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MOORHEAD, Minn. -- The Minnesota State University Moorhead men's basketball team plays its final game of the 2013 calendar year on Saturday night at Northern State. Game time is 7 p.m. in Aberdeen, S.D.
The Dragons are 9-0 overall and 5-0 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. MSUM is tied with Winona State atop the NSIC standings.
MSUM will meet Bemidji State for a 98th time with the Wolves holding a 63-34 lead. The Dragons beat Northern State, 87-76 earlier this season at Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse.
About MSUM
The Dragons maintained extended their season-opening winning streak to nine with a pair of home wins last weekend. MSUM opened with a 77-68 win over Bemidji State on Friday with junior
Jordan Riewer leading the way at 16 points. A night later, junior
Prescott Williams scored a career-high 22 points to help the Dragons roll past Minnesota Crookston, 102-77.
Riewer leads the Dragons at 11.0 points per game, while junior forward
Urbane Bingham is at 10.4 points per contest. Sophomore guard
Tyler Vaughan is at 10.1 points per game. Senior
Tarell Clark leads at 6.4 rebounds per game while also leading with 12 steals. Riewer leads with 35 assists.
MSUM scores an NSIC-best 88.9 points per game and is shooting 50.0 percent from the field, including 44.8 percent from three-point range. The Dragons outrebound their foes 41.2-29.8 and are allowing 63.8 points per contest.
Chad Walthall is in his fourth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 64-33 at the school.
About Northern State
Northern State is 9-2 overall and 4-1 in the NSIC. The Wolves swept a pair of conference games at home last weekend, beating Minnesota Crookston, 79-64 on Friday, thanks to 24 points from senior Trent Zomer, and then topping Bemidji State, 75-59 on Saturday with Zomer again leading with 14 points.
Four Wolves' players average in double figures, led by Seth Bachand at 12.5 points per game and Skye Warwick at 12.2. Zomer averages 11.9 points per game while also leading at 6.8 rebounds per game. Tydan Storrusten averages 10.4 points per game and also leads with 32 assists.
The Wolves score 81.1 points per game and are shooting 51.3 percent from the field. Northern State is allowing 72.4 points per game and teams are shooting 43.6 points per game against them Wolves. Northern State outrebounds its foes 33.5-31.6.
Paul Sather is in his fourth season as Northern State's head coach with a record of 54-40 at the school.
Statistical Rankings/National
MSUM ranks in the top 20 in the nation (out of 290 teams in Division II) in four areas:
--scoring margin, fifth (+25.1)
--three-point field goal percentage, fifth (44.8 percent).
--rebound margin,13th (11.4)
--scoring defense, 19th (63.8)
Statistical Rankings/NSIC
Through nine games, MSUM leads the NSIC in the several categories:
--scoring offense (88.9)
--scoring defense (63.8)
--scoring margin (+27.4)
--3-point field goal percentage (44.8 percent)
--three-point field goals per game (9.6)
Balancing act
A key to MSUM's unbeaten start has been balance. Three Dragons -- Riewer (11.0), Bingham (10.4) and Vaughan (10.1) -- all are averaging in double figures. . However, a total of seven MSUM players are averaging at least seven points a game or more. Nine players have scored in double figures at least once, and seven different players have led the team in scoring through nine games. Six Dragons have recorded career-highs this season.
