts from the free throw line. Running the point for the Marauders, Collins played all 40 minute against Bemidji State and 36 minutes against Minnesota Crookston. This was the first time a U-Mary player has won since Rachel Zilmer in 2009. 

LOCAL TALENT: Six of U-Mary's 12 players this season hail from North Dakota. Those six players includes the Marauders top two scorers in Shaunna Knife (Bottineau) and Ali Collins (Mandan). Also among those six are U-Mary's top three reserve players in Britney Dietz (Beach) Kelsey Peltier (Bottineau) and Lindsay Sand (Steele). Redshirt freshman Nicole Carew (Fargo) rounds out the group. 

WINONA STATE: Leading the South Division at 5-2, Winona State is off to a strong start. Key to WSU's success this year has been their ability to limit their mistakes and knock down free throws. The Warriors are number one in the country in the categories. Similar to U-Mary, Winona State excels at shooting from beyond the arc. The Warriors are ninth in the nation in three-point field goals per game (8.6) and are second in shooting percentage (.412). Winona is led by the play of senior G Becca Friestleben. Friestleben, a transfer from St. Cloud State, is fourth in the Northern Sun in scoring at 17.9 points/game. The 5-9 guard has scored 20 plus five times this season, but is coming off of her a season-low three points on 1-10 shooting against Sioux Falls.

UPPER IOWA: With just one win in conference play Upper Iowa has struggled to find their way. UIU has struggled on both sides of the ball averaging just 63.8 points offensively while giving up 71.9. At -8.1 the Peacocks have the second worst scoring margin in the league. UIU leads the league in turnovers and is last in field goal defense. Upper Iowa has shot well from the free throw line this season with a .739 average. A major bright spot for the Peacocks this season has been the impressive play of sophomore Whitney Kieffer. A 5-9 guard, Kieffer is 26th in the nation in scoring at 18.6 points per game. Kieffer has already scored 20 or more in seven games and has only been held under 10 once (against Winona State).

Next week U-Mary will be on the road for a trio of Northern Sun games. On Tuesday the Marauders will head up to Minot to face off with the in-state rival Minot State. U-Mary will then travel south for the weekend to take on #5 Augustana and #19 Wayne State.

PROJECTED U-MARY STARTERS

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