Storylines
• Augustana men's basketball (11-7, 8-4 NSIC) returns to the Elmen Center this weekend for a pair of games against Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference South Division foes.
• Augustana will face the University of Sioux Falls (8-8, 5-7 NSIC) on Friday night, with game time set for 8 p.m.
• The Vikings will close-out the weekend against Southwest Minnesota State (11-7, 8-4 NSIC) at 6 p.m. on Saturday night.
• Augustana enters the weekend in an five-way tie for fifth in the overall NSIC standings and third in the South Division.
• Augustana and SMSU are tied in both the overall and divisional standings entering the weekend.
Mayor's Cup
• Augustana will have a chance at a season sweep over USF on Friday night at the Elmen Center and earning another 1/2 a point in the First Dakota National Bank Mayor's Cup Challenge.
• Augustana currently owns a 4-3 lead in the 2013-14 Mayor's Cup Standings.
• Augustana men's and women's basketball swept USF at the Stewart Center on Dec. 7 to combine for a point in the standings.
• The First Dakota National Bank Mayor's Cup Challenge is an annual head-to-head competition between Augustana and the University of Sioux Falls athletic departments and their fans which pits 16, equally weighted sports to determine which school and their fan base can claim bragging rights for that year.
• Augustana won the inaugural competition last year, defeating USF 13-6 to claim the Mayor's Cup.
• For more information on the First Dakota National Bank Mayor's Cup Challenge, visit SFmayorscup.com.
Last time out
• Augustana picked up a split on the road last weekend, first falling 84-77 to Minnesota State on Friday night.
• Augustana rebounded with an 89-68 win over Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday night.
• Minnesota State shot 56 percent from the field and got to the free throw line 27 times in the win.
• Augustana got within five with six minutes to play in the game but the Mavericks pulled away in the final minutes for the win.
•
Casey Schilling led the Vikings with 19 points on 8 of 10 shooting while
Devin Gilligan posted a carer-high 15 points.
• Augustana grabbed a season-high 49 rebounds in its win over Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday, out-rebounding the Golden bears 49-23.
• The Vikings grabbed a season-high 19 offensive rebounds in the game and led by as much as 37 points in the game.
•
Daniel Jansen led the Vikings with 23 points, followed by Schilling's 21-point, 16-rebound performance.
About Augustana
• Augustana is 11-7 on the season and is has scored 79.3 points per game.
• Augustana has allowed 70.8 points per game this season and holds a +8.5 scoring margin.
• The Vikings have shot 45.1 percent from the field, including 37.2 percent from 3-point range.
• The Vikings are shooting 73.5 percent (324 of 441) from the free throw line as a team.
• Augustana has grabbed 36.3 rebounds per game and holds a +3.4 rebound margin through 18 games.
• The Vikings are averaging 11.8 turnovers and own a +2.2 turnover margin.
About Sioux Falls
• USF enters the weekend at 8-8 on the season, including 5-7 in the NSIC.
• The Cougars are coming off a weekend sweep at home, picking up an 84-78 win over Upper Iowa last Friday and a 76-69 win over Winona State on Saturday.
• USF is averaging 80 points while allowing 80.1 points per game.
• The Cougars have shot 44.9 percent from the field, 36.7 percent from 3-point range and 75.6 percent from the free throw line.
• USF averages 35.9 rebounds per game (+2.3).
• USF is averaging 15.2 turnovers per game (-1.1) and 13.4 assists (0.9 assist/turnover ratio).
• Derek Brown leads the team averaging 12.1 points per game and has hit a team-high 35 3-point field goals on the season.
• Charles Ward is also averaging 12.1 points per game and ranks second on the team with 5.1 rebounds per game.
• Chris Johnson is in his sixth season as the head coach at USF.
• Johnson owns a career record of 125-82, including 109-67 at USF (13-21 NSIC).
About Southwest Minnesota State
• Southwest Minnesota State enters the weekend with an identical record as Augustana, at 11-7 overall, 8-4 in the NSIC.
• The Mustangs split a pair of home games last weekend, defeating Winona State 73-71 on Friday night and losing dropping Saturday night's game 96-75 to Upper Iowa.
• The Mustangs are averaging 74.8 points per game while giving up 71.8.
• SMSU has shot 50.2 percent from the field, which ranks second overall in the NSIC.
• SMSU is shooting 36.6 percent from 3-point range and 72.1 percent from the free throw line this season.
• The Mustangs have averaged 34.1 rebounds per game (+5.2) while holding opponents to 28.9 rebounds per game.
• SMSU has five players averaging double-digits in points, led by senior center Nick Smith's 11.7 points per game.
• Smith also leads the team with 6.5 rebounds per game and is shooting 50.9 percent from the field.
• Vinard Birch is averaging 11.4 points per game this season and ranks third in the NSIC averaging 4.3 assists per game.
• Brad Bigler is in his fifth season as the head coach at Southwest Minnesota State.
• Bigler owns a career record of 75-58, all at SMSU, including 56-43 in NSIC games.
Series history
• Augustana is 29-27 all-time against Sioux Falls. Two scores in the all-time series are unknown.
• The two teams first met in 1922.
• Friday night's game will be the second meeting between the two teams this season.
• Augustana defeated Sioux Falls 96-77 on Dec. 7 at the Stewart Center.
• Augustana has won 19 of the last 21 meetings over USF.
• Saturday's game will be the 25th all-time meeting between Augustana and Southwest Minnesota State.
• Augustana is 14-10 all-time against SMSU, including 7-3 at home.
• Saturday's game will be the second meeting of the season.
• SMSU defeated Augustana 85-84 on Dec. 6 after Vinard Birch hit the game-winning shot with 10.5 seconds left on the clock.
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