WEDNESDAY
The University of Mary men's basketball team opens the postseason at Northern Sun South Division champion Southwest Minnesota State University on Wednesday, February 21. Tip off between the Marauders and the Mustangs in the opening round of the 2018 NSIC/Sanford Health tournament is 7 pm at the R/A Center in Marshall, MN.
 
ROAD AHEAD (UPDATED TO CORRECT BEMIDJI STATE OPPONENT)
The winner between the Marauders and the Mustangs will advance to the NSIC quarterfinals on Saturday, February 24, at the Pentagon in Sioux Falls, SD, against the victor of the Augustana vs. Bemidji State contest at 5:30 pm. The semifinals are Monday, February 26, with the championship game set for Tuesday, February 27.
 
THE RECORD
The Marauders are 6-20 overall and 4-18 in Northern Sun play (8th NSIC North, 15th overall).
 
RADIO READJUSTMENT TO KFYR 550 AM
With both the UMary men's and women's basketball NSIC tournament games airing at the same time, the men's game will be carried on KFYR 550 AM with UMary SID Brian Larson and the Marauders Advancement Director Mike Offerdahl calling the action. The women's game at Sioux Falls remains on Fox Sports 710 with Voice of the Marauders Rick Anthony with the call.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Marauders closed out the 2018 regular season with a home split… Jalen White scored 14 points and Michael Gorder scored a career-high 13 points in a 67-59 loss to visiting Bemidji State. A Gorder basket gave the Marauders a 56-55 lead with five minutes remaining in the game but wouldn't score another basket until the final minute while the Beavers went on a 10-0 run. Matthew Kreklow joined White and Gorder in double figures with 10 points and eight rebounds. Sharif Black led BSU with 19 points. BSU was 12-of-19 at the line while UMary was just 2-for-4… In the final home game of the season, Trevor Zacher and Michael Gorder combined for 33 points in an 80-70 win over Minnesota Crookston. Zacher hit three treys and made 8-of-13 shots on his way to 21 points. Gorder scored 12 points and added seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Jaylan White scored 16 points, hit three treys and posted eight assists. Connor Hellebust came off the bench to hit 3-for-5 treys and scored 12 points while helping the Marauders limit UMC's Harrison Cleary – the NSIC's leading scorer – to ten points. White hit a buzzer-beating half court shot entering intermission to give UMary a 30-29 lead and remained in front the rest of the game.
 
FAST BREAK

• The Marauders honored seniors Michael Gorder and Trevor Zacher before the Minnesota Crookston 80-70 win on Saturday. The two seniors combined for 33 points (Zacher 21, Gorder 12).
• Trevor Zacher was awarded the Kevin Olson Award, presented to a UMary senior men's basketball player in memory of the Marauders Hall of Famer who was known as a fierce competitor and for his integrity, courage, moral values, and commitment to family, friends, faith and community
• Streaky on the road, the Marauders have lost their last four games away from the McDowell Activity Center following a three-game road win streak
• UMary has more road wins (4) than home (2)
• The Marauders swept the season series with the Golden Eagles
• Eight Marauders average at least 5.2 points per game
• A pair of Marauders are averaging double digits in points: Keith Hunter (13.4 ppg) and Trevor Zacher (11.6 ppg) with Jaylan White (9.2 ppg), Matthew Kreklow (8.9 ppg) and Tom Kubank (7.5 ppg) just off the pace.
• Seven players have started games this season for the Marauders. Trevor Zacher and Matthew Kreklow has started all 26 games. Senior F Michael Gorder has stepped into the lineup the last five games. In the back court Jaylan White has 25 starts in 26 games and Keith Hunter 23.
• Four out of the Marauders five top scorers and 11 out of 13 made their UMary debut this season

 
OPPO RESEARCH: SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS
Southwest Minnesota State is 21-7 overall and 17-5 in the NSIC (1st in NSIC South, tied for 2^nd in the NSIC)… Mustangs are 11-2 at home… winners of seven straight… have also won seven straight home games… SMSU won the NSIC South division for the second straight season and is the top seeded team from the South… Ranked 6^th in first NCAA Central Region poll… 2^nd straight 20-win season… defending NSIC tournament champion… Ryan Bruggeman is averaging a team-high 16.4 ppg with a team-high 164 assists. He finished the NSIC season eighth in scoring (16.9), third in assists (6.2) and third in steals. He is the brother of Marauders assistant coach Casey Bruggeman… Carter Kirk is scoring 14.9 ppg with a team-high 10.3 rpg… KJ Davis is scoring 10.6 ppg… Head Coach Brad Bigler is in his 9th season at SMSU and is 157-108 all-time.
 
HISTORY LESSON The Marauders trail the Mustangs in the series 13-3… UMary is 2-5 all-time at home in the MAC and 1-8 at SMSU's R/A Facility… UMary's last win in Bismarck over SMSU was 74-65 February 14, 2014… The Marauders last win in Marshall, MN, was 91-82 on December 11, 2015.
 
LAST MEETING Trevor Zacher exploded for a career-high 27 points for the visiting Marauders in an 83-61 loss at Southwest Minnesota State on February 3. Zacher was 4-for-6 behind the arc and 8-for-11 overall. He also made all seven free throws and corralled three rebounds. Jaylan White was next in the scoring column with nine points. He also had six rebounds, three assists and three steals while committing just one turnover. Matthew Kreklow added eight points and four rebounds. Carter Kirk led SMSU with 22 points and eight rebounds. He connected on 9-of-11 shots. Ryan Bruggeman had 14 points, seven assists and three steals while making 6-of-8 field goals. Turner Moen was also 6-of-8 from the field and scored 14. UMary shot just 35 percent from the floor, despite going 10-of-25 (40 percent) behind the arc. The Marauders went 15-of-19 at the line. SMSU connected on 55.9 percent of its shots. The Mustangs committed just nine turnovers to 17 for the Marauders and held a 23-16 edge in points off turnovers. SMSU made a living inside, outscoring UMary 38-10 in the paint. SMSU led 35-31 at intermission and pulled away with a14-1 run in the second half.
 
MARAUDERS NSIC POST-SEASON HISTORY
The Marauders are 3-8 in the NSIC tournament… The first win was a 70-65 1st round home victory over MSU Moorhead on March 2, 2011. Anthony Moody scored 25 points with eight rebounds and seven assists. Eric Erdmann added 17 points and Jordan Wilhelm 12... Mary has faced Winona State three times in the NSIC tournament, more than any other team.
 
MARAUDERS NSIC PLAYOFF HISTORY (3-8)
March 1, 2008              at Winona State (1st round)                         L 50-77
March 3, 2010             at Winona State (1st round)                                      L 57-76
March 2, 2011             MSU Moorhead (1st round)                           W 70-65
March 5, 2011            vs. St. Cloud State (semi-finals)                     L 59-65
Feb. 27, 2013              at Winona State (1st round)                          L 64-77
Feb. 27, 2014              at Southwest Minn. State (1st round)                       L 65-82
Feb. 21, 2015              at Concordia-St. Paul (1st round)                               L 65-78
Feb. 24, 2016              Concordia-St. Paul (1st round)                                   W 76-72
Feb. 27, 2016              vs. Minnesota State (quarterfinals)                           W 96-91 OT
Feb. 29, 2016              vs. MSU Moorhead (semifinals)                                L 65-89
Feb. 22, 2017              at Minnesota State (1^st round)                       L 78-87
 
MARAUDERS NCAA PLAYOFF HISTORY (0-1)
March 12, 2011           vs. Metro State (at Mankato, MN)                L 78-73
 
LINE PLAY
In the Marauders last eight games UMary is making 79.1 percent (106-of-134) of their free throws. For the season UMary is converting 73.7 percent of its free throw attempts… in back to back games against UMD and BSU – both losses – the Marauders attempted just four free throws in both games.
 
ARC WELDING
Sr. F Trevor Zacher has had some impressive efforts behind the arc in the last three weeks. In his last eight games the senior from Beulah, ND, is 22-of-45 on 3-pointers. He was 5-of-8 on treys with 17 points and 11 rebounds against Upper Iowa, went 4-of-5 for 14 points against Winona State, faltered with a 1-for-4 effort at USF before rebounding with a 4-for-6 mark and a career-best 27 points at Southwest Minnesota State. That mark also includes a 2-for-9 game against BSU. For the year his shooting percentage is .411 on treys.
 
STOP THIEF!
The Marauders are 6th in the NSIC in steals at 5.6/game. The main culprits are Jaylan White (27 steals), Tom Kubank (18), Trevor Zacher (27) and Keith Hunter (23).
 
GUARDIAN OF THE GOAL
Fr. F Matthew Kreklow has had a solid season on the defensive end. The 6-9 man in the middle is averaging 0.9 blocks/game (10th in the NSIC) and influences many other shots. Kreklow leads the team in rebounds (4.8/game). He is also picking up the pace offensively, leading the team in field goal percentage (.540, 14th in the NSIC) and is fourth among Marauders in scoring at 8.9 ppg. Kreklow was a force in the paint against UMD and SCSU. He scored 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting against the Bulldogs. Against the Huskies Kreklow was 6-of-7 from the floor and 5-of-6 at the line for a career-best 17 points.
 
FRESHMAN FIREPOWER
Matthew Kreklow is third among NSIC freshmen in scoring at 9.2 ppg, trailing only Upper Iowa's Joe Smoldt (13.6) and Minnesota Crookston's Ben Juhl (11 ppg) and just ahead of Winona State's Devin Witelow (9.2 ppg). Kreklow leads all conference freshmen in shooting percentage (.533) and rebounding (4.8 rpg).
 
DISTRIBUTION POINT
Since moving into the starting lineup in the second game of the season, Jaylan White has been one of the conference leaders in assists. The sophomore guard leads the Marauders with 4.0 assists per game, 9th in the NSIC. He had a career-high eight against Yellowstone Christian and Minnesota Crookston and six against MSU Moorhead. White is also 4th in the NSIC in assist to turnover ratio (2.7). He also has found his scoring touch, twice hitting for at least 25 points in a game and reaching double figures in both the last two games of the regular season.
 
NEW BLUE
The Marauders feature a new look in the 2017-18 season with just three players back who saw action last year for UMary. Senior forward Trevor Zacher started 13 games last season for the Marauders and is UMary's lone returner who played significant minutes. Senior forward Michael Gorder enters his fourth season at UMary and has been a key reserve. Sophomore guard Jaylan White is also back and has stepped into the starting lineup.
 
STEPPING FORWARD
While the Marauders return three players with experience playing in the Blue & Orange, not all players are new to the roster. Junior forward Tom Kubank, sophomore guard Evan Anderson, and freshmen Matthew Kreklow, Connor Hellebust and Levi Clagett all redshirted at UMary last season.
 
FIRST
Redshirt freshman Connor Hellebust and freshmen Wyatt Carr and Lucas Mayer are in their first year with the Marauders and all have made key contributions… Hellebust is scoring 5.4 ppg and making 36 percent of his trey attempts. He scored a career-high 14 points against Minnesota State… Carr chips in 5.2 ppg and is making 44 percent of his shots overall. In the Marauders last road trip, he was a combined 7-of-11 behind the arc at St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth. Carr posted a team-high 12 points at SCSU and followed with 11 against UMD. It is the second time this season he has reached double figures in consecutive games… Mayer has played in 24 of 26 games and averages 2.1 ppg with a career-high eight points against Upper Iowa.
 
FRONT LINE
The Marauders mobile front line quickly learned to play together. Senior F Trevor Zacher is second on the Marauders in scoring (11.6 ppg) and leads in 3-pointers (46) and is second in rebounding (4.7 rpg) and is shooting 47 percent… Junior F Tom Kubank is 5th in scoring at 7.5 ppg, pulls down 2.7 rebounds/game and is shooting 40 percent from the field… Freshman center Matthew Kreklow registered his first career double double with 11 points and ten rebounds against Yellowstone. He averages 9.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 0.9 blocks and is making 54 percent of his shots… Sr. F Michael Gorder moved into the starting lineup against SMSU. He posted a career-high 13 points against Bemidji State and followed with 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals against UMC on Saturday.
 
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