After hovering around .500 for much of the year, the Winona State Warriors men's basketball team won five of their last six games to finish with a 17-11 (14-8 NSIC) record and nap the third seed in the NSIC South division. On Wednesday, February 26 at 7:30 p.m., the Warriors will host the Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles in a first round game that is sure to excite.

Notes:

Scouting Minnesota Crookston: The Golden Eagles (11-17, 7-15 NSIC) only won two of their final nine games and are coming off an 89-77 loss to St. Cloud State last Saturday. Winona State and Minnesota Crookston have met once this year, with Winona State taking the contest by an 80-66 score. The Golden Eagles are led by star senior Harrison Cleary, who is the NSIC's all time leading scorer and currently sits third in the nation with 27.0 points/game. The Warriors managed to shut down Cleary in their lone meeting this year, holding him to just 17 points on 5-16 shooting from the field. Javier Nicolau has also been a key to the Golden Eagles success this year, as the 6'10" Spanish center is shooting the ball at a 56.8% clip while pulling down 4.3 boards a game. As a team the Golden Eagles struggle shooting the ball as they put it in the net at just a 42.4% clip. On the opposite side of the ball, opponents shoot nearly 50% (.496) against the Crookston defense.

Playoff history: Winona State has fared very well in the playoffs in the past, having won two national titles and six NSIC titles. Last year the Warriors made a run to the conference semi-finals before they were defeated by Northern State on a heartbreaking buzzer beater. The Warriors are looking to return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since an elite-eight appearance in 2013.

Award winner: Senior Caleb Wagner has been having a career year, averaging a career high in points (20.7), rebounds (4.2), and steals (1.39). Wagner just picked up his second NSIC South Player of the Week award as he led the Warriors to two crucial wins last weekend at Concordia St. Paul and Minnesota State. Wagner currently sits at 1,403 career points and needs just eight points to pass Pete Polus for 15th all time in WSU history.

Record breakers: Kevion Taylor has been on fire from behind the arc this season. He is currently averaging 3.71 3-pointers/game and is seventh in the nation in that category. Taylor has been so hot in NSIC play that he has broken the conference record for both threes made in a season (85) as well as threes attempted (202). Taylor has nine games this year of five or more made shots from behind the arc. As a team, the Warriors have also broken the conference record for threes made (248) and attempted (656) in a season. WSU ranks first in the NSIC and 18th in the nation with 11.3 3-pointers/game.

Supporting cast: Andrea Lo Biondo has been a great addition to the Warriors this year. The 6'9" center from Italy is averaging 9.4 points/game on 50% shooting and has pulled down 175 boards on the year. Lo Biondo scored 22 points and hit six three's in a big win over Minnesota State on Saturday. Alec Rosner leads the team in steals/game (1.5) and has hit 34 threes on the year. Devin Whitelow is having another phenomenal year protecting the ball as his 4.85 assist-to-turnover ration ranks second in the nation.

Tickets: Due to the fact that Wednesday is a playoff game tickets will be $12 for adults and $2 for students. The first 250 WSU students with valid student I.D. will get in free.