WHAT'S AHEAD
MOORHEAD, Minn.--The No. 4 Minnesota State University Moorhead men's basketball team (32-3) will play Pittsburg State on Saturday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Tip off is slated for 2:30 p.m. from the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
The Dragons are playing in their second NCAA Tournament under head coach Chad Walthall. Walthall led MSUM to a first round victory over Southwest Minnesota State in 2012 before falling to Colorado School of Mines the next night. Before 2012, the last NCAA Tournament appearance for MSUM was 1964.
MSUM is currently ranked No. 4 in the latest National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II poll, released on Mar. 10. The Dragons jumped up one spot after falling to No. 2 Augustana in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Tournament Championship Game on Tuesday. The Dragons are also ranked No. 4 in the Bennett Rankings.
MSUM and Pittsburg State have never faced each other before. This season, PSU is 4-2 against teams MSUM has played this season. The Gorillas lost to Augustana and Northern State in the opening weekend of the season. PSU did beat Fort Hays State and Northwest Missouri State twice. MSUM defeated Northwest Missouri State and Fort Hays State to start the season, defeated Northern State by 20 twice, and has lost to Augustana twice.Â
As a team, Pittsburg Stat ranks second in the MIAA in scoring defense (65.8), third in free throw percentage (.736), third in steals (7.2), and fourth in field goal percentage (.484).
Sophomore guard Josiah Gustafson leads the team in scoring with 15.6 points per game (eighth in the MIAA) and is third in the conference in free throw percentage at .838.
A LOOK BACK: NSIC TOURNAMENT
MSUM defeated Upper Iowa 94-87 in a high scoring quarterfinal affair behind a season high 24 points from junior guard Tyler Vaughan and 23 points from sophomore guard Aaron Lien.
The Dragons managed to get to the free throw line 21 times in the second half, preserving a first half lead that was five points heading into halftime. Lien was 6-of-7 from the free throw line in the half, while senior guard Jordan Riewer was 6-of-6, and sophomore forward Matt Nelson was 5-of-6. Lien put the Dragons up for good after draining a three-point shot from the right wing with 1:20 left.
A running jump shot in the middle of the lane as time expired from Riewer was the difference as the MSUM defeated Minnesota State Mankato 81-80 in the semifinals.
The Dragons watched a 16-point second half lead evaporate as MSU Mankato utilized an 18-0 run to grab a 63-61 lead with 7:03 left in the game. Mankato's Zach Monaghan hit a three-pointer with five seconds remaining to give the Mavericks an 80-79 lead, only to be one-upped by Riewer's game winner as the buzzer sounded.
MSUM fell to Augustana for the second time this season, this time 98-82 in the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament Championship. Freshman guard Tanner Kretchman scored a career high 16 points in the game while Riewer scored 19 points and tied a career high with nine assists.
The score was tied seven times in the first 12 minutes of the game, as both teams hit big shots in a back-and-forth battle. Junior guard Ngijol Songolo hit a three point from the right wing to give MSUM a 9-6 lead, followed by back-to-back three's from Augustana's Tanner Odegaard, then a three from Lien from the right wing to make the score 12-12. The Vikings ended the half on a 15-5 run to take a 49-36 lead heading into the break.
Augustana's hot start carried over to the second half as its lead grew to 18 after Daniel Jansen scored his first points of the night to make the score 58-40 with 15:59 left.Â
Lien and Kretchman provided a spark for MSUM near the mid-point of the half as Lien grabbed a steal and finished with a dunk on a fast break and Kretchman drained a three-pointer in back-to-back possessions. The spark put the Dragons within 10 at 68-58. Kretchman provided 11 points down the stretch, including three three-pointers to keep the Dragons close. His last three put the Dragons within six, but Augustana came away with the victory in the end.
VAUGHAN AND RIEWER EARN NSIC ALL TOURNAMENT HONORS
•Junior guard Tyler Vaughan and senior guard Jordan Riewer were named to the NSIC All Tournament Team for their performances in the Dragons' run to the NSIC Championship Game.
•Vaughan averaged 13.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in MSUM's 4-game run, highlighted by 24 and 21-point outputs in wins over Upper Iowa and Minnesota State Mankato. Vaughan set a season high in points (24) and matched a season high in three pointers made with five in the Upper Iowa victory. Vaughan drained three consecutive three-pointers in a 90-second span in the first half to help MSUM grab a nine point lead. Vaughan became the go-to guy for the Dragons over the weekend, again turning to the hot shooting junior for production in the Minnesota State Mankato game. Vaughan's production got the Dragons offense going as the Braham, Minn. native scored 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field in the first half against the Mavericks. Vaughan ended the game with 21 points and had two three-pointers in the final six minutes to help MSUM stage off defeat.
•Riewer averaged 16 points and 6.8 assists per game through the NSIC Tournament, his best game coming in the championship game as the point guard scored 19 points and tied a career high with nine assists. Riewer averaged 34 minutes a game in the tournament and was a perfect 13-of-13 from the free throw line.
KRETCHMAN ON THE BIG STAGE
Head Coach Chad Walthall need a spark to get his team within striking distance in the second half of the NSIC Championship Game. For that spark, he turned to freshman guard Tanner Kretchman. Kretchman, who scored two points from the free throw line in the first half, entered the second half around the 11-minute mark and made an immediate impact. The Fargo Davies grad scored 11 points in six minutes, including three three-pointers. His last three put the Dragons within seven points with five minutes remaining. Kretchman set career highs in points (16), field goals made (five), and three-pointers made (four) in the game.
TOP 10 IN 11 NCAA D-II CATEGORIES
•The Dragons rank in the top-10 in the nation as a team in 11 different categories:
•1st in Turnovers per game: 8.3. The Dragons have turned the ball over eight or fewer times 17 times this season.
•1st in Assist to Turnover Ratio: 1.94. Jordan Riewer ranks third in the nation with a mark of 3.67.
•2nd in Total Three-Point Field Goals Made: 355. Jordan Riewer leads the team with 99 while Tyler Vaughan has 68.
•3rd in Total Assists: 564. Jordan Riewer has 198 assists this season, ranked fifth in the nation.
•3rd in Scoring Margin: +17.4. MSUM has won 27 games by 11 or more points and 16 by 20 or more points.
•4th in Win-Loss Percentage: .914. The Dragons have the most wins among any team in Division-II at 32.
•4th in Three-Point Field Goal Percentage: .421. Jordan Riewer is ranked first in the nation at 51.6 percent (99-of-192).
•5th in Total Rebounds: 1,259. Prescott Williams leads the team with 166 rebounds, Jordan Riewer has 162.
•6th in Fewest Turnovers: 290. No Dragon has committed more than 54 turnovers this season.
•6th in Field Goal Percentage: .506. All 10 Dragon players who have seen action this season are shooting over 40 percent from the field.
•7th in Total Three-Point Field Goal Attempts: 844. On average, the Dragons shoot 24.1 three-pointers per game.
FIRST IN SEVEN NSIC CATEGORIES
•Scoring defense: 66.9. MSUM has held its opponents to 70 points or under in 22 games this season.Â
•Three-point field goals made per game: 10.1. Three Dragons players have hit at least 64 three-pointers. Jordan Riewer leads the way with 99, followed by Tyler Vaughan (68) and Aaron Lien (64).
•Assist to turnover ratio: 1.94. The Dragons have recorded 564 assists this season compared to only 290 turnovers. Jordan Riewer leads the NSIC with an assist to turnover ratio of 3.67 (198:54).Â
•Field Goal Percentage: .506. Three Dragons are shooting over 50 percent from the field this season: Isaac Sevlie at .595 (157-of-264), Jordan Riewer at .521 (190-of-365), and Aaron Lien at .508 (159-of-313).
•Scoring margin: +17.4. Highlighted by a 71-point victory over Presentation College on Dec. 2.
•Three-point field goal percentage: .421. Jordan Riewer leads the conference, making 51.6 percent (99-of-192) of three-pointers shot this year.
•Free Throw Percentage: .759. Two Dragons shoot over .800 from the line and five Dragons shoot at least .700.
RIEWER'S GAME WINNER SINKS THE MAVS
•When the Dragons needed him the most, senior guard Jordan Riewer came through in a big way. The Dragons witnessed a 16-point second half lead evaporate as the Mavericks hit a three pointer with 45 seconds to pull within one point. Sophomore guard Aaron Lien responded with a three-pointer of his own to push MSUM's lead back to four with 15 seconds left. Maverick guard Connor Miller then converted two free throws with 10 seconds left. The Dragons turned the ball over after that point, leaving Zach Monaghan to drain a three pointer with five seconds left to give Minnesota State an 80-79 advantage. Then, Riewer took matters into his own hands. Riewer grabbed the outlet pass and raced to the other side of floor. The senior leader got to the middle of the lane and pushed up a floater that just missed two Maverick defender's fingertips and fell threw the net for two points as time expired, giving MSUM an 81-80 victory, advancing them to the NSIC Championship Game.
SEVLIE ON NSIC FIRST TEAM, LIEN ON NSIC SECOND TEAM
•Junior forward Isaac Sevlie was named to the All Conference First Team and is averaging 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. Sevlie leads the Dragons in blocks with 51 and field goal percentage at .595 (157-of-264). The junior forward is shooting 79.7 percent (122-of-153) from the free throw line this season. The Red Wing, Minn. native is second in the NSIC in blocks per game at 1.5 and fifth in field goal percentage at .595. Sevlie has scored in double digits in 21 of 35 games this season, including 20 or more points in five games since Jan. 3.
•Sevlie won the NSIC North Division player of the week honor on Jan. 5 after leadin the Dragons to two road wins. The Dragon forward scored 18 points in a victory over Upper Iowa on Jan. 2, then had 21 points and eight rebounds in a win over Winona State on Jan 3. Sevlie also made a career high 11 free throws in the game.
•Sophomore guard Aaron Lien earned All Conference Second Team honors after averaging 12.4 points (third on team) and 3.9 rebounds per game. The Moorhead, Minn. native is shooting 50.8 percent (159-of-313) from the field, 41.8 percent (64-of-153) from the three-point line, and 81.3 percent (52-of-64) from the free throw line.
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A LOOK AT THE OPPONENT... PITTSBURG STATE
Record: 20-11, 12-7 MIAA
Last Game: Defeated Missouri Southern 91-65
Notes: The Pittsburg State men's basketball team enters the NCAA Tournament as the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament champions after rolling through Northeastern State, Lindenwood, Northwest Missouri State, and finally Missouri Southern in the championship game. The Gorillas only chance at making it to the big dance was to win the conference tournament and enter as the automatic qualifier, and that they did. Pittsburg State routed Missouri Southern, 91-65 in the championship game, behind 24 points from Tournament MVP junior guard Trey Starks. Before the MIAA Tournament, the Gorillas lost the final three games of their regular season schedule. PSU played NSIC teams Augustana and Northern State at the beginning of the season and lost both contests.
•As a team, Pittsburg Stat ranks second in the MIAA in scoring defense (65.8), third in free throw percentage (.736), third in steals (7.2), abd fourth in field goal percentage (.484).
•Sophomore guard Josiah Gustafson leads the team in scoring with 15.6 points per game (eighth in the MIAA) and is third in the conference in free throw percentage at .838.
•Sophomore forward Trevor Gregory leads the team in rebounding with 4.2 per game and averages 6.7 points per game.Â
•Junior guard Trey Starks has played in only 11 games this season, but is averaging 12.2 points per game in 21.3 minutes per game off the bench.Â
