WINONA, Minn. – After completing a four-game road trip, and earning three wins, the Winona State men return to McCown Gymnasium for a pair of games against NSIC North opponents this weekend.
The Warriors host Minnesota State Moorhead Friday night at 8 p.m. and will face a tough test in No. 16 Northern State on Saturday at 6 p.m.
Winona State notched its first road sweep of the season last weekend, and has won 11 of its last 14 games overall. WSU is 7-1 since the calendar flipped to 2018. Mankato (8-1) is the only other one-loss team in the New Year.
Both home games can be seen live on HBC25.
Prior to, and during Friday's game, will be the first Winter Game Day Experience of the season. The free event begins prior to the women's game at 5:30 p.m.
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SCOUTING MOORHEAD: The Dragons (6-16, 4-12 NSIC) picked up a noteworthy 85-78 victory over SMSU last weekend before falling to Sioux Falls, 70-67. Againts the Mustangs, Johnny Beeninga scored 23 points while Travaun Coad added 21. Senior Tanner Kretchman leads Moorhead and ranks 12th in the NSIC with 15.5 points per contest. Beeninga is averaging 14.2 ppg, followed by Coad (13.8) who is the Dragon's top rebounder (7.0). Moorhead ranks 12th in the league in scoring offense (74.7) and is last in scoring defense (82.0) while allowing teams to shoot 49%. Offensively, the Dragons are second-to-last in three-point shooting (33.9%).
SCOUTING NORTHERN STATE: The 16th-ranked Wolves (21-3, 14-2 NSIC) travel to Upper Iowa on Friday before Saturday's tilt in Winona. The Wolves are coming off a rare home loss to SMSU last weekend, 64-57, and have split their last four games entering the weekend. The Wolves lead the NSIC in scoring defense by allowing just 65.9 ppg to their opponents. Northern also leads the league in field goal shooting (50.3%) while ranking seventh in scoring offense (79.0). The Wolves rank just behind Winona in three-point shooting at a 40.8% clip. Northern also owns the best rebounding defense in the conference (29.1). Logan Doyle ranks eighth in the NSIC in rebounding (7.0 rpg). Doyle is averaging 11.6 ppg with Ian Smith (13.0 ppg) and DJ Pollard (12.7) leading the Northern offense.
LAST WEEKEND: The Warriors picked up their first road sweep of the season, knocking off Minot State and U-Mary on their home courts. Caleb Wagner led the way with a career-high 23 points at Minot, and Tommy Gathje paced Winona with 18 points at Mary. It marked the Warriors' third straight road win.
HOME COOKING: The Warriors return home this weekend looking to preserve an eight-game winning streak at McCown Gymnasium. WSU is 10-1 overall at home this season. The Warrior offense has clicked at home, averaging 83.3 ppg compared to their season average of 77.2. Winona is shooting 50% from the field and 44.4% from downtown on its home court. Away from home, the Warriors are shooting 43% overall and 38.7% from long range.
DOWNTOWN: Winona ranks second in the NSIC in three-point shooting (41.2%) and total three-pointers made (214). The Warriors drained a season-high 17 three-pointers in their last home game against St. Cloud. WSU is 9-3 this season when attempting at least 25 three-pointers, and is 4-0 when launching 30 in a game. Mason Domask is knocking down a team-best 50% (39-78) of his shots from beyond the arc. Winona State has drained at least one three-pointer in 524 consecutive games dating back to 2000.
NEW YEAR, NEW ME: Freshman forward Kevion Taylor had his coming out party when the calendar flipped to 2018, recording his first career double-double on January 5th vs. SMSU. The Milwaukee, Wis. Native posted career highs in points (21) and rebounds (11) that night while going 4-for-8 from downtown. Taylor is averaging 8.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in his rookie campaign. He has started in 10 games, including eight straight in which he is averaging 12.4 ppg.
HELPING HANDS: Sophomore Caleb Wagner leads the team and ranks fifth in the NSIC with 4.7 assists/game. His 2.6 assists/turnover ratio also ranks fifth in the league among qualifying players. Freshman guard Devin Whitelow owns a 4.7 assist/turnover ratio which would rank second among all DII players if he met the assists/game minimum of 3.0 (Whitelow 2.9).
LEAD BY EXAMPLE: Winona's lone senior, Corey Jeffs, leads the team in scoring (12.5 ppg) and rebounding (5.2 rpg). The Melbourne, Australia native has drained a team-best 40 three-pointers (40-94). His 33-point performance vs. St. Cloud on January 13th was a career high, and the most points scored by any single Warrior in a game this year.
