For Immediate Release
Monday, February 6, 2012
NSIC Media Relations
Full PDF Release
NSIC Player of the Week
#1 Dermaine Crockrell
G, 6-1, 150, Jr.,
Mesa, Ariz.
Scottsdale CC
Bemidji State
Dermaine Crockrell scored a career-high 27 points to guide the Beavers to a 93-85 victory at University of Minnesota Duluth Saturday. In the team’s lone game of the weekend Crockrell scored his game-high 27 on 10-for-15 (66.7%) shooting from the field, 2-for-3 (66.7%) from beyond the arc and a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe. He also added six assists and four rebounds, while committing zero turnovers in 38 minutes of play. Up five with 2:12 remaining in the game Crockrell put the game away for BSU with a rare four-point play, knocking down a 3-pointer with time running down on the shot clock while getting fouled.
NSIC Men's Basketball Notes
AUGUSTANA COLLEGE - Cody Schilling (6-5, 190, Sr., Ellsworth, Minn/Ellsworth HS) averaged 19.5 points and shot 52.0 percent (13 of 25) in Augustana’s two games last weekend. The senior poured 23 points at Minnesota State on Friday and followed it with 16 against Southwest Minnesota State on Saturday. Other weekend totals for Schilling included one rebound, three assists and four steals. His performance also gave him sole possession of the fourth spot on the Augustana career score list at 1,743 points. He entered the weekend tied with Jason Garrow at 1,704 points.
BEMIDJI STATE - Dermaine Crockrell (G, 6-1, 150, Jr., Mesa, Ariz. / Scottsdale CC) scored a career-high 27 points to guide the Beavers to a 93-85 victory at University of Minnesota Duluth Saturday. In the team’s lone game of the weekend Crockrell scored his game-high 27 on 10-for-15 (66.7%) shooting from the field, 2-for-3 (66.7%) from beyond the arc and a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe. He also added six assists and four rebounds, while committing zero turnovers in 38 minutes of play. Up five with 2:12 remaining in the game Crockrell put the game away for BSU with a rare four-point play, knocking down a 3-pointer with time running down on the shot clock while getting fouled.
The Beavers are 16-6 overall and 11-5 in NSIC play to sit in a tie for third with Minnesota State University Moorhead. BSU hosts University of Minnesota, Crookston and MSU Moorhead Feb. 10-11 and are home for four of its last six regular season games. BSU lost to the Dragons on the road to open the NSIC slate Dec. 2 77-57, before defeated UMC 69-44. The 16 wins marks just the 15th time in program history the Beavers have good reached that win mark.
CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL - #5 Peter Olafeso (G, 6-2, 200, Sr., St. Paul, Minn.) averaged 22.0 points and 7.0 rebounds over the weekend to help Concordia earn a split as he topped 20 points in each game and in three of the last four. In Friday’s win over Upper Iowa, he picked up his first double-double of the season with 24 points and 11 rebounds, dishing out five assists with just one turnover in 35 minutes. He followed it up as Concordia’s only player in double-figures with 20 points on Saturday against Winona State, grabbing a pair of steals as well. For the weekend, he shot 51.7% (15-29) from the floor, made 4-8 from three-point range and was perfect in 10 free throw attempts.
This Friday night the Golden Bears host Southwest Minnesota State on Friday night and Minnesota State on Saturday night. The Golden Bears trail the all-time series with SMSU 19-7, but have won two-straight against the Mustangs at home including their 2009-10 triple-overtime victory, 109-104 in a memorable Northern Sun contest. Concordia has won five of the last seven games at Gangelhoff Center against SMSU and is 5-7 all-time against SMSU at Gangelhoff Center. On Saturday, they take on Minnesota State, who Concordia has defeated twice in a row – both in Mankato’s Taylor Center – and are now 4-12 all-time against the Mavericks. Under Coach Boe, Concordia is 1-3 against MSU at Gangelhoff Center but has not defeated the Mavericks at home since Boe’s first year in 2006-07. Concordia is 2-5 all-time at home against MSU.
UNIVERSITY OF MARY - Damon Smith (F, 6-7, Sr., Milwaukee, Wis. / Ronald Reagan HS / Ellsworth CC) had a brilliant weekend for the University of Mary, averaging 24 points and nine rebounds per game while making 75 per cent of his shots from the floor and 83 per cent at the free throw line. The senior forward opened with 23 points and 11 rebounds in a 76-52 win at Minnesota Crookston, making 9-of-13 shots from the floor and 5-of-6 free throw attempts. The NSIC’s leading shot blocker also recorded two rejections. The Milwaukee, WI, native was even better from the floor the next day at MSU Moorhead, scoring 25 points while connecting on 12-of-15 shot attempts. He also had seven rebounds. Smith is now ninth in the league in scoring, seventh in rebounding and third in field goal percentage… Josh Turner (G, 6-3, Jr., Aurora, Colo.) averaged 15 points per game, including an 18 point outburst at MSUM. He was 7-of-14 behind the arc for the weekend.
MINNESOTA, CROOKSTON - Minnesota, Crookston went 1-1 on the weekend to improve to 7-13 overall and 3-13 in the NSIC. After a disappointing 76-52 loss to the University of Mary on Friday, the Golden Eagles bounced back in a major way defeating Northern State University 88-73 on Saturday. Akeem Cubie (6-6, Sr, G/F, Minneapolis, Minn.) scored 41 points and recorded 14 rebounds on the weekend including recording a double-double with 24 points and ten rebounds against the Wolves. Jacolby Anderson (Sr, G, Lancaster, Texas) scored 32 points including 21 against the Wolves. Cubie leads U of M, Crookston averaging 17.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. Anderson is averaging 15.6 points per game. The Golden Eagles return to NSIC action on Friday, February 10 and Saturday, February 11 when they face Bemidji State University and the University of Minnesota Duluth respectively.
MINNESOTA DULUTH - In one of his more domination performance of the season, sophomore Brett Ervin nearly reset his career high, scoring 26 points in the University of Minnesota Duluth men’s basketball team’s sole NSIC tilt of the week, but it wasn’t enough as Bemidji State was able to take the season series from UMD with a 93-85 tally in their second meeting of the 2011-12 campaign. The Eden Prairie, Minn., native was 10-16 from the field and 6-8 from the charity stripe during the contest and was a big reason why the Bulldogs were able to cut a 13-point Beaver advantage down to just four at the nine minute mark of the second stanza. Unfortunately that was as close as the Bulldogs could come for the rest of the night as the Beavers used a rare four-point play in the final two minutes to effectively steal the momentum away from the home squad.
MINNESOTA STATE - Minnesota State went 0-2 on the weekend, marking just the second time this season that MSU has been swept in a weekend series…Sophomore forward Connor O’Brien has had four blocks in each of his last three games and has 34 on the season, four shy of moving into a tie for ninth all-time…Senior guard Stephen Kirschbaum played in his 100th game as a Maverick against Augsutana…Kirschbaum was named to the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All District squad last week and was the only player from the NSIC honored…MSU travels to St. Cloud State and Concordia next weekend, marking its final road games of the season.
MSU MOORHEAD - Alex Novak put down a few ferocious dunks in rout to a comeback 66-60 victory Friday night against Northern State. The junior scored 15 points in the game, 13 in the second half, while improving his conference leading .652 shooting percentage to .678. With 10 rebounds Novak recorded his fourth double double on the season. On Saturday, Feb. 4 Novak shone again, leading the team with another double double of 15 points and 10 rebounds in a comeback win against U Mary. He continued his strong shooting with a percentage of .636 in the game.
NORTHERN STATE - Trent Zomer (F, 6-6, 220, So., Melbourne, Australia/Ringwood Secondary) came off the bench to score a game-best 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting to help the Wolves to a near-upset of MSU Moorhead on Friday evening in the Dragons’ Nemzek Fieldhouse. Zomer drained his first five attempts from the field, including an ally-oop dunk and ensuing foul from teammate Collin Pryor. The Australia native also had three assists and a steal in the effort.
SMSU - Sophomore point guard Vinard Birch (6-0, Eagan, Minn.) led SMSU to a pair of victories last weekend over Wayne State and Augustana. Birch averaged 12.5 points, 4.0 assists and 2.0 rebounds per game, while shooting 73.3 percent (11 of 15) from the field and 3 of 3 from the free throw line. He commited just three turnovers in a total of 57 minutes. Birch scored 11 points on 4 of 5 shooting and dished out four assists in SMSU’s win over Wayne State and then scored 14 points on 7 of 10 shooting with four assists and just one turnover in SMSU’s 80-77 win over Augustana.
ST. CLOUD STATE - The No. 20 ranked Huskies (17-4, 13-4 NSIC) had its 10-game home winning streak come to an end as No. 4 ranked Winona State University put together an impressive second half to beat the Huskies 84-74 Friday night in Halenbeck Hall. SCSU then held off a pesky Upper Iowa University squad to earn a 75-72 win Saturday night in Halenbeck Hall to snap their only losing streak of the season.
#14 Shaun Jensen (G, 6-1 , 185, Jr., Spring Lake Park, Minn./HS) averaged 21 points, seven assists and 4.5 rebounds a game over the weekend. He shots 55.2 percent from the field (16-29) and made nine of 14 shots from the free throw line. Jensen scored a game and career-high 24 points, while going 10-for-19 from the field in Friday’s loss. He also tied his career-high by dishing out eight assists, while grabing six rebounds and posting two steals. He then followed it up with 18 points on a 6-for-10 night from the field Saturday, while recording six assists. He also had three steals defensively on the weekend and turned the ball over just four times in 78 minutes of play.
UPPER IOWA - The Peacocks lost a pair of hard fought NSIC games on the road this past weekend. Upper Iowa dropped a 79-74 decision on Friday night at Concordia University, St. Paul and a 75-72 decision on Saturday night at St. Cloud State University. After the two losses, the Peacocks fall to 7-14 overall and 4-13 in the Northern Sun. Tucker Wentzien led the UIU offense over the weekend with 13.5 points and 8 rebounds per contest. Sam Elgin and Mike Lafrenz added 15 and 13 points, respectively, on Friday night, while Bo Pagel and Mark Lafrenz netted 13 and 10 points, respectively, on Saturday night. Upper Iowa has just one game this week; the Peacocks will travel to Winona, Minn. to line up with the Warriors of Winona State University at 7 p.m.
WAYNE STATE - Derrell Williams, a 6-4 junior forward from St. Clair Shores, Michigan, averaged 16 points and 8.5 rebounds per game as the Wildcats split NSIC road games at Southwest Minnesota State and Minnesota State. Williams had 12 points, six rebounds (five offensive) with four steals in Friday’s 73-58 setback to SMSU and followed that with 20 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season to lead WSC in a 67-52 win at Minnesota State. Williams has now scored in double figures in 18 of 21 Wildcat games this season. For the weekend, Williams was 14 of 21 from the field (66.7%) and 4 of 7 at the foul stripe.
WINONA STATE - Clayton Vette, C, 6-9, 250, Jr., Waverly, Iowa (Waverly-Shell Rock) recorded a pair of 20 point performances as the No. 4 Warriors earned win over St. Cloud State and Concordia-St. Paul. Vette began the weekend with 21 points and four rebounds against No. 20 SCSU. He followed with a double-double, scoring 20 and grabbing 13 rebounds against CU. He also passed out two assists and blocked three shots on the game. On the weekend Vette averaged 20.5 points and 8.5 rebounds while collecting three assists, three blocks and a steal.
WEEK 12 Results
2/3 *U-Mary 76 at Minnesota, Crookston 52
2/3 *Augustana 70 at Minnesota State 64
2/3 *Winona State 84 at St. Cloud State 74
2/3 *Northern State 60 at MSU Moorhead 66
2/3 *Upper Iowa 74 at Concordia-St. Paul 79
2/3 *Wayne State 58 at SMSU 73
2/4 *Bemidji State 93 at Minnesota Duluth 85
2/4 *U-Mary 66 at MSU Moorhead 67
2/4 *Wayne State 67 at Minnesota State 52
2/4 *Upper Iowa 71 at St. Cloud State 75
2/4 *Winona State 95 at Concordia-St. Paul 45
2/4 *Northern State 73 at Minnesota, Crookston 88
2/4 *Augustana 77 at SMSU 80
WEEK 13 Schedule
2/10* Northern State at Augustana 8:00 PM
2/10* Minnesota, Crookston at Bemidji State 8:00 PM
2/10* SMSU at Concordia-St. Paul 8:00 PM
2/10* U-Mary at Wayne State 8:00 PM
2/10* Minnesota State at St. Cloud State 8:00 PM
2/10* MSU Moorhead at Minnesota Duluth 8:00 PM
2/11* MSU Moorhead at Bemidji State 6:00 PM
2/11* U-Mary at Augustana 6:00 PM
2/11* SMSU at St. Cloud State 6:00 PM
2/11* Minnesota, Crookston at Minnesota Duluth 6:00 PM
2/11* Minnesota State at Concordia-St. Paul 6:00 PM
2/11* Northern State at Wayne State 6:00 PM
2/11* Upper Iowa at Winona State 7:00 PM
*= NSIC Contest
Past NSIC Players of the Week
11/14/11 - Jake Hottenstine, UMD
11/21/11 - James Ellisor, BSU
11/28/11 - Vontrell Seroyer, WSC
12/05/11 - DJ Hamilton, MSUM
12/12/11 - Clayton Vette, WSU
12/19/11 - Tim Bergstraser, SCSU
01/04/12 - Dustin Tetzlaff, NSU
01/09/12 - Jacolby Anderson, UMC
01/16/12 - Tucker Wentzien, UIU
01/23/12 - James Ellisor, BSU (2)
01/30/12 - Dustin Tetzlaff, NSU (2)
02/06/12 - Dermaine Crockrell, BSU
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