THE OPENING TIP: Amidst its longest road stand of the 2017-18 season, the University of Minnesota Duluth will attempt to get back to the .500-mark this weekend. The Bulldogs play Michigan Technological University on Wednesday at 5:00 p.m. in the SDC Gym in Houghton, Mich. then spend Saturday afternoon in Kenosha, Wis. to square off against the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. The last game will tip at 3:00 p.m.
SCOUTING REPORT ON MICHIGAN TECH: The Huskies have lost their last two games and are .500 heading into the matchup against the Bulldogs. MTU won both of its games at home and is undefeated there. The two-game losing streak are to two NSIC opponents (MSU-Moorhead and Southwest Minnesota State). During that skid, MTU is shooting 20 percent below its average from three. UMD has to focus on shutting down Kyle Monroe. He is averaging 25 points per game and is hitting 52 percent of his shots in four games. The big man is also leading the team in rebounds with 9.0. Isaac Appleby is the main ball handler and is averaging 3.0 assists per game. Bryan Heath can also score in bunches as he has 12.3 points a game.
SCOUTING REPORT ON WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE: The Rangers, like the Bulldogs, are looking for their fist win on Saturday. UWP will have its home opener versus UMD. The Rangers haven't been able to keep up in the second half as they have been outscored by a combined 50 points in four games. Adam Bonk (11.0) and Jameel Moore (10.8) are the team's leading scorers. Big man Joe Borcia is averaging 9.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
THE SERIES: UMD lead 32-30 in the all-time series against MTU. The Huskies came away with a three point victory in UMD's home opener last season 68-65. The Bulldogs came back from 10 down and had a chance to tie it in the closing seconds.
UMD welcomes back UWP to the schedule for the first time since 2015-16 after a one year break. The Rangers lead the series 7-6. UMD got behind early and never mounted a significant rally and dropped a 99-81 decision.
HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and their opponents this weekend stack up in their respective standings last year and in the National Basketball Coaches Association (NABC) poll.
TEAM CONF NABC
UMD 15th (NSIC) NR
MTU 4th (GLIAC) NR
UWP 4th (GLVC) NR
THE BROADCAST: The game versus Michigan Tech will be carried live through a video stream and is available for a fee at:
portal.stretchinternet.com/mtu/
The game versus Wisconsin-Parkside will be carried live through a video stream and is available for free at:
www.glvcsn.com/parkside/
LAST TIME OUT: The Bulldogs opened the season at the MIAA/NSIC Classic at the JustAGame Fieldhouse in Wisconsin Dells, Wis. UMD struck out on the weekend falling to Central Missouri and Lindenwood.
The Bulldogs had leads in both games but handed the leads to their opponents. UMD had a 10 point advantage over the Mules but UCM used a 16-2 to blow the game open and win 76-60. The following night UMD lost a 11 point lead to the Lions. LU hit 50 percent and caused UMD to shoot 21 percent in the second half to grab a 69-60 win.
RACING OUT OF THE GATE: UMD has been on fire to start its first two games. The Bulldogs have drained 52.8 percent of their shots in the first 20 minutes. They are also hitting a ridiculous 57.9 percent from behind the arc. They also have a plus-16 rebound advantage in the half.
RUNNIN' ON EMPTY: For as good as the first halves have been, the second has been polar opposites. Inconsistency has bit the Bulldogs in the second half as the team has shot 22.9 percent. They can't seem to lock in from 3-point land shooting a woeful 14.8 percent.
Meanwhile, opponents have shot 54 percent overall and a whooping 43.8 from downtown. More constant play on both ends of the floor will have UMD not trying to come from behind as often as they would like.
CONFERENCE COACHES CORNER: On Oct. 26, the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference 2017-18 Preseason Coaches Poll slated UMD to a 13th-place finish. The Bulldogs, which finished eighth in the North Division and a 15th overall a season ago, received 46 points in the poll. The Bulldogs were picked to finish sixth in the North Division ahead of Minnesota Crookston and U-Mary.
Northern State University, who claimed preseason favorites in the North Division, topped out in the overall poll with 213 points sightly edging Southwest Minnesota State University, who was picked to finish first in the south. NSU gathered eight first place votes while SMSU collected seven. St. Cloud State University junior guard Gage Davis was the North Division Preseason Player of the Year. SMSU junior guard Ryan Bruggeman was named the South Division Preseason Player of the Year.
THE LOW DOWN ON SCHALOW: Senior guard Kyle Schalow was named a player to watch for throughout the NSIC this season. Schalow was the lone Bulldog to start all 29 games in 2016-17. The Sherwood, Wis. product posted 7.5 points per game, 3.5 rebounds per game and 2.8 assists per game and shot a team-best 88 percent from the charity stripe. His season average for assists per game ranked him 21st in the NSIC.
SPACE TO FILL IN THE MIDDLE: Charles Benson is the lone UMD player from the starting five not returning to the floor this season. Benson gave the Bulldogs a solid 17.6 minutes on the floor with 6.3 points per game and 3.8 rebounds a game. Benson ended the 2016-17 season as the Bulldogs most productive field goal shooter, dropping in buckets at a 55.7 percent clip. The Bulldogs had 13 different player garner starts during the 2016-17 season. Luke Harris, Sean Burns, Jake Wilson, Brandon Myer and Ryan Kaczynski all have the possibly to see increased workloads as the season progresses.
NEW DOGS ON THE BLOCK: The Bulldogs bring in four freshmen (Jimmy Vollbrecht, Xavier Cummings, Adam Smith and Jake Paper) and a junior college transfer (Mamadou Ngom) to join the 2017-18 roster and the 13 returners from a season ago.
FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH: Coach Bowen for the second straight season will have to direct a very youthful squad from the sidelines. Only two seniors (Robert Harris and Jake Wilson) are on the roster with a combined nine freshmen and sophomores. The five sophomores tallied an average of 19 minutes during their freshmen seasons.
BOWEN'S BITS: Entering his sixth season in 2017, head coach Matt Bowen looks to take the next step to bringing the University of Minnesota Duluth to the top of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. Armed with a lineup of experienced underclassman and vital leaders, the Bulldogs are set to improve upon the 2016-17 season.
Bowen is no stranger to turning a program around, having taken a perennial Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference underdog in Bemidji State University to a championship level that has not been repeated since he left the program to take over as UMD head coach in the summer of 2012. Bowen, just the third head coach for the Bulldogs since the mid-1980's, succeeded Gary Holquist, who stepped down in April 2012 to take the role of UMD's Athletic Development Director.
Under Bowen, UMD produced its first NABC All-Region selection since 2008-09 in Brett Ervin ('15) during the 2014-15 season as well as NABC Honors Court selection Jake Harder ('16) that season and All-NSIC guard Jordan Reetz ('14) the previous year. Along with an influx of young talent, the future seems bright for the Bulldogs under Bowen's guidance.
Bowen completed his turnaround of Bemidji State in his sixth and most productive year with the program, guiding the Beavers to a school record 22-9 overall mark which included an NSIC regular season championship and the program's second NCAA II playoff berth in the team's 91-year history. In addition to receiving votes in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II poll for the first-time ever, Bowen also produced the 2011-12 NSIC and NCAA II Player of the Year in James Ellisor.
Prior to his appointment in Bemidji, Bowen spent 15 years on the staffs of three NCAA I institutions, working under the likes of Homer Drew (Valparaiso University), Gene Bartow (University of Alabama-Birmingham) and Bob Knight (Indiana University).
A native of River Falls, Wisconsin, Bowen graduated from Indiana University in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science degree in health, physical education and recreation and earned a Master's degree in health education from Alabama-Birmingham four years later. His father, Rick, was the head men's basketball coach at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls from 1986-2006 and retired as that school's athletic director in 2010.
ON TAP: The Bulldogs start NSIC play when they return to action. Bemidji State will host UMD on Dec. 1 at 8:00 p.m.
