THIS WEEK
The University of Mary plays a pair of weekend hone games for the first time this season when the Marauders host Bemidji State University and the University of Minnesota Crookston at the McDowell Activity Center. The Marauders open the 2-game set on Friday, Dec. 17, against the Beavers. Tip off is 5:30 pm. On Saturday, Dec. 18, the Golden Eagles visit the MAC. Game time is 3:30 pm. 
 
THE RECORDS
UMary enters the week 3-7 overall and 2-3 in the Northern Sun… Bemidji State is 4-5/1-4… Minnesota Crookston is 4-7/1-4.
 
LAST WEEK
In their first Northern Sun road doubleheader of the season, the Marauders lost a pair of contests… Kai Huntsberry scored 24 points and UMary shot 54% in an 83-78 loss at St. Cloud State. Down as many as 16 points, UMary used a 21-8 run to close within 64-61 but could never close the gap further than three points. Jacob Jackson scored 12 points off the bench. Kam Warrens had 11 points and eight rebounds. Caleb Donaldson hit 12-of-13 shots and led SCSU with 31 points… Huntsberry followed with 19 points and Gertautas Urbonavicius added 10 in a 77-64 loss at 22^nd ranked Minnesota Duluth. Jackson added nine points and eight rebounds. Warrens had eight points and six boards. UMD went 23-of-26 at the line to 5-of-7 for UMary.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
After playing eight of their first ten games on the road, the Marauders play three straight at home in the McDowell Activity Center and seven of their next nine.
 
DOUBLEHEADER WEEKEND
For the first time since February 2020, the Marauders men's and women's basketball teams will play a weekend doubleheader at home with both the men and women playing on both Saturday and Sunday. Last season either the men's or women's team were home with the other on the road and played the same opponent on both Friday and Saturday.
 
WE GOT FIRST
In a change from previous seasons, the men's game will lead off Northern Sun doubleheaders for half the season with the women's game to follow. After the first game of the season opened with the women playing before the men, the UMary men will play the opening game for 11 straight contests. The teams will flip on January 21 when the women resume playing the opening game of an NSIC doubleheader with the men playing second.
 
IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Kai Huntsberry has had an immediate impact on the Marauders in his first year at UMary. The 4^th leading scorer in the NSIC had a run of five straight games with at least 22 points scored and six with 18 or more… The transfer from San Diego City College has led the Marauders in scoring in eight of ten games this season… he has scored 22 or more points six times and 18 or more eight times… The point guard from New Orleans, LA, averages 19.3 points. 5.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game and is shooting 48.3% from the field and 85.7% at the line. The team leader in scoring, assists and steals, he ranks 3^rd in the NSIC in free throw percentage, 4^th in points and assist, 13^th in steals and 19^th in shooting percentage.
 
IMMEDIATE IMPACT 2
A transfer from NCAA Division I University of North Dakota, Gertautas Urbonavicius has given he Marauders a hot scoring hand inside and out. The junior forward from Vilnius, Lithuania, has hit for double digits five out of ten games, including a high of 21 against the Bronchos. For the season Urbonavicius is second on team in scoring (9.6 ppg) and 4^th in rebounding (4.6 rpg).
 
DOUBLING DOWN
Kam Warrens and Jacob Jackson have combined for five double doubles this season… Warrens has three double doubles (12 points/12 rebounds at Central Oklahoma, 10/11 vs Mayville State, 18/10 v MSU Moorhead) and Jackson owns two (12/10 at Minot State, 11/10 vs. MSU Moorhead). Jackson accomplished the feat both times in a reserve role.
 
SPARK
Providing instant offense in a reserve role, Jacob Jackson has come off the bench to score eight or more points in eight of ten games and has reached double digits five times. He had double doubles against both Minot State and MSU Moorhead. The junior guard from Sacramento, CA, scored a season-high 14 points in a win over Sioux Falls… For the season Jackson is averaging 9.1 points/game and 4.5 rebounds/game to rank third on the team in both categories.
 
BOARD PLAY
Kam Warrens has been a force for the Marauders on the boards and has provided scoring punch for UMary. The junior wing has hauled down double digit rebounds three times. He 6.8 rebounds/game leads UMary and is 14^th in the NSIC.
 
LIVING AT THE LINE
The Marauders are once again outscoring the opposition at the free throw line. Until last weekend UMary had made more free throws than the opposition had attempted. UMary is 2^nd in the NSIC in free throw percentage at 77.8% (126-of-162) while the Marauders opponents are 113-of-154 (73.4%). The Marauders run of five straight games with more free throw makes and attempts was snapped last weekend on the road at SCSU and UMD. SCSU and UMD combined to go 37-of-40 at the line last weekend while UMary was 10-of-12.
 
BOARD PLAY
UMary has outrebounded five of ten opponents this season. The Marauders are 8^th among NSIC teams with a rebounding margin of +3.4 rebounds/game.
 
I KNOW YOU
Marauders new head coach Jack Nelson picked up his first two UMary coaching wins against a pair of schools at which he had been an assistant coach. Nelson picked up his first win at Minot State, where he was an assistant coach from 2012-16. His second win came against Sioux Falls, where Nelson coached the previous three years in his second stint with the Cougars.
 
HISTORY LESSON - MARAUDERS v. BEAVERS
Mary leads the series with BSU 18-13… The series began in 1971 with a 92-87 home win for the Marauders… The two teams played twice in the 1987 season with each school winning at home… Since becoming a member of the NSIC, Mary captured the first five meetings before BSU broke through with a home win in the 2009-10 season… After six straight losses to the Beavers, the Marauders swept the season series in 2014-15 and 2015-16… The two teams have split their season series the last five years… UMary has won six out of its last eight games in Bemidji… both games were played in Bemidji last year.
 
HISTORY LESSON - MARAUDERS v. GOLDEN EAGLES
Since joining the Northern Sun for the 2006-07 season, the Marauders are 21-9 against the Golden Eagles… UMary is 13-3 at home and 8-6 away versus UMC… The Marauders are 13-6 in the last 16 outings against the Golden Eagles… UMary and UMC split a pair of home games for the Marauders last spring. UMC won game 1 72-58 before UMary rebounded for a 73-60 victory to snap a 4-game losing skid to the Golden Eagles. Trever Kaiser led UMary with 18 points, Wyatt Carr had 15 and Matthew Kreklow posted a double double with 11 points and 10 rebounds while dishing five assists.
 
CENTURY MARK
A trio of Bismarck Century High School graduates are playing key roles for the Marauders this season. Josh Sipes, the Marauders NSIC Player to Watch this year, is shooting a team-best 42.4% from behind the arc, is second on the team in made treys (14) and averages 5.2 ppg… Kade Amundson has started all ten games for UMary this season at forward and averages 5.2 ppg while shooting 45.5% from the floor and 100%% (8-for-8) at the line… Treyton Mattern has started eight games and averages 3.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game… Additionally the Marauders look for Lucas Mayer to rejoin the lineup after he recovers from injury… All four played for former UMary men's basketball player Darrin Mattern (and Treyton's father) at Century.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW YOUR MARAUDERS LIVE ONLINE

• Links to live streaming video, game stats and radio streams are available at www.GoUMary.com/coverage
• Live video also streamed at www.NSICNetwork.com/goumary
• Fox Sports 710 AM radio broadcasts available online at https://foxsports710.iheart.com/

 
MARAUDERS HOME BASKETBALL GAMES AIRING LIVE ON FOX SPORTS 710
All University of Mary men's and women's basketball home and Northern Sun games air live on Fox Sports 710 AM. Voice of the Marauders Jesse Rostvedt calls all the action this season from the McDowell Activity Center.
 
THE BORTKE COURT MAC ATTACK
The Marauders once again found success on Bortke Court in the McDowell Activity Center. 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:   9-  5
2019-20:   8-7
2020-21:   2-6
2021-22:   1-1
 
The Marauders once won 27 straight home games for Coach Bortke at the MAC (February 19, 1976 thru November 11, 1978).
 
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