Women's Basketball | 2/13/2018 2:12:00 PM

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The Minnesota State University Moorhead women's basketball team returns home to wrap up the regular season. The Dragons will host St. Cloud State at 6 p.m. on Friday and then host Minnesota Duluth at 4 p.m. on Saturday.

The Dragons have won 15 in a row, tied for the second-longest winning streak in school history. They are tied with Augustana for first place in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference with an 18-2 record. If the Dragons sweep this weekend they will clinch at least a share of their second straight NSIC title. The Dragons are also looking for their third straight NSIC North Division crown.

MSUM will meet St. Cloud State for a 57th time with the Huskies leading the series 33-24. The Dragons and UMD will meet for an 85th time with the Bulldogs leading the series 50-34.

Despite winning 15 in a row and posting a 21-3 record, the Dragons are still outside the WBCA D2 poll. MSUM is receiving votes in the latest poll.

The Dragons (21-3, 18-2 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) ran their winning streak to 15 games with road wins at Bemidji State (76-61) and Minnesota Crookston (71-56).  MSUM was led by senior forward Drew Sannes who averaged a double-double for the week.

Junior guard Jacky Volkert leads MSUM at 14.3 points and 5.4 assists per game. She also has a team-best 27 steals. Sannes averages 13.9 points and 9.0 rebounds per game, while sophomore forward Megan Hintz is averaging 11.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.  Senior guard Cassidy Thorson is averaging 10.5 points per game and leads with 63 three-pointers.  

As a team MSUM scores 73.2 points per game and shoots 41.8 percent from the field.

On defense MSUM allows 61.0 points per game. MSUM outrebounds its foes 43.9-34.6 and lead the NSIC in rebound margin.

Karla Nelson is in her 18th season as the MSUM head coach with a record of 323-185.

About St. Cloud State
The Huskies have won five in a row and are 17-7 overall and 14-6 in the NSIC. They swept at home last weekend, beating Mary, 60-53 and Minot State, 70-61.

Andrea Thomas leads SCSU at 13.5 points and 2.3 assists per game. Tori Wortz averages 10.3 points per game while Brianna Johnson averages 6.0 rebounds per game. Amanda Christianson averages 9.4 points per game.

As a team the Huskies score 65.5 points per game and shoot 41.7 percent from the field. They allow 58.2 points per game and outrebound their foes 37.0-31.8.

Lori Fish is in her 10th season as the SCSU head coach with a record of 125-92 at the school.

About Minnesota Duluth
The Bulldogs are 15-9 overall and 12-8 in the NSIC after beating Minot State (70-61) and Mary (69-66, OT) at home last weekend.

Sammy Kozlowski leads UMD at 11.4 points and 5.5 assists per game while Sarah Grow averages 10.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Katie Stark averages 9.6 points per game.

UMD scores 66.4 points per game and shoots 39.3 percent from the field. The Bulldogs allow 61.2 points per game and are being outrebounded 38.1-37.4.

Mandy Pearson is in her third season as the UMD head coach with a record of 36-42 at the school.

More on MSUM...
More Winning Under Nelson
The Dragon women's basketball program has never had a losing season since Karla Nelson took over in 2000. The 21-3 record so far makes 18 years in a row of winning records. Nelson is 323-185 at MSUM, including 66-14 since the beginning of 2015-16. The 21 wins this season gives MSUM its sixth season of 20 wins or more in the Nelson era.

One For the Record Book
MSUM's 101-97, four-overtime win over Winona State on Friday, Feb. 2, was the longest game in Dragon women's basketball history. It was also the longest game in NSIC history and the only four overtime game in NCAA Division II this season. The Dragons set a record with 38 three-pointer attempts in the game. MSUM is 3-0 in overtime games this season.

Win Streak at 15
Here is a glimpse inside the Dragon women's 13-game winning streak, which started with a 64-61 overtime win over Northern State on Dec. 19.
—MSUM is scoring 74.5 points per game and shooting 42.6 percent from the field
—Dragons are allowing 61.0 points per game and teams are shooting 36.8 percent against them this season
—MSUM is outrebounding its opponents at 44.5-33.1.
—Four players are averaging in double figures — junior Jacky Volkert (15.6), senior Drew Sannes (14.8), sophomore Megan Hintz (12.7) and senior Cassidy Thorson (10.4).

In a Sharing Mood
Junior guard Jacky Volkert is second in the NSIC at 5.4 assists per game, a total that is ranked 19th in the nation this season. Volkert is 21st in assist-to-turnover ratio.  The Arden Hills, Minn., native is now eighth in school history with 327 career assists. Volkert is 19 assists away from the single season record of 149 held by Dragon Hall of Famer Rosalie Hayenga. The all-time career leader at MSUM is Krista Opheim who has 488.

Sannes Sets Record, Climbs Scoring List
Senior forward Drew Sannes surpassed 1,000 career points earlier this season, and on Jan. 26 in the 69-58 win over Sioux Falls, became MSUM's career leader in blocked shots. Sannes now has 215 blocked shots, which is four ahead of the previous record holder, Jessica Fesenmaier. Sannes is at 1,187 career points and is just 13 away from becoming just the 12th Dragon to surpass 1,200 points for her career.

Thorson Sets Three-Point Record, Closes in on 1,000
Senior guard Cassidy Thorson is the new three-point career record holder for Dragon women's basketball. She hit seven 3-pointers in the 86-84 overtime win over Wayne State on Jan. 13 to set the record. Thorson now has 216 three-pointers and is the only Dragon women's player ever to surpass 200 threes in her career.  She currently sits at 996 points, just four away from 1,000 in her career.

No Place Like Home
MSUM finished 12-1 at home in 2016-17, with the only loss coming to Minnesota Duluth on Jan. 20. Since the beginning of the 2014-15 season, MSUM is 42-8 (.840) at Nemzek Hall. In Karla Nelson's tenure, The Dragons are 169-68 at home.

National Rankings
MSUM is ranked in the top 50 nationally individually and team-wise:
Individuals
--sophomore Megan Hintz is 12th in the nation in field-goal percentage (58.4)
--junior guard Jacky Volkert is 15th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.20) and
17th in assists per game (5.5) --senior guard Cassidy Thorson is 35th in three-pointers per game (2.8), 30th in threes made (59), 14th in threes attempts (176)
--senior forward Drew Sannes is 29th nationally at 7.0 defensive rebounds per game while also being 48th in blocks per game (1.9).
Team Rankings
As a team, MSUM is ranked...
--6th in in defensive rebounds per game (32.0)
--6th in rebound margin (9.4)
--8th in turnovers per game (12.0)
--10th in assist to turnover ratio (1.35)
--12th in fewest turnovers (264)
--21st in rebounds per game (44.0)
--27th in free-throw percentage (76.9)
--30th in assists per game (16.2)