SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana men's basketball team continues its road trip following a weekend sweep last weekend, first against Minot State on Friday before a Saturday matchup against UMary. Tip-off against the Beavers is set for 7:30 p.m. on Friday before a 5:30 p.m., matchup on Saturday against the Marauders. This weekend also marks the beginning of the men playing AFTER the women, a format that will continue for the rest of the season. 
 
Complete action can be followed on GoAugie.com/Live and the GoAugie app, presented by The Original Pancake House. The app can be downloaded in the App Store or Google Play.

About the Beavers
Minot State was picked to finish 11th in the NSIC poll and are 5-7 in league play after dropping a pair of road games at SMSU and USF last weekend. Deuce Benjamin leads the team with 19.0 points per game and 38 made 3-pointers while dishing 2.3 pointer per game. Darik Dissette adds 14.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game while Isaiah Alexander averages 11.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.

About the Marauders
UMary was picked to finish 16th in the NSIC poll and are 3-9 in league play after losing two games last weekend. Kelton Coleman is the lone Marauders in double figures, averaging 13.1 points per game while leading the NSIC with 2.5 steals per game. Tshawn Bois leads the way with 5.9 rebounds per game while adding 7.8 points per game.

Last Time Out
The Augustana men's basketball team finished a perfect road weekend on Saturday afternoon, defeating Minnesota Crookston 85-77 at the Lysaker Gymnasium.

The Vikings shot 51.9 percent (28 of 54) from the field and made 24 of 30 free throws while the Golden Eagles shot 49.2 percent (29 of 59) from the field and shot just 16 free throws, making 13 of them.

Tameron Ferguson scored 21 points to lead five Vikings in double figures while adding seven assists and six rebounds. Sam Rensch and Brady Helgren each scored 14 points while Rensch grabbed six rebounds and Helgren added five. Caden Hinker poured in 12 points and Amari Westmoreland-Vendiola had 11 while going 9 of 10 from the free throw line. 

About the Vikings
Augustana has opened the season 10-7 overall and 8-4 in the NSIC. They did that after playing a tough non-conference slate, with two of their three losses coming by four points or less.

Tameron Ferguson has been one of the best players in the country in his sophomore season, leading the team with 20.5 points and 6.9 assists per game while shooting 54.7 percent from the field and 35.4 percent from deep. He has tallied at least 20 points in 12 of his last 15 games, including a 28-point performance against Sioux Falls on Dec. 6.

Ferguson is the first Viking to record multiple point-assist double doubles since Jordan Spencer in 2017-18 and is the only player in the country averaging at least 20 points and six assists per game. He is fifth in the country with a 3.34 assist/turnover ratio and is the engine for an offense that turns the ball over just 9.4 times a game, the second fewest total in the country.

After missing all of last season, Caden Hinker has been a dominant force in his return. The redshirt junior has recorded double-doubles in six of his last 14 games while leading the team with 7.1 rebounds per game, including 6.3 defensive rebounds per game. He's second on the team with 15.3 points per game and scored a career-high 26 points against Winona State on Nov. 18 while grabbing a career-high 12 rebounds against Northwest Missouri State on Nov. 15.

Senior Sam Rensch is third on the team with 13.8 points per game. He is second on the team with 2.3 assists per game and has grabbed 3.9 rebounds per contest. He has recorded multiple steals in his last nine of 17 contests and scored a season-high 24 points against Sioux Falls in 46 minutes on Dec. 6. He also leads the team with 1.7 steals per game.

After being inserted into the starting lineup on Jan. 9, Brady Helgren took full advantage of his opportunity. The junior scored a career-high 21 points on 8 of 11 shooting against Jamestown on Jan. 9 and followed that on Jan. 10, reseting his career-high with 22 points on 10 of 14 shooting while tying a career-high with nine rebounds. He has averaged 16.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in his four starts while shooting 69.2 percent from the field.

Bennett Fried had one of the best games of his young career on Dec. 11, tying a career high with 20 points and 12 rebounds while shooting 9 of 13 from the field against St. Cloud State. He has scored in double figures eight times, including all four times he has taken at least nine shots from the field. He's fifth on the team with 8.9 points per game while grabbing 3.8 rebounds per game.

Tanner Te Slaa is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 9.3 points per game while adding 3.9 rebounds per game. The 2024-25 All-NSIC Second Team honoree has knocked down at least two 3-pointers in seven games this season with the Vikings holding a 6-1 record in those seven games. The Vikings are also 5-2 when Te Slaa scores in double figures. 

Series History
Augustana and Minot State will match up for the 14th time all-time with the Beavers leading 7-6. MISU has won seven of the previous eight meetings after dropping the first five matchups and are 3-2 in Minot. The Vikings are 19-6 all-time against UMary, including wins in six straight and 14 of the previous 15 matchups. Augustana is 7-4 in Bismarck all-time and have won six of the last seven on the road in the series.