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LAST TIME OUT: Looking to snap a two-game skid, U-Mary did just that is it started a two-game winning streak with victories over University of Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State University. Facing an undersized UMC team, U-Mary asserted itself inside en route to 72-65 win. The Marauders held a commanding 46-32 advantage over the Golden Eagles scoring in the paint. U-Mary outshot UMC 44 to 35 percent from the field. Both teams finished with 46 rebounds, but the Golden Eagles held an 11-6 advantage in offensive rebounds. Senior Linda Murray was dominant inside scoring 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting, in addition to grabbing nine rebounds and blocking three shots. U-Mary took advantage of Bemidji State University's miscues as it came away with a 71-67 win. U-Mary finished when nine steals and forced a total of 14 turnovers, which led to 19 points for the Marauders. U-Mary shot 20-of-60 to BSU's 20-of-59 from the field. Both teams finished with 41 rebounds and the Marauders held a plus two-turnover margin. Murray led all scorers with 25 points. She also added nine rebounds and two blocks.
  
This weekend the Marauders will host their final home regular season games of the season. U-Mary will take on Southwest Minnesota State University on Friday at 6 p.m. and University of Sioux Falls on Saturday at 4 p.m.
 
American Bank Center is this weekend's sponsor and is providing complimentary tickets at its local branches.
 
Coaches' Luncheon at the Elks Club Lunch starts at 11:45 AM and the program begins at 12:05 PM. Cost of the lunch is $7. Men's basketball coach Jevin Budde and women's head coach Rick Neumann are among the schedule speakers.
 
"It's A Slam Dunk, Don't Drive Drunk" This weekend will mark U-Mary's second "It's a Slam Dunk, Don't Drive Drunk" weekend. The event was created after Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball coach Brad Bigler's son Drake was killed by a drunk driver in 2012. To further raise awareness about the danger of drunk driving, the Marauders Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will host a booth and have people in attendance sign a pledge card stating that they will not drive drunk. Each person that signs the pledge card will receive a blue keychain with an inscription of the theme: "It's a Slam Dunk-Don't Drive Drunk", the NSIC and NCAA logos along with Drake's name. Additionally, fans will be able to watch the commercial made by Marauders SAAC for this event.
 
BLUE OUT: Fans are encouraged to "Blue Out" the McDowell Activity Center Friday night. Sponsored by the Marauders Activity Club, students wearing blue are eligible to win prizes throughout the night, including a mini iPad.
 
Senior Night: Saturday will mark the final home regular season game for four U-Mary seniors. Lindsey Sand, McKenzie Foster, Linda Murray and Sudan Saunders will all be playing in their final regular season home game at the MAC. The Marauder four seniors will be honored at halftime of the men's game.
 
Myles Brand: One of seven U-Mary student-athletes to receive the distinguished NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award, Lindsey Sand, among others, will be honored at halftime of the women's game.
 
The Records: Riding a two-game winning streak, U-Mary is 13-8 so far this season and 11-7 in NSIC play (3rd NSIC North). The Marauders have a 7-3 record at home. With a three game losing streak, SMSU is 4-18 overall and 2-16 in the NSIC (8th NSIC South). The Mustangs are 1-11 away from home. Despite a two game losing streak, Sioux Falls is 12-10 overall and 8-10 in conference play (5th NSIC South). The Cougars hold a 5-6 record on the road.
 
Follow along with all of this weekend's live coverage at goumary.com/coverage. There will be live video, audio and stats available for both games. For those in the Bismarck area the radio coverage for both games will also be broadcast on Bismarck's ESPN 710 AM.
 
The Series: U-Mary has defeated SMSU in 6 of 9 meetings since the Marauders joined the NSIC. U-Mary has beaten SMSU each of the past two seasons. The Marauders have only played the Cougars once since joining the NSIC. U-Mary defeated Sioux Falls 76-65 on the road last season.
 
Last Season vs. SMSU U-Mary scored the first 16 points of the game and rolled to an 84-63 road win. Ali Collins posted a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Brittney Dietz scored 16 off the bench. The Marauders outshot the Mustangs 47 to 37 on the night and held a 44-34 rebounding advantage.
 
Last Season vs. USF, U-Mary came away with a 76-65 win due to an outstanding shooting performance. The Marauders connected on 31 of 60 (.517) shots overall. U-Mary also shot the ball effectively from beyond the arc making 11 of their 27 three-point attempts. Ali Collins had 15 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists. Laura Peterson had a game-high 18.
 
Last Season's Finishes: U-Mary finished the 2012-13 season with a 19-11 record overall and a 13-9 conference record, which was good for 5th place overall in the NSIC. SMSU Finished last season with a 4-25 record overall and a 2-20 mark in conference play, which placed them in 16th place in the NSIC. USF posted a 12-15 mark overall with a 9-13 record in conference play, which was good for 12th place.
 
SMSU is ranked eighth in the South Division and is led by the inside out duo of seniors Allison Nagel and Bree Holleman. A 6-3 post, Nagel is leading the team in scoring with 13.6 and is second in rebounding at 5.9. A 5-8 guard, Holleman is second on the team with 9.6 points per game and first with 30.9 minutes per game. SMSU is scoring just 62.6 points per game, while allowing 68.5. The Mustangs shoot the ball at a 41 percent clip from the field, while allowing opponents to shoot 42 percent. SMSU is the worst three-point shooting team in the conference shooting 28.8 percent overall. The Mustangs have allowed opponents to shoot just 31.8 percent from deep. SMSU has been outrebounded by a 2.8 margin while maintaining a -1.4 turnover margin.
 
USF is ranked fifth in the South Division and is lead by sophomore Taylor Varsho and senior Hannah Johnson. A transfer from Colorado State, Varsho is second on the team with 14.5 points per game and first with 2.3 assists per game. One of the top bigs in the conference, Johnson is leading the Cougars with 14.8 points per game, 7.9 rebounds and nearly two blocks per game. USF has outscored opponents 70.4 to 68.2 so far this season. The Cougars have outshot opponents 39 to 38 percent from the field and 33 to 32 percent from deep. USF is 7th in the nation with 8.5 three-point field goals per game. The Cougars are outrebounded by 1.0 rebound per game and hold a +0.2 turnover margin. USF is one of the top shot blocking teams in the country averaging 4.5 per game.
 
MAGIC NUMBER: The Marauders magic number for securing a home playoff game is three. A combination of U-Mary wins and St. Cloud State losses totaling three will guarantee the Marauders a home playoff game.
 
Up Next: U-Mary will close the regular season on the road next weekend as it takes on Northern State University and Minnesota State University Moorhead.
 
What the Coaches Say: Despite winning 19 games in 2012-13, U-Mary was tabbed to finish 10th overall and 6th in the North Division. Four teams who finished behind the Marauders in the overall standings, as well as in the North Division standings, have been selected to finish ahead of them this season. Named the All-NSIC Freshman Team in 2012-13, Brittney Dietz was selected as U-Mary's 2013-14 NSIC Player to Watch.
 
Round 2: Thrust into duty the week of U-Mary's first practice a year ago, Head Coach Rick Neumann enters his second season as head coach of the Marauders with his first opportunity at a full offseason. Behind a strong recruiting class, Neumann hopes to build off of a successful inaugural campaign in which he led U-Mary to their second consecutive 19 win season in addition to picking up his first career playoff win.
 
Holes to Fill: For the previous three seasons Ali Collins and Shaunna Knife were integral to U-Mary's success. The duo, which each ranked in the top-20 all-time in points, rebounds and assists, have graduated and left big shoes to fill for the 2013-14 squad. The Marauders also graduated four-year starter Laura Peterson, who finished 24th all- time in scoring with 841 career points.
 
Unfamiliar Faces: The Marauders will look significantly different than a year ago as they return just four players who saw the floor in 2012-13. U-Mary graduated 4 starters including its top 3 scorers. To fill those voids the Marauders added 9 players including 4 junior college transfers.
 
The Golden State: The Marauders have three players hailing from the state of California including 2011-12 First Team All-NSIC performer Linda Murray. Murray and the three other players got a chance to play in their home state as they played a pair of games against NAIA opponents in Southern California.
 
Local Talent: Of the 17 players on this year's roster, six are from the state of North Dakota including Bismarck native Hannah Larson, and starters Lindsey Sand (Steele) and Brittney Dietz (Beach).
 
Free Throws/Fouls: U-Mary is second in the Northern Sun with 553 free throw attempts and is third with 400 makes. However, the Marauders are 14th in free throw percentage at 72.3. U-Mary has allowed opponents to shoot and make more free throws than any other team in the NSIC allowing  opponents to go 416-of-546. Opponents are shooting 76.2 percent against the Marauders. For the season U-Mary is 15th of 16 NSIC teams averaging 21.6 fouls per game.
 
Double-Double: Sixth in the NSIC in rebounding at 9.4 per game, Linda Murray has seven double-doubles this season.
 
Efficiency: Linda Murray is one of just two players in the NSIC to rank among the top-10 in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots and field goal percentage
 
Marksmanship: McKenzie Foster has been displaying her talent to shoot from deep the past four years for U-Mary and this year is no different. Making 2.0 threes per game, Foster ranks 3rd in NSIC in three-point percentage at 43.4 percent.
 
Patience is a Virtue: After four years Lindsey Sand has finally received her opportunity to start and is making the most of it. Sand is averaging 11.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.0 assists. Sand is shooting 34 % from deep and 80 % from the line.
 
Smooth Transition: Despite being fourth on the team in minutes last season, Brittney Dietz started just one game as a redshirt freshman. Dietz has made the transition into the starting line-up this season seamlessly. Averaging 34.4 minutes, Dietz is averaging 15.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
 
Logging Time: Leading the team in minutes, Brittney Dietz logged 84 minutes in U-Mary's last home weekend including 47 in a double overtime victory over Bemidji State. Dietz is averaging 34.5 minutes per game and has now played 31 or more minutes in 19 of 21 games. Dietz is second in the NSIC in minutes played.
 
Block Party: With Hannah Larson, Linda Murray and Sloan Turner all averaging one block or more per game, U-Mary ranks 17th in the country at 4.7 per game.
 
Climbing the Record Books: Senior Lindsey Sand is quickly climbing the all-time assist list at U-Mary. With 223 career assists, Sand ranks 15th all-time. With 8 assists Sand will pass Barb Gelinski for 13th all-time.
 
Making a Mark: Despite being only playing two years at U-Mary, junior college transfer Linda Murray has cracked the top-25 all-time rebounding list with 431. With five rebounds Murray will pass Andrea Ronderos for 23rd all-time. At her current pace, Murray will get as high as 17th in the regular season and could pass former teammate Ali Collins (482) for 16th all-time in the playoffs.
 
Consistency is key: Fans may not think of McKenzie Foster as a prolific scorer, but the 5-10 guard has been a mainstay in U-Mary's rotation for four years now as she finds herself 31st all-time on the scoring list with 750 career points. At her current pace Foster will finish will finish 26th or 27th.
 
STUDENT-athlete: Despite spending much of her past five years in the gym, in the weight room and on the road, senior Lindsey Sand found plenty of time to study as evident by her recent receiving of the NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award. The honor, named for the late NCAA President Dr. Myles Brand, is bestowed to senior NSIC student-athletes who have a cumulative grade point average of 3.75 or higher, are exhausting their eligibility and are on track to graduate.
 
Speed Bump: U-Mary's six game winning streak came to a screeching hault as it fell to two of the top three teams in the NSIC South in Minnesota State and Concordia-St. Paul. The Marauders have since rebounded with a pair of wins last weekend and hope to continue their winning ways the final four games of the regular season.
 
DEFENSIVE WINS GAMES: After allowing opponents to shoot 42.6 % through their first 11 games, the Marauders held opponents to just 36.0% shooting during their six-game winning streak. During the first 11 games opponents were shooting 36.9 % from deep and during the winning streak shot just 31.6 %. During the streak U-Mary averaged one more block and 0.7 more steals than in its first 11 games.
 
Super Seniors: Seniors Linda Murray, Lindsey Sand and McKenzie Foster have set the tone for the Marauders scoring 44.3 of the team's 74.8 points per game. The trio is also averaging 16.5 rebounds and has 161 of the team's 317 assists. Murray has 10 times led the team in scoring and 12 times in rebounding. Sand has led the team in scoring three times and in assists 12 times. Foster has led the team in scoring three times and steals eight times.
 
Winning: In U-Mary's 13 wins they are averaging 77.2 points, shooting 44 percent from the field and 38 percent from deep. The Marauders only allow 69.6 points per game in wins and hold opponents to 37 percent shooting from the field and 31 percent from deep. The Marauders have a plus 5.4 rebounding margin in wins.
 
Losing: U-Mary's eight losses they are averaging just 70.9 points, shooting 39 percent from the field and 27 percent from deep. The Marauders are surrendering 84 points per game in losses, while allowing opponents to shoot 43 percent from the field and 38 percent from deep. The Marauders are even in rebounding in losses.
 
Fab Freshman: It was evident from the beginning that freshman forward Hannah Larson would have an impact on U-Mary this season, but guards Taylor Henningsgard and Dani Clark have come on strong down the stretch as well. Larson has made her presence known around the NSIC as she ranks 15th in the league with 7.2 rebounds and fourth in blocked shots at 1.6 per game. Originally planning to redshirt, Henningsgard has stepped in nicely to the back-up point guard position averaging 15.2 minutes, 2.5 points and 1.3 assists. Clark did not play in eight consecutive games, but has played in each of the last 12 games and is averaging 13.2 minutes, and 2.6 points.
 
Half Time: U-Mary is 10-1 when leading at half with their only loss coming against Minot State when they surrendered a nine point opening half lead. The Marauders are just 3-7 when trailing at halftime.
 
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