Dec. 6, 2000

VERMILLION, S.D. - The No. 12 ranked University of South Dakota Coyotes (5-1) will open the North Central Conference season this weekend when they face No. 20 Minnesota State, Mankato Friday and St. Cloud State Saturday. Both games will begin at 8 p.m. in the DakotaDome. Minnesota State, Mankato and St. Cloud State are unbeaten through six games.

COMMON OPPONENTS: Minnesota State has defeated Southwest State 63-59 at Marshall, Minn. (Nov. 21) while USD dropped a 75-66 decision to Southwest State at the Hardee's/Coca-Cola Classic (Dec. 1).

SERIES WITH MINNESOTA STATE: The Mavericks lead the all-time series against USD 33-28. Last season Minnesota State defeated USD 75-73 in the DakotaDome (Jan. 29, 2000) while USD took a 78-55 decision in Otto Arena at Mankato (Feb. 25, 2000). Interestingly, home court advantage has meant little in the past 10 years between the two schools. USD holds a 5-5 mark at the DakotaDome against Minnesota State, although the Mavericks have won five of the past seven games in the Dome. They won four straight from 1993-94 to 1996-97 while the Coyotes have won two of the past three. USD has won six of the last 10 meetings in Otto Arena at Mankato, including four of the past five games and the last two.

SERIES WITH ST. CLOUD STATE: USD leads the all-time series with St. Cloud State 20-20. Last season the two teams split games with USD winning at home 73-63 (Jan. 28, 2000) behind the shooting of Ben Ries, who had 20 points. At St. Cloud (Feb. 26, 2000) the Coyotes lost 80-78 despite 21 points from Jeremy Kudera. In the past 10 years, USD has won eight of the last 10 meetings against St. Cloud State in the DakotaDome and own a 6-4 advantage at St. Cloud.

USD RANKED NO. 12: In the most recent NABC/Division II Bulletin released Dec. 2, USD was ranked No. 12 and Minnesota State, Mankato was given the No. 20 ranking.

USD STARTERS:
F - 22 - Jimmie Foster, 6'4", Jr., Milwaukee, Wis. (13.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg)
F - 52 - Jeremy Kudera, 6'7", Sr., Dell Rapids, S.D. (15.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg)
C - 54 - Jason Barrow, 6'6", Sr., Bloomington, Ill. (10.2 ppg, 7.5 rpg)
G - 03 - Paul Marshall, 6'1", Jr., Winnebago, Ill. (12.8 ppg, 1.7 rpg)
G - 04 - Nate Tibbetts, 6'1", Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D. (4.6 ppg, 7.3 apg)

USD TOP RESERVES:
F - 30 - Scott Hansen, 6'7", Jr., Coleridge, Neb. (9.5 ppg, 1.7 rpg)
F - 50 - Steve Anderson, 6'7", Fr., Rapid City, S.D. (4.2 ppg, 3.4 rpg)
G - 42 - Eric Hickenbottom, 6'4", Jr., Agency, Iowa (8.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg)
G - 24 - Richard Ross, 6'4", Fr., Lincoln, Neb. (7.7 ppg, 1.0 rpg)
G - 44 - Travis James, 6'2", So., Lompac, Calif. (1.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg)

PROBABLE STARTERS FOR MINNESOTA STATE, MANKATO:
F - 15 - Josh Ziemke, 6'4", So., Janesville, Minn. (13.8 ppg, 4.8 ppg)
F - 31 - Eric Siebrands, 6'9", Sr., Good Thunder, Minn. (10 ppg, 4.8 rpg)
C - 41 - Nick Ellenberger, 6'8", Jr., Stockholm, Wis. (17.5 ppg, 7.7 rpg)
G - 13 - Jay Larson, 6'0", Jr., St. Francis, Minn. (4.5 ppg, 3.1 apg)
G - 05 - Drew Carlson, 6'2", So., Belle Paine, Minn. (15 ppg, 3.5 apg)

PROBABLE STARTERS FOR ST. CLOUD STATE:
F - 40 - Jason Kron, 6'6", So., Cold Spring, Minn. (11.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg)
F - 30 - Rado Rancik, 6'9", Jr., Bratislava, Slovakia (16.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg)
C - 50 - Andy Johnson, 6'8", Jr., Boundurant, Iowa (4.3 ppg, 2.0 rpg)
G - 20 - Forrest Witt, 6'1", So., Morris, Minn. (12.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg)
G - 14 - Todd Bishop, 6'2", Sr., Prairie du Sac, Wis. (6.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg)

or G - 32 - Jonny Reese, 6'2", Sr., St. Louis Park, Minn. (13.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg)

COYOTE SEASON REVIEW: The Coyotes have opened the season with five wins in six games including home victories over Mount Marty 87-54 (Nov. 21) and Rochester College 86-36 (Nov. 25). USD defeated Wayne State (Neb.) 86-80 in OT (Nov. 17) and Minnesota-Morris 117-58 (Nov. 18) at the Quad State Classic in Morris, Minn. and defeated Regis (Colo.) 79-40 (Dec. 2) and lost to Southwest State 75-66 (Dec. 1).

KUDERA NAMED ALL-TOURNEY: Senior forward Jeremy Kudera, who scored 38 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in two games, was named to the all-tournament team at the Hardee's/Coca-Cola Classic Dec. 1-2.

SECOND HIGHEST GAME POINT TOTAL IN COYOTE HISTORY: The 117-58 win over Minnesota-Morris was the second highest point total in school history. That total is only exceeded by the 128 points scored by the 1977-78 team against Westmar.

FOR THE RECORD: This season USD is 5-1, 2-0 at home, 1-1 on the road and 1-0 at neutral sites. USD had an 11-3 home record a year ago and finished 22-6, 13-5 (first in the NCC). USD advanced to the North Central Regional as the number one seed where they fell in the semifinals 86-83 to Wayne State (Neb.). The Coyotes return three starters and lose two starters from a year ago, including NCC MVP and second team all-American Nate Blessen (19.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg) as well as sharpshooter Ben Ries (12.3 ppg). Ries left USD as the all-time leader in three-point shots made (290). Blessen and Ries were first team all-NCC performers as was current Coyote forward Jeremy Kudera, who has been tabbed by a national publication as one of the top players in the country in 2000-01.

NICKNAMES: The Voice of the Coyotes, Kevin Culhane, has a flair for coming up with nicknames for the Coyotes. So far he has named Nate Tibbetts "The General" for his ability to control the floor and make quick decisions on the run. Culhane began calling Jeremy Kudera "Special K" because he usually makes several special plays in each game. Who's next?

KUDERA MOVING UP THREE-POINT LISTS: With 165 three-point baskets in his career, Kudera has moved into fourth place all-time. The top three include current Coyote volunteer coach Ben Ries (1996-2000), 290, Mike Graves, 274, and Randy Rosenquist (1990-94), 209.

DOUBLE FIGURE SCORING:
Kudera (26, Wayne State, 15, Minnesota-Morris, 18, Southwest State, 20, Regis)
Foster (18, Wayne State, 21, Mount Marty, 15, Rochester, 17, Regis)
Marshall (15, Minnesota-Morris, 21, Mount Marty, 12, Rochester, 13, Southwest State)

BARROW HAS TWO DOUBLE-DOUBLES: Jason Barrow has recorded two double-doubles so far this season. He had 13 points and 11 rebounds against Minnesota-Morris Nov. 18 in the DakotaDome in a 117-58 win and had 13 points and 12 rebounds in an 86-36 win at home over Rochester. Barrow has three double figure scoring games.

TIBBETTS EYEING CAREER LEADERS IN ASSISTS: With 44 assists after four games, Nate Tibbetts has moved into third place in career assists with 507. He recently passed John Hemenway, who had 486 from 1992-96. Tibbetts now trails only Barry Glanzer (1978-82), 566, and Rick Nissen (1972-76), 598.

17 THREE-POINTERS AGAINST MINNESOTA-MORRIS SETS COYOTE RECORD: Earlier this season, USD broke a school record when they knocked home 17 three-point baskets in the 117-58 win over Minnesota-Morris at the Quad State Classic in Morris, Minn. That effort broke the marks of 16 against Augustana in 1991-92 and North Dakota in 1994-95.

COYOTE NUMBERS: Click here for current season statistics.

BY HALF: USD has led at halftime in five of their six games. Only in their season opener against Wayne State (39-32) did the Coyotes trail at the break. The Coyotes largest margin at half was the 57-31 lead against Minnesota-Morris. USD has been outscored by only one team in the second half, and that occurred during their only loss. Southwest State outscored USD 45-34 in their 75-66 win at Marshall, Minn. (Dec. 1).

BEST IN THE NCC: Scott Hansen and Paul Marshall have recorded the best three-point shooting games of the season in the NCC. They both hit 5-of-5 against Minnesota-Morris. Kudera has had the NCC's best games in free throws made (12, Wayne State) and free throw percentage (1.000, Wayne State). The 12 assists by Tibbetts against Mount Marty is the second-best assist performance in the NCC so far this season.

INDIVIDUAL RANKINS IN NCC: Individually, Kudera ranks 10th in scoring at 15.2 per game. Hickenbottom is second in field goal percentage at .741 (20-of-27) while Scott Hansen is fifth at .700 (21-of-30) and Marshall is eighth at .676 (25-of-37). Tibbetts is second in assists with 7.33 per game and second in assist-to-turnover ratio at 4.40 (44 assists, 10 turnovers). Kudera is first in free throw percentage at .962 (25-of-26). Hickenbottom is second in three-point percentage at .750 (6-of-8) and Marshall is fourth at .704 (19-of-27). Marshall is fourth in three-point field goals made with 19 (3.17 per game). Barrow ranks fifth in rebounding with 7.5 per game and fourth in defensive rebounds with 5.83 per game while Kudera is seventh at 5.17 per game.

TEAM RANKINGS IN NCC: USD ranks first or is tied for first in seven NCC team categories. The Coyotes lead in scoring margin (29.7), field goal percentage (.529, 180-of-340), scoring defense (343 points, 57.2 per game), rebounding defense (27.8 per game), three-point field goals made (70, 11.67 per game), assist-to-turnover ratio (115 assists, 1.53 per game, 75 turnovers) and are tied for first in three-point field goal percentage (.458, 70-of-153). USD is second in steals with 62 (10.33 per game).

IN OVERTIME: The Coyotes are 5-11 in overtime games during Boots' tenure, including an 86-80 win in the season opener over Wayne State at the Quad State Classic Nov. 17 in Morris, Minn.

MEDIA FAVORITE: The Coyotes were picked to repeat their NCC title in a poll of media members. The Coyotes, who have won the last two NCC titles, collected 172 points to 148 for second place St. Cloud State. The rest of the poll was as follows: South Dakota State, Morningside, North Dakota, North Dakota State, Minnesota State, Mankato, Nebraska-Omaha, Northern Colorado, and Augustana.

NCC RECORD: As the conference opens, NCC members have recorded a 49-7 mark against other conferences.

NOTES ON USD: Over the past 12 seasons, the Coyotes have owned an impressive homecourt advantage winning 152 games and losing only 30 (.833). USD is the most successful team in the NCC over the last 12 years with more conference wins (143) than any other member school during that span. The Coyotes, who have won at least 10 consecutive conference games for nine straight years, have never finished lower than fifth in the NCC during Dave Boots' tenure as head coach. In the past two NCC seasons, the Coyotes have recorded a 27-9 (.750) mark. USD has a 483-490 all-time mark in the NCC. The school has a 970-879 all-time record (.525). USD has had 18 academic all-NCC selections and a number of GTE academic all-district players during the Boots' era.

COACHES:
Dave Boots, Head Coach
Shane Murphy, Assistant Coach
Andy Markowski, Assistant Coach
Bryan Martin, Assistant Coach
Ben Ries, Graduate Assistant

THE LEAD MAVERICK: Dan McCarrell is in his 17th season as head coach. During his tenure at MSU, he has compiled a 273-178 (.605) record and has a 568-338 (.627) career mark in 34 seasons.

MAVERICK TEAM STUFF: The Mavericks are outscoring their opponents 86.0-67.2. Minnesota State has made 183-of-373 (.491) field goals, 51-of-133 (.383) three-point field goals and 99-of-141 (.702) free throws. Opponents are out-rebounding the Mavericks 236-226 (39.3-37.7). The Mavericks are 4-0 at home and 2-0 on the road. They are outscoring opponents 229-190 in the first half and 275-208 in the second stanza. Nick Ellenberger leads the Mavericks with 17.5 points and 7.7 rebounds while Drew Carlson is averaging 15.0 points per game. Josh Ziemke is averaging 13.8 points and Eric Siebrands is scoring 10.0 points per game.

THE HEAD HUSKY: Kevin Schlagel, who will begin his fourth season at St. Cloud State, has a three-year record of 55-33 and 30-25 in the NCC. He is in his 21st season at St. Cloud State, spending 17 years as an assistant coach. Assisting Schlagel is Matt Reimer, who also begins his fourth season as a full-time assistant. Darrin Johnson is a graduate assistant coach and Tim Urness and former Husky Jeremy Schmidt serve as student assistant coaches.

HUSKY TOTALS: St. Cloud State has outscored opponents 507-372 (84.5-62.0). They have outscored opponents in the first half 259-176 and won the second half 248-197. St. Cloud State has made 190-of-386 (.492) field goals, 45-of-120 (.375) three-point shots and 82-of-109 (.752) free throws. The Huskies are out-rebounding opponents 237-197 (39.5-32.8). The Huskies have 27 blocked shots (2.7 per game).