Minnesota State University Moorhead

MOORHEAD, Minn. - A young 2009-10 Dragons men’s basketball team is keeping its goals realistic  as they come into the season with  more depth, new faces on the coaching staff and a new outlook for the upcoming year.

“We have a very young team,” Head Coach Stu Engen said. “They are learning daily and will hopefully prosper while working together and growing throughout the season.”

The 2008-09 team fell short of their goal of making it to the NSIC tournament, with a 6-10 league record they placed ninth when the top eight teams qualify for the tournament. The team finished the season with a 10-16 overall mark.

The team had some ups and downs last season, as big wins such as defeating No. 1 regionally ranked Northern State, twice, was also countered with the lack of depth the Dragons had on their bench and primarily in the post position.

For the 2009-10 season the coaching staff has made a few additions to increase their post presence but also give depth in all spots on the court.

Not only will the fans see new faces on the court they will also see changes in the team’s administration as Engen added two new assistants to his team. Eric Peterson and Jon Wepking joined the Dragons staff mid-summer.

Peterson comes to MSUM after serving as the assistant coach at Williston State College for the past three seasons, where his duties extended beyond coaching and  included all of recruitment, fundraising and coordinating all aspects of WSC’s camps.

“Eric has a lot of experience coaching and recruiting,” Engen said. “His experience in both will aid our team and help us get to another level.”

Wepking starts his first year on the Dragons staff after lettering two-seasons at MSUM and serving last season as the voice of Dragons Halftime Newsbreak and the sideline radio analyst.

“Jon is a first time coach who brings our team a lot of creative and technical skills,” Engen said. “His abilities on and off the court will help enhance our program.”

Even with the addition of new players and coaches the Dragons will still have to overcome the loss of second team All-Conference and second team All-Region honoree, Justin Burgess and the 2008-09 free-throw leader Grant Fossum.

“Justin was a deceptively quick guard,” Engen said. “He had awesome offensive skills, handled the ball well and was always a game-shooter.”

“Grant was one of our best perimeter defenders,” Engen said. “His presence on defense and on the free-throw line will be missed as we start our season.”

Replacing Burgess and Fossum may be difficult for this young team of 12 underclassmen and two players in each of the junior and senior class, but the depth that was added will help the Dragons throughout the season.

Captaining the team will be senior Jerome Nelson and sophomore Chad Thompson. They are being honored by their team for their strong defensive skills in the 2008-09 season, but both bring different leadership qualities to the team.

“Jerome is one of the most vocal and unselfish players on the team,” Engen said. “His accountability and maturity has made him a leader both on and off the court.”

“Chad has a very high level of energy,” Engen said. “His ability to excite the team and play tough defense at a sophomore level makes him a great example of a leader for our young team.”

Around the Court
Although missing last season’s leading scorer, the Dragons offensive scheme will rebound this season with the addition of more post players and will return a hefty line-up of capable ball handlers and perimeter shooters to cause the MSUM front-court to be more dangerous.

Both captains will be joined by sophomores Andrew VanHavermaet and Jake Driscoll as the top-contenders for the starting guards.

Nelson returns after averaging 6.6 points and 2.8 rebound in 2008-09 with a three-point percentage of .471, draining 24 behind the arc last season.

C. Thompson started 20 games as a freshman last year, after playing the first six games as the first player off the bench. The team’s Defender of the Year, he also averaged 4.7 points per game last season and dished out a team high 64 assists.

VanHavermaet is the leading scorer that will be returning to the team as he averaged 9.6 points over the 25 contests he played in last year.

“Andrew is a very smart guard and great shooter,” Engen said. “He knows how to get the ball to his teammates as well as when to take smart shots, and has grown a lot over the summer to aid his development into one of our team leaders.”

Driscoll was close to VanHavermaet’s points total of a year ago, averaging 9.2 points and 1.3 boards per game. He led the team in free-throw percentage last season going 49-for-56 on the season.

“Jake is a natural scorer that has the knack to get to the free-throw line,” Engen said. “He is very smart on the court and always finds a way to get the shot off.”

Chuck Anakwenze and Jordan May are expected to make an impact off the bench this season as they will challenge the top returners at the guard position. Anakwenze is coming off a long recovery from medical redshirting last season. May, the Fargo North High School standout, transferred to MSUM this fall after redshirting at the University of North Dakota last year.

Returning guards Andy Thompson, Jordan Driscoll and sophomore Brent Egan will also see time on the court.

With the lack of depth at the post position last season, this season’s starting positions are up in the air with two returners and two true freshman gunning for the roles.

Sophomores Xavier Reed and Dennis Williamson bring the needed knowledge of the Dragon’s system to the court while freshmen Alex Novak and Eric Olson will come to MSUM after outstanding high school careers.

Reed returns as the only post to start a majority of last season’s games with 20 under his belt. He averaged 3.5 rebounds and 7.1 points per game during his rookie campaign.

“As an undersized post he is very skilled around the hoop,” Engen said. “He is a solid mid-range shooter and if he can attack the boards better this season, he could be one of our top guys.”

Williamson, although on the roster last season as a redshirt, will see his first playing time on the court this year. He came to the Dragons after a year at Sheridan College (Wyo.), following an outstanding year that saw him grab the second-most rebounds in the State of Minnesota during his senior season at Robbinsdale-Cooper High School.

“Dennis is a very physical post and that is what we need right now,” Engen said.

Novak a native of Oxford, Iowa, was a second team All-State selection at Clear Creek Amana High School. He averaged 18.6 points, 11.4 rebounds and 5.0 blocks as a senior.

“Alex is our top recruit coming in this season,” Engen said. “He is a very raw post with a lot of potential.”

Olson earned three basketball letters at Mount Vernon High School in Mount Vernon, Iowa, while averaging 13.4 points and 10.8 rebounds per game last year. He also had 85 blocks in the season with approximately 3.8 per game.

“Eric will be one of the most physical players on our team,” Engen said. “He is big and powerful and is really talented when it comes to rebounding.”

Returners Dwayne Hardy and Chris Conley will also be vying for time as a Dragons post. Hardy led the team in rebounds in four games last season while Conley averaged 2.4 rebounds per game while playing an average of nine minutes a game.

SCHEDULE
In a conference that boasts seven of the eight teams that were featured in the 2009 NCAA DII Championship’s Central Region tournament, the Dragons will have their work cut out for them in 2009-10.

The Dragons start the 2009-10 season with two widely anticipated exhibition games, facing both NCAA DI North Dakota State in a battle across the river while traveling the second week in Nov. to Minneapolis to face the University of Minnesota Gophers.

MSUM’s regular season will begin with a conference competition against the University of Mary (N.D.) and will follow with a pre-holiday tournament at St. Cloud State.

The battle of Moorhead will commence on Nov. 24 as the Dragons will host the Concordia Cobbers in a non-conference contest at Alex Nemzek Hall, in the 179th meeting between the two teams. The following weekend will continue with a non-conference game against Mayville State.

In December the Dragons will face four conference teams in back-to-back weekends. This will include traveling to both Bemidji State and Minnesota Duluth and then returning home to host conference leaders in top-ranked St. Cloud State and Concordia, St. Paul.

To end the semester, the Dragons will face two North Dakota rivals in Jamestown and Dickinson State.

After the team returns from winter break, they will again face tough conference competitors as they host the NCAA DII Central Region champions Southwest Minnesota State on Jan. 2 and will follow with MSU, Mankato the next evening.

A road trip to Augustana (S.D.) and Wayne State (Neb.) brings the Dragons back home mid-month to play three games on their home court.

The team will host Minnesota, Crookston and follow with back-to-back games against Winona State and Upper Iowa.

The Dragons will travel to rival’s Northern State at the end of January. Northern State will be looking for revenge as the Dragons took down the Wolves in both contests last season.

A game against Mary and then two more on the road against SMSU and MSU, Mankato push the Dragons to mid-February, where they will host BSU and UMD.

MSUM will travel to St. Paul to face CU and then will host NSU before ending their season against Minnesota, Crookston on the road on Feb. 27.

The top eight teams in the conference will play in the NSIC tournament starting on March 3 before the NCAA Regional Tournament begin on the 6th.