WINONA, Minn. – Winner of four straight, and seven of their last nine overall, the Winona State University Warriors return to McCown Gymnasium following a weekend road sweep to face the two top teams in the NSIC North Division – Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State.
The Warriors host the Duluth Bulldogs at 5:30 p.m. on Friday and wrap up the weekend with the St. Cloud State Huskies on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
Two wins for the Warriors this weekend would give them their best 20-game start to a season since 2016-17, when they went 16-4 to begin the year and finished with a record of 22-9.
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SCOUTING DULUTH: The Bulldogs (15-5, 12-2 NSIC) enter the weekend leading the NSIC North and are coming off a season in which they won the NSIC Tournament and qualified for the NCAA Regional. The Bulldogs aren't going to wow you with their offense (67 ppg), but they are one of the most efficient teams in the NSIC, shooting 44%. The Bulldogs rank third the NSIC in scoring defense (60.7) and opponent shooting percentage (39%), and are second in blocks/game (4.0) and assists/game (15.65). Brooke Olsen is the only double figure scorer for Duluth (15.7), but they have a good balance behind her as five players average between 7.5 and 10 points per game. Sara Grow is second in the NSIC in blocks/game (1.9) while Maesyn Thiesen is tied for second in assists/game (4.2). To beat the Bulldogs, Winona State will have to exploit Duluth's rebounding weakness, as the Bulldogs rank last in the NSIC in that category (34.0).
SCOUTING ST. CLOUD: The Huskies (14-4, 11-3 NSIC) currently sit at second in the NSIC North and enter the weekend on a red-hot eight-game winning streak. Winona State has seen plenty of success over the past decade against SCSU, posting a 11-2 record against the Huskies, including a 55-53 win last season. St. Cloud shoots the ball well (44.5%) and rank second in the NSIC in scoring defense (60.3 ppg). The Huskies quite possibly have the most balance starting five in the league, as all five starters average double figures, led by Madelin Dammann (12.9) and Tori Wortz (12.6). The key to victory for the Warriors will be tempo, as the Huskies only go three-deep into their bench. If the Warriors can tire St. Cloud out in the second game of their weekend road trip, the home team could prevail with the depth of its bench and scoring.
UPSET CITY: The Warriors pulled off their biggest win of the year last Saturday on the road, knocking off then-No. 11 Sioux Falls in a tight affair, 78-76. That win snapped a nine-game winning streak for the Cougars and was their first loss of 2020.
MAKING IT RAIN: The Warriors currently rank fourth in the NSIC in three-pointers per game (7.4) and have a trio of players that thrive behind the three-point arc. Allie Pickrain (2.5) ranks second in the NSIC in three pointers per game while Caitlin Riley (1.7) and Sydney Lodermeier (1.5) also rank in the top 25. Pickrain also ranks second in the NSIC in shooting percentage, as she shoots it at a 40% clip from behind the arc.
NEW YEAR, WHO DIS?: Emma Fee was a force to be reckoned with this past weekend, as she tallied totals of 23 (SMSU) and 19 (USF) points on 65% shooting to earn her first career NSIC Player of the Week accolade. The junior center netted 12 of her 23 points at SMSU in the game-changing third quarter which saw WSU erase a halftime deficit for the win. Fee may be having the most dramatic roll change of any Warriors this season, as she averaged just 7.9 minutes and 1.2 points in her first two years, compared to 22.5 min and 9.2 points this season.
A PILLAR OF CONSISTENCY: Night in and night out, Taylor Hustad has been efficient and effective for Winona State. The junior has scored in double figures in each of her last seven games and leads the team with 15.2 points on 58% shooting. She has scored at least 20 points in five of her last nine games, and if she keeps up her scoring pace, she will be the Warrior's highest scorer since Abby Busch averaged 16.4 points in 2013-14. Hustad leads the NSIC with 9.2 rebounds a game and is tied for 18th in the nation with a career-high nine double-doubles on the season.
