THIS WEEK
After a two-week break in action for Christmas, the University of Mary men's basketball team returns to action with an intrastate rivalry game at Minot State University on Sunday, Dec. 30. The Marauders and Beavers are set to tip off at 4 pm at the Minot State Dome in Minot, ND.
 
THE RECORD
The Marauders are 6-5 overall and 3-2 in the Northern Sun overall and the Northern Sun North division.
 
BACK IN ACTION
The Marauders are coming off a 15-day layoff between games when UMary visits Minot State on Sunday, Dec. 30. The Marauders last played Dec. 15 at Northern State before taking a hiatus for semester finals and Christmas.
 
LAST WEEKEND
Making their first Northern Sun road trip of the season, the Marauders gained a weekend split with a 78-73 win at MSU Moorhead on Dec. 14 and a 76-59 loss at Northern State on Dec. 15… Down seven early in the second half, the Marauders gained a 55-51 lead with 8:02 to play on a pair of Dennis Austin III free throws and a Richard Brown basket. The Dragons pulled within 73-70 before Jaylan White made four straight free throws to secure the win. White led UMary with 19 points. Connor Hellebust and Matthew Kreklow both had 12 points and Tom Kubank and Wyatt Carr posted 11 each. Kubank also added 12 rebounds for the second straight game… Hellebust scored a career-high 20 points against #18 Northern State, hitting 3-of-5 treys and 8-of-11 shots overall. The Wolves hit 10-of-13 treys in the first half and took a 39-12 lead. Kreklow had 12 points and six rebounds.
 
DEEEE-FENSE
The Marauders are posting impressive defensive figures. UMary is second in the Northern Sun in scoring defense (64.3 ppg) and fifth in field goal percentage defense (.420) and steals (7.1).
 
DEEEE-FENSE PART 2
The Marauders stand 17^th in NCAA Division II in points allowed (64.3 ppg).
 
POINT REDUCTION PROGRAM
The Marauders defense has made tremendous strides on the defensive front, allowing 13 fewer points per game than a year ago. The Marauders are giving up just 64.3 points per game after allowing the opposition 77 ppg last season… UMary has also held the opposition to a shooting percentage of 42 percent after teams made 48.4 percent of their field goal attempts last season, boosting the Marauders from 15^th a year ago to 5^th now in the NSIC standings.  
 
FAST BREAK

• UMary wraps up three straight road games at Minot State before returning home Jan. 4-5 against Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota State
• The Marauders are in the midst of playing seven of nine games on the road
• It took the Marauders just ten games to reach six wins this season, the fastest since opening the 2015-16 season with six wins in eight games
• In 11 games, the Marauders have forced more turnovers than they have committed seven times and broke even once
• The Marauders lost their first three games this season by a combined 11 points. In each of the three games UMary had possession of the ball in the final minute of the contest with a chance to at least tie the game.
• Getting everyone involved, the Marauders have had anywhere from eight to 11 players score in a game this season
• Eight Marauders average at least 3.9 points per game
• Six Marauders average at least 2.4 rebounds/game
• After holding opponents to 66 points or fewer four times a year ago in 27 games, the Marauders have limited opponents to no more than 66 points six times in 11 outings already this season.

 
FREE THROW FOLLOWTHROUGH
UMary is shooting 70.7 percent (135-of-191) from the free throw line to their opponent's 65.6 percent (105-of-160)… The Marauders have made more free throws than the opposition eight times and attempted more seven times in 11 games… the opposition has had the edge in attempts twice and in makes twice… Both teams have attempted the same number of free throws twice and makes once… UMary is 5-3 when making more free throws than the opposition.
 
TURNOVER TOWN
The Marauders are +2.64 in turnovers, the 6^th-best mark in the NSIC.
 
DOWN UNDER
Sr. F Tom Kubank is third on the Marauders in scoring this season with much of his production from behind the arc. The Adelaide, South Australia, native averages 11.3 points/game and makes 2.1 treys/game, 14th in the NSIC… he is 23-of-63 behind the arc (36.5 percent)… in back-to-back games Kubank tied his career-high in rebounds with 12 in wins over Minnesota Duluth and MSU Moorhead and leads the Marauders in rebounding (5.8 rebounds/game)… He paired 11 points and 12 rebounds against MSUM for his first double double of the season… Kubank cracked the 1,000 point barrier as a collegiate student-athlete against MSU Moorhead on Dec. 14, including his two seasons at Lake Region State College.  
 
SWAT CITY
So. F Matthew Kreklow is 6th in the NSIC in blocked shots at 1.5/game. He had a season-best four against Mayville State and three against Minnesota Duluth… He is second on the team in scoring (11.6 ppg) and rebounds (5.5 rebounds/game). The post player knocked down all ten of his free throw attempts in a win over Minnesota Duluth and is 35-of-43 at the line to rank 16th in the NSIC in free throw percentage (.814).
 
WHITE NOISE
Jr. G Jaylan White is a sparkplug for the Marauders on both ends of the court. He leads the Marauders in scoring at 13.5 points per game (23^rd in the NSIC)… one of the top free throw shooters in the NSIC, the junior is 45-of-52 at the line to rank sixth in the league with a .865 free throw percentage… White is fourth in the NSIC in assist/turnover ratio (2.4) and 14^th in assists (3.3/game)… he has led the Marauders in scoring six times, including a career-best 29 points against Minnesota Duluth.
 
HEATING UP
So. G Connor Hellebust is heating up. The Bismarck, ND, native posted double digit points in his last two games with 12 points at MSU Moorhead and 20 at Northern State. Finding his stroke from the outside, Hellebust has hit 7-of-12 trey attempts over his last three outings, including a 3-for-5 effort against the Wolves, and made at least two treys in all three games. In his first eight games he hit multiple 3-pointers in a game just once.  
 
OPPO RESEARCH: MINOT STATE UNIVERSITY
Minot State is coming off their best season since beginning NCAA Division II play in 2011, finishing last year 20-10 overall and 13-9 in the Northern Sun than included their first win in a conference tournament game. The Beavers graduated NSIC Player of the Year Tyler Rudolph and return just one starter from last year, David Akibo. The Beavers are 5-9 overall and 0-5 in the NSIC, losing five straight games. At home the Beavers are 3-2. Akibo, who has missed a pair of games, leads MSU in scoring (17.1 ppg) and rebounding (7.8 rpg) while shooting 45.5 percent. He scored 16 points and snared seven rebounds in the first Marauders-Beavers meeting of the year… Three other Beavers also average double figures in scoring. Kyle Beisch averages 12.8 ppg and has a team-high 27 treys. Cody Max chips in 12.7 ppg and Dorian Aluyi is at 10.7 ppg and 6.0 rpg… The Beavers are hitting 48.2 percent of their shots on the year – 6^th in the NSIC – and are fourth in field goal percentage defense (.419).
 
HISTORY LESSON
In a series that stretches back to the 1972-73 season – just the third year of Marauders basketball – the University of Mary trails Minot State 37-35 all time… The Marauders snapped a 3-game losing streak with a 65-58 home win on 12.1.18… UMary has four wins in the last seven meetings… The Beavers have won 12 of the last 17 get-togethers… The last season sweep was by the Marauders in 2015-16… the two teams each won at home in 2017-18 before the Beavers swept last year's two meetings... In NSIC games the Marauders are 5-8 against the Beavers.
 
HOME COOKING
The Marauders completed a six-game home stand with five victories, including a pair of Northern Sun wins…. UMary won just two games at home last season.
  
THE BORTKE COURT MAC ATTACK
The Marauders opened up their home schedule with a pair of wins this season after struggling last season at the McDowell Activity Center. Despite last year's setback, UMary has found success in recent seasons at the MAC. The playing floor was christened Bortke Court in honor of long-time Mary men's basketball coach and athletic director Al Bortke in July 2009. 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:   3-10
2012-13:   3-  9
2013-14:   6-  7
2014-15:   4-  8
2015-16:   8-  7
2016-17:   8-  6
2017-18:   2-11
2018-19:   5-  1
The Marauders once won 27 straight home games for Coach Bortke at the MAC (February 19, 1976 thru November 11, 1978).
 
BOOM!
Dennis Austin III knocked down a buzzer-beating three-pointer from the right corner in front of the Marauders bench with 0.2 seconds remaining in overtime to lead the Marauders to a 73-70 home win over Minnesota Duluth. Here's a look at some other late game heroics during the Marauders NCAA era…

• Marquealis Edwards hit a layup in the final five seconds of a 77-76 win over Southern Arkansas on Nov. 14, 2015
• Marquealis Edwards forced overtime with a layup in the final five seconds to tie the game in a 96-91 win over Minnesota State on Fe. 22, 2016, in the NSIC quarterfinals
• Josh Turner hit a three-pointer with four seconds left in a 73-72 win at Chadron State on Nov. 15, 2011
• Jason West hit a three-pointer with no time on the clock at the end of regulation to force overtime in an 80-77 UMary win at Minnesota Duluth
• Eric Erdmann hit a layup at the buzzer in regulation to force overtime and then hit a layup at the buzzer in overtime to win the game 71-69 at Bemidji State on Jan. 12, 2008
• Bill Shetler drained a long three-pointer from inside the half-court line as time expired in the Marauders 78-75 win over visiting Mayville State on Dec. 15, 2006
• One day later the Marauders defeated visiting University of North Dakota on Dec. 16, 2006, when Jordan Engelhardt hit two free throws with a second remaining in the game

 
LISTEN LIVE
University of Mary fans can listen to all Marauders home and conference games live on Fox Sports 710 as Jesse Rostvedt, the Voice of the Marauders, brings you all the game action. You can also listen live online at www.foxsports710.com. Click the "Listen Live" link to stream the game in real time.
 
FOLLOW LIVE
To find links to live stats, audio and video, go to www.goumary.com/coverage
 
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