GAME NOTES (PDF)
This week: Augustana (6-4, 3-3 NSIC) ushers in competition in the new year by hosting a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference neighbors this weekend. The Vikings will face off with St. Cloud State (4-5, 3-2 NSIC) on Saturday at 6:05 p.m., while Augustana and Concordia University, St. Paul (6-3, 3-2 NSIC) will play on Sunday at 6:05 p.m.
On the tube: Both games this weekend will be regionally broadcast by Midco Sports Network. Midcontinent Communications subscribers can find MidcoSN on Channel 26. Tom Neiman will handle the play-by-play, while Al Bahe will provide color commentary.
The series: Saturday will be the 78th meeting between Augustana and St. Cloud State in a series that dates back to the 1947-48 season. The Vikings are 35-42 against the Huskies and have lost the last two contests between the two programs. Last season, SCSU ended Augustana's season in the Central Region championship game, topping the Vikings 84-75 in overtime. An Augustana victory would have sent the Vikings to the Elite Eight.
Tom Billeter is 6-10 against the Huskies. The Vikings are 5-4 against Concordia University, St. Paul (3-1 at home). The Golden Bears defeated the Vikings in last season's meeting, picking up a 82-79 victory in St. Paul, Minn. Billeter is 3-4 against CU.
Last time out: The Vikings split on their second conference road trip of the season, defeating Minnesota, Crookston 81-68 on Dec. 17 and falling to Minnesota State Moorhead 64-61 the following night.
Cody Schilling and
Cameron McCaffrey combined for 38 points and
Derrick De Zeeuw grabbed 12 rebound on Friday against the Golden Eagles, while Schilling had a game-high 21 points against the Dragons on Saturday.
Ring in the new year: The Viking have been hit-and-miss when it comes to opening play in a new year. Since the 2000-01 season, Augustana has won five of its 10 games that have christened a new year. The Vikings have won their last two new year openers, with both of those victories coming over Bemidji State.
Date Opponent W/L Score H/A
Jan. 5, 2001 Minnesota State L 75-58 A
Jan. 4, 2002 Minnesota State W 82-69 H
Jan. 4, 2003 Minnesota State L 61-60 A
Jan. 3, 2004 Dakota Wesleyan W 81-78 H
Jan. 6, 2005 Nebraska-Omaha L 83-65 A
Jan. 5, 2006 Nebraska-Omaha L 68-64 H
Jan. 4, 2007 Nebraska-Omaha W 83-60 H
Jan. 10, 2008 Nebraska-Omaha L 98-97 (2OT) A
Jan. 2, 2009 Bemidji State W 82-74 H
Jan. 2, 2010 Bemidji State W 80-73 A
'Ain't life grand: Junior
Cody Schilling (Ellsworth, Minn.)?will likely become the newest member of the Augustana 1,000-point club this weekend. The guard has accumulated 991 points in his 72 games as a Viking (all of which he has started). Schilling is averaging a little more than 17 points per outing this season, so a routine game for him would easily propel him past the 1,000 mark. He has a lifetime scoring average of 13.8 points per game and is a 51.2 percent career shooter.
Board meeting: Junior big man
Derrick De Zeeuw (Brandon, S.D.) tied a career high with 12 rebounds against Minnesota,?Crookston on Dec. 17. The performance was the first double-digit rebounding game for a Viking in 2010-11. In fact, the forward was just a bucket shy of his first career double-double. De Zeeuw, who has the Vikings in rebounding six times this season (17 in his three-year career), is averaging a team-best 6.2 boards per game.
Hass the boss: True freshman
Trevor Hass (New London, Wis.) continues to compile solid outings off the bench for the Vikings. Hass scored 16 points on 5 of 8 shooting from the field on Dec. 17 against Minnesota, Crookston. That performance came after a 17-point outing against Northern State on Dec. 12. While those may be his only two double-figure scoring effort, Hass has averaged 9.8 points per contest in the last five games. He has also connected on 10 3-pointers this season--good for second on the team.
That's a steal: While
Chad Hettermann's (Johnsburg, Ill.) offensive numbers don't necessarily top the statistics page, his defensive numbers are impressive. The senior has sniped 20 balls this season (1.0 per game). He is normally
Tom Billeter's top choice when it comes to defending opposing teams' top scorer. Hettermann's steal total is six better than the next Viking.
NSIC adjustment: The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference schedule was moved to a 22-game slate for the 2010-season--an increase of two games from the former league schedule. With that change, the Vikings were only able to play four non-conference contests this year.
According to the coaches: Augustana was selected fourth in the 2010-11 NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Vikings received 138 points from the conference's 14 head coaches. Winona State received 10 first-place votes and 165 points to take the No. 1 position. St. Cloud State was second (four first-place votes, 157 points), and Minnesota State was third (143 points).
1. Winona State (10) 165
2. St. Cloud State (4) 157
3. Minnesota State 143
4. Augustana 138
5. U-Mary 119
6. Southwest Minnesota State 98
7. Concordia-St. Paul 89
8. Northern State 84
9. Wayne State 71
10. Bemidji State 64
11. MSU Moorhead 51
12. Minnesota Duluth 42
13. Upper Iowa 40
14. Minnesota, Crookston 13
( ) First Place Votes
Roster breakdown: The Vikings return three starters and 10 letterwinners from last year's NCAA Tournament squad that set a school record for wins with 24. Augustana features eight guards and eight forwards on its 2010-11 roster. There are also two seniors, three juniors, five sophomores, one redshirt freshman and five freshmen.
NCAA Tournament time: The Vikings advanced to the NCAA?Tournament for the third consecutive season in 2009-10 and also made it to the Sweet 16 for the second year in a row. The Augustana men's basketball program has nine NCAA?Tournament appearances under its belt. As of late, the Vikings have been consistent enough to qualify for the “dance” three times every decade. Head coach
Tom Billeter has led the Vikings to three of those appearances in his eight-year tenure.
Coaches' corner: Now in his eighth season at Augustana, Billeter has steadily solidified the men's program. His Vikings have made three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and advanced to the Central Region championship game in 2009 and 2010. Over the last three seasons Augustana has compiled a 67-26 record, and each of the last three campaigns have resulted in 20 wins or more. Billeter owns a career record of 212-149. He is assisted by Jeff Trumbauer,
Collin Authier and Luke Wiersma.
Vikings add one for 2011-12: Head coach
Tom Billeter announced Nov. 9 that Appleton, Wis., native Ben Reker has signed a letter of intent to continue his academic and athletic career at Augustana beginning in 2011-12. Reker is a 6-foot-7, 220-pound forward who is currently a senior at Appleton West High School. As a junior a year ago, Reker averaged 7.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. He was named all-conference second team and guided his team to a 17-8 record. Reker also shot 56 percent from the field as a junior.
Follow live: There are several ways to get up-to-the-second updates from Augustana basketball games--both home and away. Jeff Fylling calls all the games live on KIKN-FM 100.5; that broadcast can also be picked up at www.kikn.com/stream. All of the Vikings' home games are video webcasted at www.GoAugie.com/webcast. Each conference road contest is also webcast by the host institution. A link for broadcasts on the road can be found on the “schedule” page on the men's basketball home page. Live statistics for all of Augustana's home games can be viewed by logging onto www.GoAugie.com/livestats. For live stats of each road game, check out www.GoAugie.com/livecentral or go the “schedule” page on the men's basketball home page.
Stay connected: Follow Augustana all season long on its official online home, www.GoAugie.com. You can also get the latest news and updates on the Vikings on Facebook (www.facebook.com/GoAugie) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/GoAugie). To view video highlights and the latest episode of the Augustana Sportscene, log onto the Vikings' official YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/GoAugie).
