THE OPENING TIP: The University of Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State University conclude its season series Tuesday, Feb. 6 at Romano Gymnasium. The Bulldogs are looking to split the series after falling to the Huskies earlier this season.

SCOUTING REPORT ON ST. CLOUD STATE: The Huskies are on a roll winning six straight after a 102-100 overtime loss to Winona State. SCSU is 17-6 and 13-4 in the NSIC. Matt Reimer is in his fourth season coaching the Huskies. He has SCSU dominating during its winning streak. The last six victories have been by an average margin of 20.2 points. 
The defense has been a key cog as it sports the second-best scoring defense at 68.4 points per game. The interior defense has been solid as the Huskies are 30th in the nation and second in the NSIC at 4.4 blocks. SCSU leads the NSIC in assists per game at 16.9 and the seventh nationally with a 1.65 assist-to-turnover ratio. 
Gage Davis missed part of the year but has returned to lead the Huskies with 19.1 points. He is one of four players average double figures. The other dynamic scorer is Jon Averkamp, who is scoring at a 18.5 clip for the season. Averkamp has the conference best shooting mark (61.6 percent). That is 16th in the nation.  Sean Smith leads SCSU in blocks and rebounds. Smith has 8.8 rebounds and 5.6 blocks per game, which is second in the NSIC. 

THE SERIES: SCSU leads 53-33 all-time. Trying to break out of a three-game slump to the Huskies, the Bulldogs hope to avenge their 80-68 loss at Halenbeck Hall in December. SCSU swept UMD last season and can do so again with a victory on Tuesday.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and SCSU stack up in the NSIC standings and in the National Basketball Coaches Association (NABC) and the D2SIDA media polls.
TEAM    NSIC    NABC    D2SIDA
UMD      13th       NR           NR
SCSU     3rd        NR           NR

THE BROADCAST: Both games this weekend will be carried live through a video stream and is available at:
portal.stretchinternet.com/umd/

LAST TIME OUT: The Bulldogs took a pair of hard losses at home to Minnesota State University Mankato and Concordia University, St. Paul last weekend. 
UMD was bull rushed by MSU 76-58. The Bulldogs did limit the conference-leading Mavericks to under 80 points for just the second time in the last eight games. A 0-for-8 start doomed UMD as MSU ballooned its five-point halftime lead. Brandon Myer was one rebound shy of a double-double as he ended up with 23 points and nine rebounds. Xavier Cummings came off the bench to lead the second rotation with eight points.
CSP came back from a 16-point halftime deficit to force overtime and eventually shock the Bulldogs. UMD forced a season-high 20 turnovers but shot 28.6 percent in the second half to allow the Golden Bears back in. The blown lead was the worst since the Bulldogs let go of a 21-point lead with 16 minutes remaining on Dec. 12, 2014 against Northern State University. Myer did notch his fourth double-double posting 21 points and 10 rebounds. Jake Wilson drilled five three-pointers on his way to 19 points. Trevor Entwisle dished out 10 assists, tying his career high.

FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH: Coach Bowen for the second straight season is directing a very youthful squad from the sidelines. Only two seniors (Kyle Schalow 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. Three sophomores pace the Bulldogs in points this season. Their outburst has accounted for 1,080 points on the season or 66.2 percent of the team's total points. That percentage was up around 72 percent before the loss of Luke Harris, who averaged 9.4 points, due to a season-ending injury.

THE VICIOUS NORTHERN SUN: With the youth, UMD is getting valuable experience in one of the most difficult conferences in the nation. The NSIC might only have one team ranked in the NABC poll (another receiving votes) but the overall strength of schedule is taunting.  According to the Massey Ratings' SOS, 14 of the 16 NSIC teams rank in the top-30. HERO Sports' SOS system has 11 NSIC teams in it. Both systems have the Bulldogs in the top 28 in terms of strength of schedule. 

CLOSING TIME: UMD has made quite the turn around when it comes to dealing with close games. The Bulldogs are 7-2 this year with games decided by two possessions or less in regulation and 7-1 when tied or ahead with five minutes remaining. In 2016-17, UMD was 1-6 in close games and 3-5 in crunch time (five minutes left).

LOCKED IN AT THE CHARITY STRIPE: The Bulldogs have been doing an excellence job at drawing contact and getting to the line. UMD is hitting 76.2 percent of its free throws, which is the 30th best percentage in the Division II landscape. Colorado Christian University holds the mark with 80.4 percent. They are 30 makes (359) away from tying their opponent's attempts (389). They are hitting 79.2 percent (114-for-144) under five minutes.
The Bulldogs have relied on three players to take the majority of its free throws, and they all have 80-percent marks from the line. Trevor Entwisle has the highest percentage hitting 84.6 from the line. Logan Rohrscheib, who made a Bulldog record 43-straight free throws, is knocking down 83.6 percent. Brandon Myer has second-most free throws made while connecting on 82.9 percent.
UMD used its strength to the line 45 times against Northern Michigan, almost reaching the program record of 48 set back on Nov. 30, 1998. As a team, it made 35 of those attempts, which was one short of tying the school record also set on that same date against the University of Minnesota Crookston.

THEREFORE, GET TO THE LINE: As one of the better free throw shooting teams, getting to the line more equals a better chance of pulling out the victory. UMD is 9-6 when it attempts more free throws. However, they have yet to pull one out when they don't get to the line more than the opposition.

DON'T GET BEAT BY THE THREE: Opponents this season are 6-1 when they make more three's then the Bulldogs. When the script is flipped or equal, UMD is 8-8.

MYER THE GO-TO MAN: The dominant sophomore breakout performance continues for Brandon Myer. He has led the team in scoring 14 of the last 16 games and has achieved double figures in all but three games this season. The Superior, Wis. native has posted UMD's only four double-doubles this season. 
Myer set a personal collegiate best with 32 points against Northern Michigan. He is the lone Bulldog since the turn of the century to hit at least 20-plus points in seven consecutive games. During that seven-game stretch, Myer has posted 25.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.4 blocks and 1.0 assists as he's shot a blazing 55.0 percent from the field and 46.4 from three.
He is on top of the charts in scoring, rebounding, and blocks in the NSIC. On a per game basis, Myer is fourth in the conference in scoring (20.3), 8th in rebounding (7.0) and ninth in blocks (1.0). He has the sixth best field-goal percentage in the NSIC knocking down 48.8 of his attempts.

WEEKLY RAZZLE DAZZLE: The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference bestowed Brandon Myer with NSIC North Division Player of the Week honors for his outstanding contributions the past two of the past three weeks.
In his Dec. 20, 2016 award, the Superior, Wis. native averaged 31.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and a block per game while shooting a robust 75.0 percent on the floor, hitting 21 of his 28 shots. He created new career highs in consecutive outings as his back-to-back 30-point efforts for the Bulldogs since Ryan Rasmussen posted 30 and 32 back on Jan. 20-21, 2012.
His 32 points was the most since Newton put up 42 points when he won weekly award back on Feb. 1, 2016. 
On Monday, he took home his second honor after averaging 24.0 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists while shooting 47.6 percent on the floor including 40.0 percent from behind the arc. He came through in crunch time as he hit the go-ahead shot with 48 seconds remaining to knock off Minnesota Crookston.
Pierre Newton was the last Bulldog to earn at least two players of the week awards for UMD. He accomplished that feat back in 2015-16.

WHEN HE'S ON, LOOK OUT: When Jake Wilson finds his groove, he can be a hassle to stop. On three occasions, Wilson has caught fire and buried a large array of threes. During those three games Wilson has gathered 20 points (twice) and 19 points. He has made at least four threes in each of those performances. 

THE DISTRIBUTOR: No one last year for UMD averaged at least three assists per game but Trevor Entwisle is doing just that this season. The Neenah, Wis., native recorded 10 assists twice this season, which is a collegiate best and a Bulldog season-high. Entwisle is dishing out 4.2 assists per contest and has a 2.3 assist-to-turnover ratio. 
His 4.2 assists per game are the most by a Bulldog in a single season since Sean Seaman averaged 5.3 assists in the 2005-06 season. Among the conference, Entwisle checks out as the seventh best player.

CRASH THE GLASS: A pair of Bulldogs rank in the top-ten in the NSIC in rebounding on different ends of the floor. Sean Burns is pulling down eighth-most offensive rebounds per game (2.1). Brandon Myer, on the defensive end, is grabbing the sixth-most rebounds (5.4).

FIND THE DEFENSIVE IDENTITY: After allowing back-to-back games under 70 points, UMD has allowed at least 85 points or more in the last six games. Teams have shot at least 50 percent in six or the last seven games. 

NO EXTRA POSSESSIONS: Limiting turnovers has been a specialty in the past under the direction of Matt Bowen. His teams have ranked among the best at not turning the ball over and this year is no exception. UMD is the second best in the NSIC in fewest turnovers per game (9.5), which is fourth in the Division II landscape. Northwest Missouri State University is first with 8.7 per contest. It has recorded the seventh fewest turnovers on the year, only coughing up the ball 218 times in 23 games. UMD turned the ball over a season-low four times in the victory of MSU-Moorhead on Jan. 19. 

PLAYING SMART: The Bulldogs have committed 368 fouls on the year which is the fourth fewest fouls by any NSIC team. St. Cloud State in first in the conference with 338. Bluefield State is tops in the nation with 248 fouls.

GET IN THERE, ROOK: Two freshmen have cracked minutes thus far in the 2017-18 campaign. Xavier Cummings played six games and made his first appearance versus Michigan Tech on Nov. 22. Jake Paper made his collegiate debut against SCSU on Dec. 16 and played in 11 games including the last nine games.

CONFERENCE COACHES CORNER: The NSIC 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 slightly edging Southwest Minnesota State University, who was picked to finish first in the south.
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.

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 11 returners from a season ago.

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 finish off their five-game home stint this weekend with matches against Minot State University and the University of Mary. Those two games conclude the home portion of the 2017-18 season.