THE OPENING TIP: The University of Minnesota Duluth will start the 2018-19 campaign at Northern Michigan University Tuesday, Nov. 13 at 4:00 p.m. CST at the Berry Events Center in Marquette, Mich.
SCOUTING REPORT ON NORTHERN MICHIGAN: The Wildcats are 2-0 after beating Lewis and Indianapolis in the GLVC/GLIAC Challenge at Hillsdale College this past Saturday and Sunday. Northern Michigan was picked to win the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
The Wildcats return 92 percent of the offense from last season and sees leading scorer, Darby Youngstrom, return after an injury cost her the majority of the season. Lexi Smith also returns after becoming the first NMU player to earn GLIAC Freshman of the Year since the 1994-95 season.
The Wildcats have four players averaging at least 10 points per game. Jessica Schultz has 12.0 ppg and scored a team high 14 points against Indianapolis. Youngstrom also has 12.0 pgg and had 18 points in the win over Lewis.
THE SERIES: Northern Michigan leads the series 21-17. UMD dumped NMU 76-55 at home last season with 14 points from Emma Boehm. The 21-point win was the second most lopsided victory by the Bulldogs in 2017-18. This is the fourth meeting in the last four years between the two squads.
THE BROADCAST: The game on Tuesday can viewed on https://portal.stretchinternet.com/nmu/.
In addition, live stats are available at: http://nmuwildcats.com/sports/wbkb/2018-19/boxscores/20181113_y6zk.xml.
PROMISING PRESEASON: The Bulldogs won all three exhibition matches on their preseason slate. UMD won by an average of 16.3 points per game including knocking off NCAA Division I foe North Dakota State 70-65 in the opposing building in Fargo, N.D. UMD beat up on Wisconsin Superior and Bethel at home.
LAST TIME OUT: Bethel University put up a quality fight in the exhibition game. UMD trailed by as much as nine in the first half. However, the Bulldogs surged back to trail 38-37 at the half. Forty nine points in the second half propelled UMD to a 86-68 win over the Royals. Senior guard Sammy Kozlowski compiled 18 points to lead the Bulldogs. Freshman forward Brooke Olson racked up 16 points and a team high nine rebounds. Junior forward Katie Stark, sophomore forward Sarah Grow and freshman Maesyn Thiesen all had 10 points in the win.
ALL EYES ON KOZLOWSKI: Senior guard Sammy Kozlowski was picked the UMD Player to Watch in the NSIC. The two-time All-NSIC second team selection averaged 11.0 points per game and 5.2 assists per game as the main scorer and distributor for the Bulldogs. She was second in the conference last season in assists per game. The All-NSIC Defensive Team honoree from the last two seasons was also second in the NSIC last year with 2.1 steals per game.
NSIC PRESEASON COACHES POLL: The Bulldogs have steadily climbed to the forefront of the NSIC the past three seasons under the new regime of head coach Mandy Pearson. Around the league, the coaches highlighted UMD as one of the teams to beat this season., UMD was picked to win the NSIC North Division and fifth overall in the annual preseason poll, released Oct. 18.
For the second time, UMD was picked to win the north edging out Minnesota State University Moorhead for the preseason divisional crown. It's the Bulldogs first since the conference originally introduced divisions in 2012-13. The University of Sioux Falls was chosen by the league coaches as the overall favorites in the NSIC for the 2018-19 season. The Cougars were also selected as the south division favorites.
Gabbie Bohl from the University of Mary was named the NSIC North Division Preseason Player of the Year while Concordia-St. Paul's Anna Schmitt was bestowed the NSIC South Division Preseason Player of the Year honors.
NEW DOGS ON THE BLOCK: The Bulldogs bring in four newcomers this season after losing five letterwinners and a total of four seniors from last season. UMD bring in a pair of forwards -- Brooke Olson (Rice Lake, Wis.) and Lauren Miller (Zumbrota, Minn.) -- to strengthen the interior. In addition, the Bulldogs brought in the a pair of guards for added backcourt depth. Maesyn Thiesen (Sauk Centre, Minn.) is prepping to be the point guard of the future while Emma Schmidt (Dumont, Minn.) is a slashing off-ball guard.
THE SCOOP ON THE DOGS: UMD took another successful stride in the right direction last year finishing 16-11 and 13-9 in conference play – both program bests since 2011-12. The Bulldogs lost six letterwinners but return all five starters and their top six scorers from last season. UMD was a fundamentally sound group a season ago, No. 1 in the nation in fewest turnovers and third in the NSIC in assists per game. The Bulldogs boasted solid defensive numbers giving up 60.7 points per game, the third best defense in the NSIC. UMD is following the lead of Sammy Kozlowski. In addition, Sarah Grow, who was named to the NSIC All-Freshman team in 2017-18, locks down the interior after averaging roughly 10 points, six rebounds and two blocks per contest. Alongside that duo in the starting rotation are savvy veterans Katie Stark and Emma Boehm and sophomore three-point specialist Ann Simonet. Taylor Schneider and Payton Kahl lead the bench rotation and the Bulldogs hope that the nine underclassmen can provide immediate impact.
ON TAP: UMD will be back on the hardwood one week from Tuesday to face No. 9 Drury University in Springfield, Mo., in non-conference action.
