SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana men's basketball team gets into cross-divisional action as it plays its first two games against NSIC North Division opponents Friday and Saturday. The Vikings travel to Northern State for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff Friday and MSU Moorhead for a 5:30 p.m. start on Saturday. Both teams are atop the NSIC North standings with 6-1 league records.
 
Complete action can be followed on GoAugie.com/Live and the GoAugie app. The app can be downloaded in the app store or Google Play.
 
About the Wolves
Northern State is 10-3 on the year and 6-1 in the NSIC after sweeping No. 21 Minnesota Duluth, 75-73, and St. Cloud State, 83-65. The victory over UMD was the first loss the Bulldogs have suffered in conference action.
 
Sam Masten was named the NSIC Player of the Week after averaging 13.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 10.0 assists over the two games. Masten leads NSU in scoring at 17.7 points per game while Jacksen Moni records 14.8 points per outing.
 
About the Dragons
Under first-year head coach Tim Bergstraser, MSU Moorhead is off to a quick start in 2022-23 with its 11-2 record and 6-1 league mark. A night after NSU snuck past Minnesota Duluth, the Dragons thumped the Bulldogs, 72-58. The previous night, MSUM topped St. Cloud State, 86-72.
 
Since suffering an 84-75 loss to Northern State on Nov. 22, the Dragons have reeled off eight-straight wins. Jacob Beeninga leads MSUM with 15.5 points per game average, leading a quartet of Dragons in double-figure scoring. Dane Zimmer is the top rebounder at 7.5 rebounds per game.
 
About the Vikings
Augustana is 7-7 on the year and 3-5 in NSIC action after narrowly falling to first place Wayne State last week. The Vikings placed three players in double-figure scoring with Akoi Akoi and Jadan Graves nearly accumulating double-doubles. Akoi's came via 14 points and nine rebounds while Graves was a nine-point, eight-assist effort.
 
Akoi leads Augustana with 13 points per outing while Ryan Miller tallies 12.7 points per game. Graves is having a solid first campaign with AU at 11.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game. 
 
One Last Thing
Raise your hand if you thought you'd get a Jameson Bryan shoutout in this section this year. A year after Bryan had one of the best assists per game tallies for AU in several years, Jadan Graves has stepped in and filled that void nearly identically. Bryan recorded 4.5 assists per game as a senior last year. Graves is currently at 4.3 assists per game and holds a strong 2.46 assist-to-turnover ratio.