THIS WEEK
For the first time in four weeks, the University of Mary men's basketball team plays on their homecourt at the McDowell Activity Center when the Marauders host a pair of teams from the Northern Sun South division. First up is a visit from the Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears on Friday, Jan. 4, at 7:30 pm. The weekend concludes when the Marauders host the Minnesota State University Mavericks on Saturday, Jan. 5, at 5:30 pm.
 
THE RECORD
The Marauders are 6-6 overall and 3-3 in the Northern Sun overall and the Northern Sun North division.
 
HOME RESPITE
The Marauders are in the midst of playing 7-of-9 games on the road. This weekend is the only time the Marauders are at home over a seven week span. UMary last played at the MAC on December 8, a thrilling 73-70 overtime win over Minnesota Duluth. After hosting Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota State on Jan. 4-5, the Marauders spend two more weekends on the road before returning Jan. 25-26 for Alumni Weekend and a visit from Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Jaylan White scored 20 points and Tom Kubank 16 in a Marauders 77-61 road loss to Minot State University on Dec. 30, UMary's last game of the 2018 calendar year. In addition to his team-high 20 points, White added five assists and went 2-of-3 behind the arc. Kubank also hit a pair of 3s and made all six of his free throws. Keyed by a 20-4 run, 60 percent shooting and a 6-of-8 effort from behind the arc, the Beavers built a 47-24 lead at intermission. Refusing to go away, UMary used an 18-4 run midway through the second half to close within 65-54 but could never cut the deficit to single digits. The Marauders outscored the Beavers 37-30 after intermission. Matthew Kreklow had a big day on the defensive end for UMary, posting a career-high six blocks. Of his ten rebounds seven were on the defensive end. The sophomore forward also added seven points and three assists. Connor Hellebust chipped in seven points and six rebounds. Justin Engg added six points off the bench and Trever Kaiser had five. David Akibo led Minot State with 29 points, 14 rebounds, four blocks and four steals and was named the NSIC North Player of the Week. Drake Jeffries was 5-of-6 behind the arc and scored 21 points.
 
REJECTED
Soph. forward Matthew Kreklow blocked six Minot State field goal attempts in the Dec. 30 game to tie the Marauders NCAA-era record for blocks in a single game. All-NSIC performer Damon Smith had six blocks against Wayne State College on Dec. 10, 2011. In addition to his career-high in blocks, Kreklow also snared a team-high 10 rebounds.
 
DEEEE-FENSE
The Marauders are posting impressive defensive figures. UMary is second in the Northern Sun in scoring defense (65.3 ppg), sixth in field goal percentage defense (.425) and fifth in steals (6.9).
 
DEEEE-FENSE PART 2
The Marauders stand 25th in NCAA Division II in points allowed per game (65.3 ppg).
 
POINT REDUCTION PROGRAM
The Marauders defense has made tremendous strides on the defensive front, allowing 12 fewer points per game than a year ago. The Marauders are giving up just 65.3 points per game after allowing the opposition 77 ppg last season… UMary has also held the opposition to a shooting percentage of 42.5 percent after teams made 48.4 percent of their field goal attempts last season, boosting the Marauders from 15th a year ago on the NSIC leaderboard to 5th now. 
 
VICTORY!
With six wins, the Marauders have already matched last year's win total. The Marauders need just one more conference victory to match last year's total of four.
 
FAST BREAK

• After three games on the road, the Marauders return home to host the Golden Bears and the Mavericks
• This is the first crossover weekend of the season for the Marauders when UMary hosts Northern Sun South division schools Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota State
• 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 12 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 3.5 points per game
• Six Marauders average at least 2.3 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 12 outings already this season.

 
FREE THROW FOLLOWTHROUGH
UMary is shooting 70.8 percent (150-of-212) from the free throw line to their opponent's 67.2 percent (117-of-174)… The Marauders have made more free throws than the opposition nine times and attempted more eight times in 12 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 5-4 when making more free throws than the opposition.
 
TURNOVER TOWN
The Marauders are +2.08 in turnovers, the 6th-best mark in the NSIC.
 
DOWN UNDER
Sr. F Tom Kubank is second on the Marauders in scoring this season with much of his production from behind the arc. The Adelaide, South Australia, native averages 11.7 points/game and makes 2.1 treys/game, 15th in the NSIC… he is 25-of-68 behind the arc (36.8 percent)… in back-to-back games Kubank tied his career-high in rebounds with 12 in wins over Minnesota Duluth and MSU Moorhead. He is second on the Marauders in rebounding (5.6 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 5th in the NSIC in blocked shots at 1.9/game. He tied the Marauders NCAA-era record with six blocks at Minot State on Dec. 30. He also had four against Mayville State and three against Minnesota Duluth… He is third on the team in scoring (11.3 ppg) and leads in rebounds (5.8 rebounds/game)… The post player knocked down all ten of his free throw attempts in a win over Minnesota Duluth and is 36-of-45 at the line to rank 17th in the NSIC in free throw percentage (.800)… posted double double with 14 points and 10 rebounds against SD Mines… reached double figures in rebounds against Mines and at Minot State.
 
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 14.0 points per game (22nd in the NSIC)… one of the top free throw shooters in the NSIC, the junior is 51-of-61 at the line to rank tenth in the league with an .836 free throw percentage… White is fourth in the NSIC in assist/turnover ratio (2.4) and ninth in assists (3.4/game)… he has led the Marauders in scoring seven times, including a career-best 29 points against Minnesota Duluth… also scored 20 points at Minot State.
 
HEATING UP
So. G Connor Hellebust is heating up. The Bismarck, ND, native posted double digit points in two of his last two games with 12 points at MSU Moorhead and 20 at Northern State… recent three-game stretch saw him hit 7-of-12 trey attempts, including a 3-for-5 effort against the Wolves, while making at least two treys in each contest during that stretch… has had five or more rebounds in four straight games.   
 
OPPO RESEARCH: CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL GOLDEN BEARS
Despite possessing two of the top scorers in the Northern Sun, the Golden Bears are in search of their first Northern Sun victory of the season. CSP is 5-7 overall and 0-6 in the NSIC. They are also searching for their first road win (0-4). Bryndan Matthews averages 20.8 points/game to rank fifth in the NSIC and 43^rd in NCAA Division II. He is third in the conference in rebounding and 43^rd nationally (9.0 rebounds/game) and is fifth in the NSIC and 84th in the nation in assists per game (4.7). Additionally Matthews is first in the NSIC and 20th in the nation in field goal percentage (62.3%) while playing a conference-high 38.8 minutes per game. The senior is fifth in school history in points (1,516) and rebounds (689). Isaiah McKay is 8^th in the NSIC and 58^th nationally in scoring (19.8 ppg) and makes 2.7 treys/game. CSP averages 82.1 ppg but allow 86.1 ppg with the opposition making 45 percent of their field goal attempts. The Golden Bear's turnover margin of- -2.17 is 15^th in the league.
 
HISTORY LESSON – MARAUDERS V. GOLDEN BEARS
UMary trails in the all-time series with Concordia-St. Paul 13-8… The Marauders won the first two meetings between the schools in the 1980s when both were members of the NAIA… When Mary joined the NSIC in 2006-07, CSP won the next five meetings… The Marauders broke their losing streak to the Golden Bears with an 83-74 win at the NSIC Holiday HoopsFest on November 29, 2009, soon followed with a 75-68 win at the MAC on January 23, 2010, behind 24 points by Eric Erdmann. It was the first NSIC win for UMary over CSP… UMary is 2-6 at home against CSP and 6-7 on the road... CSP won the last meeting 70-66 on Jan. 12, 2018, in Bismarck, ND, as the Golden Bears outscored the homestanding Marauders 14-2 in the last three minutes of the game. Tom Kubank and Keith Hunter both had 16 points for UMary. Avan Ward led CSP with 27 points.
 
OPPO RESEARCH: MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY MAVERICKS
Consistently one of the top teams in the Northern Sun and the nation, Minnesota State made its 14^th NCAA tournament appearance last season. The Mavericks enter this weekend with a 9-3 record, including a 5-1 NSIC record. MSU has won six of its last seven games, including a 92-60 road win over Concordia-St. Paul in its most recent outing. The Mavericks average 85.1 points and 39.9 rebounds per game while shooting 46.7% from the field. Four Mavericks are averaging 13 points or more a game this season, including Jr. F Cameron Kirksey, the team's leading scorer at 16.8 points per game. He also averages 4.8 rebounds/game. Sr. Carlos Anderson posts 14.8 ppg and 6.3 rpg. Jr. Kevin Krieger checks in at 15.1 ppg and a team-high 9.3 rpg. Jr. Juwan McCloud chips in 13.0 ppg and 2.9 assists/game. Head coach Matt Margenthaler owns a career record of 384-156 (.711) in 18 seasons at Minnesota State.
 
HISTORY LESSON – MARAUDERS V. MAVERICKS
The Marauders are 3-11 all-time against the Mavericks… … UMary had claimed back-to-back wins before MSU ended the Marauders 2017 season 87-78 in the opening round of the NSIC tournament… UMary snapped a 5-game losing streak to Minnesota State with a 96-91 overtime win in the 2016 NSIC quarterfinals… The two teams first met Dec. 12, 2008, in Bismarck with the Mavericks winning 83-61… After losing the first four games in the series, UMary claimed its first win 84-69 at home on January 15, 2011 as All-American Anthony Moody hit eight treys and scored 31 points and Jordan Wilhelm added five three pointers and 17 points… The Marauders picked up their first win at the Taylor Center 75-61 on January 14, 2017… MSU earned an 80-64 win at UMary Jan. 13, 2018, in the last meeting between the two teams. The Mavericks hit 12-of-17 treys in the game and shot 62.2 percent overall. Keith Hunter led UM with 17 points and Connor Hellebust had 14. Cameron Kirksey led MSU with 26.  
 
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 not only 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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