SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – For the first time since the 2015-16 campaign, the Winona State University men's basketball team has returned to the Sanford Pentagon for the second round of the NSIC Tournament. The Warriors tipoff against the UMC Golden Eagles at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 3.
After an up-and-down year, the Warriors concluded the regular season with a win over Minnesota State Mankato and went to Duluth on Wednesday to knock off the Bulldogs in the first round of the tourney. Both Mankato and Duluth were ranked in the NCAA DII Central Region Top 10 at the time. The Warriors now turn their attention to another underdog in Minnesota Crookston as the opening round of the tournament saw four lower-seeded teams claim victories. The winner of Sunday's tilt will advance to the NSIC Semifinals on Monday at 5:30 p.m.
Notes
MADNESS: Cinderella stories are synonymous with college basketball in March, and Sunday's matchup will pit a pair of teams in Winona State and Minnesota Crookston both looking to make more noise in the conference tourney. Both the Warriors and Golden Eagles scored first round road upsets on Wednesday, with Crookston's improbable win standing as its first-ever in the NSIC Tournament. Now, either the #6 seed from the South (WSU) or the #7 seed from the North (UMC) will advance to Monday's semifinal round.
SCOUTING CROOKSTON: The Golden Eagles (17-15) are a combined 4-13 away from their home court this season, but the biggest win of all came at Augustana on Wednesday, 87-72. Crookston and WSU match up similarly on paper both offensively and defensively. UMC ranks ninth in the league in scoring average (77.6 ppg) compared to WSU at 13th (74.6). The Warriors' defensive scoring average (70.6) ranks third while Crookston is eighth (74.2). UMC ranks second in the league in three-point shooting (41.8%) and shot 44% from downtown on its home court in an 80-66 win over WSU earlier this year. The Golden Eagles held a 41-32 rebounding edge in that game and are averaging 10.1 offensive boards/game this year. Harrison Cleary ranks fourth in the NSIC in scoring (22.1 ppg) and is second in three-point shooting (46.9%). WSU has dominated the all-time series, 29-4, but lost two straight to UMC.
PLAY ANOTHER DAY: Senior Tommy Gathje has averaged 14 points and 5.8 rebounds over his last four games as the veteran has shown he's not ready to go into retirement just yet. Gathje scored a season-high 22 points on 6-10 shooting from downtown in the Warriors' regular season finale against Mankato. Fellow seniors Mason Domask and Charlie Koontz have each played vital roles off the WSU bench this season and will look to hep carry the Warriors into the semifinals.
ALL-NSIC: Sophomore Kevion Taylor was named to the All-NSIC Second Team on Thursday, earning All-Conference recognition for the first time in his career. Taylor ranks ninth in the NSIC in rebounding (6.5/game) and 11th in scoring (16.6) – leading WSU in both categories. He's shooting a career-best 42.8% from downtown and netted a career-high 32 points earlier this season. Taylor's scored at least 20 points nine times and recorded four double-doubles this year.
RECORD PACE: Sophomore Devin Whitelow is on pace to shatter the assist/turnover ratio record across all three NCAA division. Whitelow enters Sunday's game at an eye-popping 6.4 ratio while dishing out a career-high 128 assists and committing just 20 turnovers. The current record was set last year (5.65) at the DIII level. The DI record is 5.17 and the DII mark is 4.66.
SWIPE RIGHT: As a team, the Warriors' 1.78 assist/turnover ratio leads the NSIC and they rank second in the league in turnover margin (+3.34). The turnover battle could prove crucial Sunday as Crookston is also one of the best in the league at ball control with a +2.78 turnover margin. Winona State has forced 325 opponent miscues this season, while turnover the ball over themselves a league-low 228 times. The Warriors and Golden Eagle are both averaging over five steals per game. Whitelow (35) Dalante Peyton (24) and Caleb Wagner (23) lead WSU in steals.
