The University of Minnesota Duluth men's basketball team opens their journey through the postseason at home this week, hosting the Augustana University Vikings in the first round of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) tournament on Wednesday, Feb. 26, at 6:00 PM.

 

Last Time Out 

 

The Bulldogs closed out the 2024-25 regular season with a weekend sweep over the University of Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State University, securing themselves the sixth seed in the NSIC tournament.

 

A back and forth opening on the road saw the Bulldogs take an early 38-33 lead, increasing to 44-33 by the end of the first half. UMD kept their lead intact throughout the second half, cruising to a 76-66 victory on the backs of a 6-12 (50%) shooting effort from three point range.

 

The Bulldogs found themselves at a three point deficit throughout the opening thirteen minutes against the Beavers before collecting seventeen unanswered points to help them to a 41-27 advantage before halftime. The points continued to add on in the second half for UMD as they cruised to an 87-55 win to end the regular season.

 

Last Week's Spotlight Players

 

#3 Kole Hanson - 2 GP, 37 PTS, 9 REB, 3 STL, 2 A, 83.3 FT%

 

#24 Charlie Katona - 2 GP, 25 PTS, 7 REB, 3 A, 3 STL, 87.5 FT%

 

#32 Austin Andrews - 2 GP, 24 PTS, 14 REB, 7 A, 2 STL, 62.5 FG%

 

Scouting Report - Augustana University

 

The Augustana University Vikings are 11-17 overall and 8-14 against NSIC opponents throughout the 2024-25 season, most recently losing to the Minot State University Beavers 82-78 to secure themselves the eleventh seed for the tournament.

 

The Bulldogs are 7-8 against the Vikings since 2014 after defeating Augustana on the road 76-66 in their most recent matchup earlier this season. UMD holds a 3-4 home record, 3-3 away record, and a 1-1 neutral site record against the Vikings, with their largest margin of victory sitting at 27 points (92-65, Dec. 2023).

 

The Vikings are currently led in scoring by junior guard #1 Tanner Te Slaa who is averaging 14.0 points per game with 392 total points over 28 games this season.

 

NSIC Tournament

 

At the end of the regular season, the Bulldogs found themselves in a three way tie for third within the NSIC standings along with MSU Mankato, MSU Moorhead, and St Cloud State. 

 

Since the four schools did not play each other an equal amount of times, the NSIC's internal point rating system had a three-way tie with MSU, MSUM and SCSU tying in points and UMD placing below them.  UMD placed as the sixth seed.  MSU, MSUM & SCSU all played twice, with MSUM going 3-1, MSU 2-2 and SCSU 1-3; with MSUM earning the third seed, MSU the fourth seed and SCSU the fifth seed.

 

The Bulldogs have not played an opening round game since the 2022-23 season when they hosted the Minnesota State Mankato Mavericks after they successfully earned a first round bye last season.

 

Bulldogs Against the Rest

 

The Bulldogs rank within the top five in the NSIC in 18 different statistical categories, including four different categories where they rank within the top three. These categories include:

 

Bench Points Per Game - 17.96 (5th in NSIC, 201st in NCAA)

Blocks Per Game - 3.2 (4th in NSIC, 114th in NCAA)

Effective Field Goal Percentage - 0.541 (5th in NSIC, 64th in NCAA)

Field Goal Percentage - 47.8 (4th in NSIC, 44th in NCAA)

Field Goal Percentage Defense - 41.1 (4th in NSIC, 18th in NCAA)

Free Throw Attempts per Game - 21.3 (3rd in NSIC, 76th in NCAA)

Free Throws Made Per Game - 14.1 (5th in NSIC, 142nd in NCAA)

Rebounds Margin - 4.6 (4th in NSIC, 51st in NCAA)

Defensive Rebounds Per Game - 27.43 (5th in NSIC, 40th in NCAA)

Rebounds Per Game - 36.57 (4th in NSIC, 103rd in NCAA)

Scoring Defense - 65.9 (1st in NSIC, 15th in NCAA)

Scoring Margin - 10.8 (1st in NSIC, 25th in NCAA)

Scoring Offense - 76.7 (5th in NSIC, 129th in NCAA)

Three Point Percentage Defense - 31.0 (1st in NSIC, 28th in NCAA)

Turnover Margin - 1.9 (4th in NSIC, 67th in NCAA)

Turnovers Forced Per Game - 12.39 (4th in NSIC, 165th in NCAA)

Turnovers Per Game - 10.5 (5th in NSIC, 25th in NCAA)

Winning Percentage - 71.4 (4th in NSIC, 74th in NCAA)

 

UMD Slated Third in NSIC Preseason 

 

The University of Minnesota Duluth men's basketball team was slated to finish third in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) in the preseason coaches poll. The Bulldogs received 172 points in the conference poll, including one first place vote, after finishing off the 2023-24 season in the second round of the NCAA Central Region tournament.

 

Katona Named NSIC Player to Watch 

 

Fifth year senior Charlie Katona  was named UMD's NSIC Player to Watch for the 2024-25 season. Katona was a mainstay in the Bulldog starting five last season, starting in all 33 games for the Bulldogs and averaging 28 minutes a game. Katona recorded 424 total points while averaging 12.8 points per game, 4.9 rebounds per game, and 1.9 assists per game and will enter the season as the reigning NSIC Defensive Player of the Year.

 

Offseason Departures

 

The Bulldogs will see some changes in the rotation from last season, suffering huge losses with the graduation of Drew Blair and Jack Middleton, and with the transfer of Lincoln Meister.

 

Drew Blair was the premiere player in the Bulldog's offensive scheme last season, breaking the program's all time scoring record at the beginning of the season against Oklahoma Baptist and going on to lead the team in four different statistical categories (total points, points per game, rebounds, and steals). 

 

Jack Middleton was the cornerstone of the Bulldog's leadership, and proved himself as one of the most accurate shooters on the team. Middleton ended his career with the Bulldogs as a 40.8% 3-pt shooter and an 89.8% free throw shooter.

 

Lincoln Meister was the Bulldog's primary sixth man option, serving as a dominant presence under the rim and an elite blocker. Ending the season with 32 blocks, UMD loses one of their strongest defensive big men with his transfer to the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.

 

Last Season 

 

The Bulldogs closed out their 2023-24 season with their third straight NCAA tournament appearance, falling in the second round against the Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats.

 

UMD closed out the regular season at second place in the NSIC standings, and would go on to fall in the championship game of the NSIC tournament to the eventual NCAA National Champs, Minnesota State Mankato.

 

The Bulldogs secured the third seed going into the NCAA Central Region tournament, and closed out the opening round with a buzzer beater layup from Mattie Thompson to defeat Fort Hays State. 

 

UMD ended their season in the semifinal round after a defense driven, 71-62 loss to the Bearcats.

 

Looking Ahead

 

A victory against the Vikings would send Bulldog men's basketball back to Sioux Fall, SD, for the following rounds of the NSIC tournament at the Sanford Pentagon. The Bulldogs would face off against the Minnesota State University Moorhead Dragons in the quarterfinals.