THIS WEEKEND
Four weeks since its last home game, the University of Mary men's basketball team returns to the McDowell Activity Center on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 9-10, to host two of the top teams in the Northern Sun. On Friday at 8 p.m. the Marauders face the Dragons of MSU Moorhead, ranked 13th in the nation and tied for the lead in the conference standings. The Marauders conclude the weekend on Saturday at 6 p.m. with the arrival of Northern State University. The Wolves are fourth in the NSIC standings, one game out of the lead.  
 
RECORDS
U-Mary is 3-9 overall and 1-7 in the Northern Sun (8th NSIC North Division, 15th overall)
#13 MSU Moorhead Dragons are 16-1 overall and 7-1 in the NSIC (1st NSIC North, t-1st overall)
Northern State Wolves are 12-2 overall and 6-2 in the NSIC (2nd NSIC North, 4th overall)

LAST TIME OUT
The Marauders fell 64-61 at Minnesota Crookston before rebounding with an 86-80 win at Bemidji State
Winners of four straight, the Dragons swept Upper Iowa (106-81) and Winona State (71-65) at home
The Wolves defeated Winona State 74-51 and Upper Iowa 80-67 in two home games to open the New Year

WEEKEND HEADLINES

• Marauders are looking to win consecutive games for the first time this season
• The Marauders haven't played at home since Dec. 13, a span of four weeks
• U-Mary hosts two of the top four teams in the NSIC with a combined record of 28-3
• This is the second and final time this regular season the Marauders will play both the Dragons and the Wolves
• U-Mary is looking to snap a six-game losing streak to the Dragons and a five-game streak against the Wolves
• Marauders are 9th nationally in fewest turnovers/game (10.3)
• Marquealis Edwards ranks in the NSIC top 15 in points, rebounds, steals, assists, assist/turnover ratio and defensive rebounds

HISTORY LESSON - MARAUDERS v. DRAGONS

• The Marauders trail the Dragons 13-11 in the all-time series
• Since joining the NCAA and NSIC, U-Mary is 6-11 against MSUM
• The Marauders won the first conference match-up 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, the first of five straight UM wins that concluded with a 72-51 win over 19th ranked MSUM on Jan. 7, 2012, at the MAC.
• The Dragons have won the last six meetings with the Marauders
• The Marauders last defeated the Dragons 72-51 on 1.7.12 at the MAC

Last Meeting
19th ranked MSU Moorhead scored the first 15 points of the game on its way to an 81-63 win over visiting U-Mary on 12.6.14. The Dragons eventually built a 40-16 lead. The Marauders cut their deficit to 61-48 on a Brandon Tyler 3-pointer but never managed to get closer to the Dragons. Damonta Henry hit three treys and led U-Mary with 18 points. Marquealis Edwards added 16 points, seven rebounds and four assists. The Dragons connected for 14 treys in the game, including six by Jordan Riewer. The senior guard led all players with 24 points. Isaac Sevlie added 15 and Prescott Williams 14 for MSUM.

HISTORY LESSON - MARAUDERS v. WOLVES

• The Marauders trail the Wolves 22-10 in the all-time series
• The Wolves have won the last five meetings
• U-Mary last defeated NSU 70-67 at the MAC on 2.25.12

Last Meeting
The Marauders fast start couldn't overcome a strong close by the Wolves in an 86-79 road loss on 12.5.14. U-Mary opened the game on a 16-4 run and led 40-37 at intermission. A Luke Scott basket provided the Marauders their last lead of the day at 78-77 before the Wolves scored nine of the final ten points in the game. Bryan Jefferson scored 16 points off the bench to lead the Marauders. Damonta Henry and Marquealis Edwards both chipped in 15 while Scott and Isaac Lindquist posted 10 apiece. Seth Bachand led the Wolves with 19 points, 15 rebounds, six assists and five steals. Sky Warwick also had 19 and Tydan Storrusten scored 13.

COMMONALITY
The Marauders and the Dragons have only faced two of the same teams: U-Mary is 0-2 against Minot State and 0-1 against Northern State. MSUM is 1-0 against Minot State and 2-0 against NSU... The Marauders have only played three teams the Wolves have faced. The Marauders are 0-1 against both Southwest Minnesota State and MSU Moorhead and are 0-2 against Minot State. The Wolves are 1-0 against both SMSU and Minot State and 0-2 against MSU Moorhead.

THE OPPONENT: MSU Moorhead Dragons
The defending NSIC North Division champions are off to another strong start. The Dragons have lost just once in 17 games and are ranked 13th nationally in the most recent NABC poll. Head coach Chad Walthall has posted a mark of 91-42 at MSUM in five seasons and his winning percentage is second best in school history. The preseason favorite to repeat atop the NSIC North, the Dragons allow just 65.5 points per game (second best in the league) and opponents are shooting just 41.2 percent (3rd). Offensively MSUM leads the league in scoring (85.5 PPG), field goal percentage (51.0), three-point shooting percentage (42.9) and free throw shooting (77.7). All-NSIC point guard Jordan Riewer averages a team-high 15.9 PPG and 5.6 assists/game. He shoots 52.7 percent overall from the field and is 48-of-95 behind the arc. Aaron Lien averages 13.3 PPG and 5.0 rebounds while making 36-of-75 3-point attempts. The defending NSIC North Player of the Week, forward Isaac Sevile chips in 11.8 PPG and 4.2 rebounds while making 57.9 percent of his FG attempts.       

THE OPPONENT: Northern State University Wolves
Playing nine of their first 15 games of the season at home (U-Mary has played just four home games), the Wolves have raced out to a stellar 12-2 mark. The only blemishes on the Northern State record are two losses to MSU Moorhead, ranked 13th in the nation and the first place team in the NSIC. A balanced Wolves attack is led by senior forward Seth Bachand, who is posting 13.6 points/game and an NSIC-leading 8.9 rebounds/game. He is shooting an impressive 65.7 percent from the floor and has 19 blocks. Three other players are also posting double digit point totals. Darin Peterka is chipping in 10.7 PPG and 4.1 RPG while leading the team with 19 steals. He is second with 38 assists. Skye Warwick is the top deep threat, connecting on 41 treys in just 79 attempts for a 51.9 percent shooting percentage behind the arc. He is averaging 11.6 PPG. Tydan Storrusten averages 10.6 PPG and leads the team with 39 assists. Overall the Wolves average 78.4 PPG and allow 71.4.

REWIND
The Marauders gained a split over the opening weekend of the New Year. U-Mary lost a tight 64-61 road game at Minnesota Crookston. Down by nine, the Marauders used a 16-2 run to grab a 40-36 lead. However UMC responded by scoring on 10-of-13 possessions, including hitting four straight three-pointers. U-Mary pulled within 60-58 with four minutes remaining but couldn't find a way to get past UMC. Marquealis Edwards posted 13 points, eight rebounds and five assists to lead the Marauders. Bryan Jefferson added 10 points and six rebounds. Kevin Larson led UMC with 14 points... The Marauders earned their first NSIC win of the season the following night with an 86-80 win at Bemidji State. Down early, U-Mary closed the half on a 10-2 run and led the remainder of the game. Edwards led U-Mary with 26 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals. Jaycob Velasco scored a career-high 18 points. Chris Mason and Jefferson both added 12 points and Germain Decoste had 10. U-Mary shot 53.3 percent overall while BSU checked in at 37.7 percent. The Beavers kept the game close by making 24-of-27 free throws while the Marauders finished 16-of-28. Brock Lutes led the Beavers with 22 points.

STREAKS
Several streaks ended last weekend. The Marauders snapped a seven-game losing streak overall and a six-game losing streak to Bemidji State. U-Mary also saw its five-game winning streak over UMC end.

STAT STUFFER
Junior guard Marquealis Edwards may have played his best weekend series of his U-Mary career at UMC and BSU. In the two games he averaged 19.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.0 steals while shooting 57.1 percent overall and making 13-of-19 free throws. Edwards had hist forst double double at U-Mary with 26 points and 11 rebounds in a win at Bemidji State. Against the Beavers he made 8-of-12 shots from the floor while also going 8-of-12 at the free throw line. For the season Edwards is 13th in the NSIC in scoring (14.3 PPG), 15th in rebounding (5.8 RPG), 4th in assists (4.6 APG) and 2nd in steals (1.9 SPG).

NEW ROLE
Sophomore forward Bryan Jefferson made his first career start at Minot State and has remained in the lineup three straight games. A key reserve much of the season, Jefferson contributed 10 points, two assists and four rebounds in 22 minutes as four fouls limited his time on the court. Jefferson made 4-of-5 shot attempts. He followed up with 10 points at UMC and 12 at BSU. For the season, the Aurora, Ill., native has posted double figures in points in nine of the ten games he has played and in five straight. Four times he has led the team in scoring and had the team's first double double (25 points and 10 rebounds at Point Loma). Jefferson leads the team in rebounding (5.8/game), is second in scoring (12.6 PPG) and in field goal percentage (.534). He has also made 71.1 percent of his free throws. In the NSIC Jefferson ranks 1st in offensive rebounds (3.2/game), 13th in rebounding and 22nd in scoring.   

WELCOME BACK
After an injury opening night caused him to miss six games, senior guard/forward Chris Mason is back in the lineup. The Marauders leading returning scorer contributed seven points and three rebounds in 17 minutes against Southwest Minnesota State in his first game back. In his next four outings Mason reached double figures three times, including a season-high 19 points at Minot State. For the season he is averaging 10.7 PPG while shooting 51.1 percent from the floor.   

MY PRECIOUS
Treating the ball like Bilbo Baggins treats The Ring, the Marauders refuse to turn the precious over. U-Mary committed a season-low seven turnovers against Minot State and average just 10.3 turnovers/game, the 9th-lowest figure in NCAA Division II and 3rd fewest in the Northern Sun.

TURNING TURNOVERS INTO POINTS
In the eight Northern Sun games this season, the Marauders have outscored the opponents in points-off-turnovers six times.

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
The Marauders rank seventh in the NSIC in assist to turnover ratio with a mark of 1.2. U-Mary averages 12.0 assists/game and 10.3 turnovers.

LEGAL THEFT
U-Mary ranks fifth in the NSIC in steals per game with 6.7. Marquealis Edwards is the ringleader with 1.9 per game, second best in the NSIC.

CHARITY DISPARITY
In Northern Sun contests, U-Mary opponents have made nearly as many free throws this season as the Marauders have attempted. The Marauders have shot 132 free throws while foes have made 127. U-Mary is 89-of-132 at the line (68.7 percent). Opponents are 127-of-165 at the line (77 percent).  

BENEVOLENCE
Junior guard Marquealis Edwards is fourth in the NSIC in assists per game with 4.6.

SOPHOMORE SUCCESS
The Marauders have three sophomores in the starting lineup and a fourth is one of the team's leading scorers. Guard Luke Scott, forward Bryan Jefferson and center Isaac Lindquist started against Minot State. Additionally, guard Damonta Henry has moved into a reserve role. Henry is third on the team in scoring at 11.7 PPG and has a team-high 21 treys. Jefferson averages 12.8 PPG and leads the team in rebounding (5.8 RPG). Scott is shooting 52 percent from the floor and has an impressive assist-to-steal ratio of 16-to-5. Lindquist is averaging over 18 minutes a game in the middle and 2.9 rebounds and 3.6 points.  

SHARING THE LOAD
Six different Marauders are averaging at least 6.9 points per game with four averaging in double figures. Marquealis Edwards leads the team in scoring at 14.3 PPG, followed by Damonta Henry (11.7 PPG), Bryan Jefferson (12.6 PPG) and Chris Mason (10.7 PPG).

BREAKOUT
JR F Jaycob Velasco scored a career-high 18 points in the win at BSU.