MOORHEAD, Minn. -- MSU Moorhead men's basketball will look to keep their record unblemished as the Dragons hit the road for a Thursday matchup against Minnesota Crookston at 5:30 p.m. MSUM will then travel to Minot to play the Minot State Beavers at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Live stats and video will be available at msumdragons.com.

Opening Tip
 

Quick Hits...MSUM enters Thursday's game with the Golden Eagles with a six-game winning streak over Minnesota Crookston. The Dragons last lost to the Golden Eagles came on January 11, 2020. Over the six game win streak, MSUM has outscored UMC 507-402. Against Minot State, MSUM was won 18 of their last 21 matchups with the Beavers including the last three in a row. The Dragons narrowly defeated Minot State at the MSU Dome last season, 57-55. 
 

Charity Stripe Revival...While MSUM is an impressive 10-0 so far in 2023-24, their free throw shooting has been one lacking component. Heading into last week's contests, MSUM had only made 147 of their 206 free throw attempts for a 71.4 percent success rate. Against Bemidji State and St. Cloud State, MSUM connected on 33 of 40 free throw attempts including a 15 of 16 ledger against the Huskies. Those 33 points proved crucial in a pair of hotly contested games as Jamir Price made a pair of game-winning free throws on Saturday.

At A Premium...MSUM has done a masterful job of taking care of the basketball so far this season. In two games last week, the Dragons only turned the ball over a total of 11 times in 80 minutes of logged time. Over the course of the season, MSUM has only surrendered the ball a total of 79 times, giving them a +5.3 turnover margin. That mark is 18th-best in the country while being the top margin in the Northern Sun. On the flipside of that, MSUM's Thursday opponent, Minnesota Crookston, is last in the conference in turnover margin (-3.22).

Beeninga and Beeninga: Bros For Hire...Sibling tandem Jacob and Eddie Beeninga have seen more floor time as a duo throughout 2023-24. The younger Beeninga brother has seen his playing time expand thanks to his stellar effort on the defensive end of the floor. Over two games last week, the Beeningas accounted for 40 of MSUM's 147 points including four made three-point field goals. 

He's Got Range...Sophomore center Jacob Jennissen has continued to show why he was such a highly-touted recruit out of Sauk Centre Secondary. Jennissen nailed his first three-pointer of the season with a smooth stroke against Bemidji State on December 8. The transfer poured in 10 huge points and his tall frame proved pivotal in the Dragon defensive efforts over the weekend. 

Dirty Dane...While only scoring a total of 15 points over two games last week, senior Dane Zimmer was crucial on the glass and on defense despite brunting several harsh blows down low.  Zimmer collected 10 rebounds to go with nine points against St. Cloud State on Saturday, including a game-winning contest on a shot that could have won the Huskies the game. Zimmer enters the weekend with a lifetime field goal percentage of 63.1 after making six of 11 attempts this weekend. 

Defending Distance...Minot State has attempted just the eighth-most threes in the NSIC so far this season (210), but they own the second-best three-point field goal percentage (39.5) in the league. In 10 games this season, MSUM has held their opponents to just 34.7 percent shooting from long range, allowing just 176 attempts.

Tim Bergstraser is in his second season as MSUM's head men's basketball coach.

Scouting Minnesota Crookston

The Golden Eagles (3-6, 0-4 NSIC) are coming off conference losses to Mary and Bemidji State last week. Minnesota Crookston holds wins over Parkside, East Central and Oklahoma Baptist in non-conference action this season. They are paced by junior Blaize Sagna, who is averaging 20.9 points per game to go along with five rebounds a contest. Sagna has made 43.2 percent of his field goals this season including an impressive 44.9 percent mark from long distance. Junior guard Reid Grant adds in 16.6 points per game for the Golden Eagles at a 55 percent clip while also leading the team in total assists (40). 

UMC is led by head coach Bryan Beamish in his second season. 

Scouting Minot State

Minot State (7-2, 3-1 NSIC) has begun their conference season strong with wins Mary and St. Cloud State most recently. Senior Khari Broadway leads the Beavers, scoring 15.1 points per game while snaring 4.2 rebounds a game. Junior Connor Hollenbeck and senior Ben Bohl each average in double figures for Minot State, combining to score just over 20 points per game. The Beavers are second in the NSIC in three-point field goal percentage, connecting on 39.5 percent of their long range attempts. 

Matt Murken is in his 11th season as head coach of the Beavers.