The University of Minnesota Duluth will take the court for a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference return match-ups against Minot State University and the University of Mary as the Bulldogs travel across North Dakota on their longest road trip of the season.
UMD (6-8, 4-6 NSIC) earned a pair of seven-point victories over the Marauders and Beavers at Romano Gym earlier this season but remain without a victory on the road in 2013-14.
Last weekend, senior guard
Peter Crawford led the offense in a weekend split vs. Sioux Falls and Southwest Minnesota State. Crawford had 48 points in the two games, including a career-high 34 vs. USF, accounting for over one-third of the Bulldogs' 86 points. In that game, he fell just one free-throw short of tying a UMD record, going 16-of-17 from the charity stripe. Crawford shot 64.7 percent (11-17) for the weekend and 23-of-25 from the line. Aside from the offensive numbers, Crawford added three assists, eight steals, and seven rebounds.
The Bulldogs also got key contributions from senior guard
Jordan Reetz, who nearly matched Crawford point-for-point with 30 in UMD's 86-64 win over USF, averaging 19.0 points for the weekend. He also had five boards and a pair of blocks on the defensive end. Junior guard
Junior Coleman came through for the Bulldogs in game two. Despite falling 87-62 on the night, Coleman starred with 5-of-9 from beyond the arc for 15 points.
About the Beavers
Minot State (6-8, 2-8 NSIC) has dropped eight of nine, including four straight off the start of the season's second half, but the Beavers are still above .500 at 5-4 at home. Every Bulldog who saw the court scored at least a basket as UMD downed Minot 81-74 on Dec. 14 earlier this season. UMD shot 51.7 percent and held the Beavers to 43.4 percent shooting. Leading scorer Samuel Johnson (Sr.) dropped in 16 points to lead Minot. His 12.4 PPG average ranks 20th in the NSIC. Senior big man Chris East ranks fourth in the league with 8.0 rebounds per outing.
UMD is now 1-3 all-time against Minot State. The Beavers knocked off the Bulldogs 58-62 in Minot last season on Jan. 26, 2013.
About the Marauders
U-Mary (2-13, 0-10 NSIC) started the year with a pair of wins but has not added to the win column since, dropping 13 in a row including five at home. UMD got a halftime spark and scored the first ten points of the second half in downing the Marauders 72-65 at Romano Gym on Dec. 13 earlier this season. Senior guards Reetz and Crawford led the Bulldogs with 22 and 17 points, respectively while junior guards
Reece Zoelle and Coleman both added 10+ points on the night. Minot actually out-shot UMD 47.3 percent to 40.3 percent, but the Bulldogs hauled in 21 boards on the defensive end compared to just five offensive rebounds for U-Mary. Junior Devan Douglas led the way with 18 points for the Marauders. His .554 shooting percentage on the year ranks tenth in the NSIC.
UMD is 7-3 in ten match-ups against U-Mary including a season sweep last year, knocking off the Marauders 64-55 in Bismarck last season.
The Bulldogs will hit the floor in Minot on Friday night at 8:00 p.m., following the women's contest. Saturday's tilt with U-Mary is set for 6:00 p.m.
