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This week
No. 21 Augustana (8-4, 5-3 NSIC) opens a three-game homestand this weekend, hosting Bemidji State (10-3, 5-2 NSIC) Saturday at 6:05 p.m. and Minnesota Duluth (7-4, 4-3 NSIC) Sunday at 4 p.m.
The series
Augustana and Bemidji State will meet for the 12th time on Saturday in a series that first saw action during the 1966-67 season. The Vikings, who are 7-4 all-time versus BSU, have won their last five games against the Beavers, including a 69-67 win last season in Bemidji, Minn. Head coach
Tom Billeter is 6-2 against BSU. Augustana is 8-11 against Minnesota Duluth. The series began during the 1991-92 season. The Vikings own a three-game winning streak in the series. Last season, Augustana thumped the Bulldogs 76-49 in Duluth, Minn. Billeter is 7-10 against UMD.
Television
Midco Sports Network will carry Saturday's contest against Bemidji State live from the Elmen Center. Tom Nieman will handle play-by-play, while Brad Newitt will provide color commentary. MidcoSN can be found on channels 26 or 622 (HD) for Midcontinent Communications subscribers.
Last time out
Augustana dropped a pair of NSIC contests on the road earlier this week, falling to St. Cloud State on Monday and Concordia University, St. Paul on Tuesday. SCSU shot 59.3 percent from the field as the Huskies rolled to an 86-61 victory over the Vikings. Shaun Jensen led the Huskies with a game-high 18 points. Connor Niehaus added 16 points, while Tony Brooks had 12.
Cameron McCaffrey, who netted 12 points, was the lone Viking in double figures. CU connected at a 57.6-percent clip from the field to earn an 81-77 win over Augustana. The Golden Bears had five players in double figures. Peter Olafeso scored 15, Cole Olstad had 14, Kenny Olafeso netted 13, Isaiah Thomas had 12 and Deonte Roberts added 10. The Vikings got a game-high 20 points from
Drae Murray, 19 from McCaffrey and 12 from
Cody Schilling.
When on the tube
The Vikings, who have played for a television audience four times this season, are perfect when competing under the bright lights of Midco?Sports Network this season. Augustana opened the season by beating cross-town rival the University of Sioux Falls while on television, and later tilts against Dakota State; Minnesota State; and Minnesota, Crookston all resulted in Viking victories that reached thousands on the Midcontinent Communications network. Following Saturday's game with Bemidji State, Augustana will be involved with two more games being carried live by MidcoSN. The Vikings' Jan. 28 home contest with St. Cloud State and their Feb. 24 road match up with MSU?Moorhead will also be telecast by the Sioux Falls-based network. MidcoSN is also scheduled to cover the 2012 NSIC tournament in Rochester, Minn.
NSIC road losses
Augustana's two conference losses on the road earlier this week at St.?Cloud State and Concordia University, St. Paul signified a rarity for the Vikings when facing travel partners in away venues. Since joining the NSIC for the 2008-09 season, Augustana has dropped consecutive games to travel partners in enemy waters just three times. The Vikings fell at Southwest Minnesota State and Minnesota State on Jan. 23 and 24, 2009, and to CU and SCSU on Jan. 29 and 30, 2010.
Been there
Escaping the clutches of a three-game losing streak is not a new challenge for the Vikings. Augustana lost three consecutive games early in the 2010-11 season and rebounded to win 11 of the next 13 contests.
Shooting woes
During the current three-game skid, the Vikings have not shot better than 48.3 percent. Meanwhile, St. Cloud State shot 59.3 percent and Concordia University, St. Paul 57.6 percent. MSU Moorhead shot 45.3 percent but drained 11 3-pointers. Before St. Cloud, Augustana had not allowed an opponent to top 50 percent. In the three losses, Augustana was outshot 24-17 from 3-point range. For the season, Augustana is holding opponents to less than 44 percent from the field.
Answering the call
Augustana's bench responded with an average of 24 points in the last three games. Freshman
Alex Richter (Lakeville, Minn.) had eight points against Concordia University, St. Paul and nine against Saint Cloud. In the two contests, he was 5-for-7 from behind the 3-point stripe. He has appeared in all 12 games and is averaging 3.9 points a game.
Streak ends
Augustana established a lead at halftime in each of its first 10 games. The streak ended at St. Cloud, where the Huskies held a commanding 52-30 advantage. The negative trend continued at Concordia University, St. Paul when the hosts led 43-42 after the first 20 minutes of play.
Board deficit
The Vikings came up short in the battle of the boards in both weekend road losses. St. Cloud collared 36 rebounds to Augustana's 23, while Concordia University, St. Paul edged the Vikings 32-31. The Vikings hold a 404-388 advantage for the season.
More on boards
St. Cloud State outrebounded Augustana by 13 on Monday--the largest negative disparity for the Vikings on the glass in more than a season. The Huskies, coincidently, were the last team to hold such an advantage when they bettered Augustana by 15 rebounds (48-33) on March 16, 2010, in the finals of the Central Region Tournament.
Sneaky, sneaky
Swiping opponents is a Viking specialty this season. Augustana is tops in the NSIC in steals per game at 7.13 per contest. Senior point guard
Drae Murray (Huntsville, Texas) is a large part of that statistic as he is averaging a league-best 2.63 steals per conference game. In all games this year, Murray is averaging 2.5 steals per game--a statistic that ranks 30th in the country.
Double-figure deficiency
Cameron McCaffrey (Portland, Ore.) was the lone player to hit double figures in points Monday against St. Cloud State. It was the first game this season the Vikings have failed to get at least two players in double figures.
Alex Richter (Lakeville, Minn.) and
Cody Schilling (Ellsworth, Minn.) were the closest to joining McCaffrey, scoring nine and eight points, respectively.
What the coaches say
Augustana is the favorite to win the conference, according to the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll released Oct. 26 by the conference office. The Vikings received nine first-place votes and 164 points in the poll voted on by the conference's 14 head coaches.
National news
Augustana climbed one spot to No. 21 in the latest National Association of Basketball Coaches national poll released Tuesday. The Vikings received 27 points in the rankings voted on by members of the NABC Division II Congress. Metro State (Colo.), which sits at 12-0, retained its top spot with five first-place votes and 197 points. Other NSIC schools in the top 25 included Winona State (No. 10) and MSU Moorhead (No. 19). Augustana's losses earlier this week are not reflected in the rankings. To view the complete poll, turn to page 8.
Schilling closing in
It could be a record-breaking year for
Cody Schilling (Ellsworth, Minn.). The senior is eighth on the career scoring list at Augustana with 1,577 points. He needs 253 points to tie Carl Gonder's career scoring mark of 1,830 points. He scored 572 points last season.
Rk Points Player Years
1. 1830 Carl Gonder 1980-84
2. 1795 Mark Smed 1979-83
3. 1764 Greg Nagel 1974-78
4. 1704 Jason Garrow 1988-92
5. 1681 Scott Beckstrand 1990-94
6. 1642 Arvid Kramer 1975-79
7. 1628 Bill Gross 1969-73
8. 1577
Cody Schilling 2008-12
9. 1510 Brett Szabo 1987-91
10. 1381 Rich Chapman 1973-77
History lesson
Augustana enters its 90th season of men's basketball in 2011-12. The Vikings are 925-1036 all-time and have racked up 37 winning seasons, including the past five seasons under
Tom Billeter.
On the radio
Veteran radio man Jeff Fylling is back as the “Voice of the Vikings” for 2011-12. Join Fylling for each broadcast on KIKN-FM 100.5. You can also stream the broadcast at kikn.com/stream.
Augustana Sportscene
Augustana Sportscene is a 30-minute weekly television show highlighting Augustana athletics and is hosted by Director of Athletics Bill Gross. The show includes Viking highlights, interviews with various coaches and student-athletes and promotion of upcoming Augustana athletic events. Augustana Sportscene airs Monday's at 10:30 p.m. and Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. on Midco Sports Network and at various times on Mediacom's MC22.
Augustana Coaches' Show
Live from Rookies in Sioux Falls, The Augustana Coaches' Show airs On ESPN 99.1 each Monday at 5 p.m. Join Jeff Fylling and Augustana head coaches as they discuss various topics surrounding Viking athletics. You can also stream the show live at www.ESPN991.com.
