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MOORHEAD, Minn. -- The Minnesota State University Moorhead men's basketball team will face Upper Iowa in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference/Sanford Tournament quarterfinals at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

MSUM (20-7) is the top seed from the NSIC's North Division and won the division title, its first conference crown in 32 years.  The Dragons are 6-12 all-time in the tournament but a solid 4-3 under Head Coach Chad Walthall.

The Dragons will meet Upper Iowa for a 17th time with the series being tied at 8-8. The Peacocks edged the Dragons, 109-107 in overtime in January in Moorhead, Minn.

The winner of the game on Saturday will face the winner of the St. Cloud State-Winona State game at 2:30 p.m. on Monday in Sioux Falls, S.D.

About MSUM
The Dragons (20-7) opened the NSIC/Sanford Tournament with a 68-64 win over Concordia-St. Paul on Wednesday. Junior guard Malik Wood led the way with 16 points.

Senior Tarell Clark leads MSUM in scoring (12.3 points per game), rebounding (8.7), total steals (37) and is shooting 53.4 percent from the field. Sophomore Tyler Vaughan is second at 11.3 points per game while junior forward Urbane Bingham is at 11.0 and junior Jordan Riewer is at 10.7. Riewer leads at 3.5 assists per game.

As a team, MSUM scores 85.7 points per game and is shooting 47.8 percent from the field. The Dragons are shooting 38.3 percent from three-point range. The Dragons outrebound their opposition, 39.1-31.6. MSUM allows 74.4 points per game and teams shoot 45.5  percent against the Dragons.

Chad Walthall is in his fourth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 75-40.

About Upper Iowa
Upper Iowa is 16-13 entering Saturday's game. The Peacocks rallied from a 22-point deficit to beat Minnesota Duluth, 86-81 in the opening round of the tournament on Wednesday in Fayette, Iowa. Joey Woods led the way with 22 points.

Woods, a first-team All-NSIC selection, leads Upper Iowa at 17.5 points and 4.7 assists per game. Josh Weeber averages 12.8 points per game while Grant Lang averages 12.6 and Jimmy Roth 10.4.  Bo Pagel leads at 3.7 rebounds per game while Woods has 38 steals.

As a team, Upper Iowa scores 84 points per game and shoots 44.6 percent from the field.  The Peacocks are being outrebounded by their opponents 39.5-34.2 and allow 83.7 points per game.

Brooks McKowen is in his first season as Upper Iowa's head coach with a record of 16-13.

Dragons Regionally Ranked
MSUM has cracked the top 10 in the latest Central Region rankings which were announced on Feb. 25. The Dragons are ranked 10th in the latest poll. The NSIC, the Great American Conference (GAC) and the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association make up the NCAA Central Region again this year.  The top eight teams in the region will advance to the NCAA region tournament on March 15-16, 18.  Automatic bids are granted to the winners of the NSIC, GAC and MIAA postseason tournaments, with the remaining five spots are awarded on an at-large basis.

All-NSIC Honors
Senior guard Tarell Clark and junior Jordan Riewer both were named to the All-NSIC Second Team this year. Clark leads the Dragons in scoring at 12.3 points per game while Riewer averages 10.7 per game.

Dragons Hit 20
For the second time in three years, the MSUM men have reached the 20-win plateau, both coming under Walthall. The Dragons now have eight 20-win seasons in program history.

Cleaning the Glass
MSUM leads the NSIC in offensive rebounds per game at 13.19, which is 57th-best in the nation. Clark leads the NSIC in that category at 3.15 per game, which is ranked 53rd in the nation.

Riewer Ranked at the Line
Riewer is ranked second in all of Division II in free-throw percentage at 94.7 percent (minimum 2.5 made per game), trailing only Sioux Falls' Derek Brown (96.1 percent).

Statistical Rankings/National
MSUM ranks in the top 30 in the nation (out of 290 teams in Division II) in three areas as of Feb. 25.
--rebounding margin, 16th (+7.3)
--scoring offense, 22nd (86.3)
--free throw attempts, 23rd (719)
--scoring margin, 24th (+11.5)

Tarell's Time
Senior Tarell Clark is having a solid all-round season for MSUM. He leads MSUM in scoring (12.3), rebounding (8.7 per game) and steals (37). Clark is shooting 53.4 percent from the field and also has an impressive 86 offensive rebounds. Clark scored a career-high 28 points on 10-of-16 shooting in MSUM's 87-63 win over Minnesota Crookston on Jan. 18. Twice this season, he has pulled down a career-high 18 rebounds; the latest was on Feb. 8 against Minnesota Duluth.