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THIS WEEK: Minot State University men's basketball hits the road for their its round matchup of the 2014 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference/ Sanford Health Men's Basketball Tournament. The Beavers will be play the Winona State Warriors on Wednesday Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. from McCown Gymnasium.  

RECORDS: The Minot State is 8-18 overall and 4-18 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play this season, placing them seventh in the NSIC North Division. Winona State is 23-6 overall with a 18-4 record during their NSIC schedule, placing them second in the NSIC South Division.

COACHES CORNER: Minot State's Matt Murken is in his second season as head coach of the Beavers. He is 18-33 with Minot State and is 64-51 throughout his four year head coaching career. In his first season with the MISU, Murken increased the Beavers' win total by six from the previous year including the program's first ever win against a NCAA Division II ranked opponent (68-62, No. 19 St. Cloud State, Jan. 5, 2012). Murken has also helped establish his Minot State teams over arch rival University of Mary, as they Beavers are 3-1 in four matchups against the Marauders. The Warriors are coached by Mike Leaf, who is in his sixteenth season at the helm over the WSU men's program. Leaf has a career record of 365-137 and has led the Warriors to 15 winnings seasons during his tenure. Leaf has guided WSU to nine NCA Division II National Tournament appearances. Four times the Warriors have reached the Central Region Championship game, each time emerging victorious. The Warriors have advanced to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2013, winning the National Championship in both 2006 and 2008.

FOLLOW THE BEAVERS: Due to conflicting home playoff games, the men's basketball game will be broadcast on 1390AM KRRZ. However, there will be no live online stream of that game. Officials from Minot State and Winona State will provide live video and live stats as well as links to the live audio at msubeavers.com. Minot State Athletics also is active on Facebook, Twitter and You Tube with all feeds accessible at msubeavers.com/stayconnected.

RANKINGS: Minot State did not receive any votes in the Feb. 25 National Association of Basketball Coaches' Poll. Winona State received 1 point in the poll. However, the Warriors are also currently ranked first in the NCAA Division II Central Region Poll.

RECENT HISTORY: Minot State ended the 2013-14 regular season with two losses on the road against two of the top teams in the NSIC North Division. Friday Feb. 21 MISU fell to Minnesota State University Moorhead 85-55 before falling to Northern State 73-58 on Saturday Feb. 22. On the weekend, the Beavers shot just 12-of-34 on 3-pointers for a 35.3 shooting percentage. Winona State split games on their final regular season weekend of the 2013-14 season. WSU defeated Wayne State 75-57 Friday night before falling to Augustana College 79-70 on Saturday. Against Augie, Winona State allowed the Vikings to score 52 second half points while shooting 58.6 percent from the floor.
OVERALL SERIES: Minot State has seen little success in their brief history against Winona State. The Beavers are 0-3 all-time against the Warriors as WSU have outscored MISU by an average of 22.3 points per game.

NOTING THE WARRIORS: In the past eight seasons, Winona State has been the face of Northern Sun men's basketball with two NCAA Division II National Championships and one NCAA Division II Runner Up. Expectations are again high for WSU as they the second seed and in NSIC South Division while also claiming the current top spot in the NCAA Division II Central Region Poll. Riley Bambenek leads a balanced Winona State team with 13.8 points per game.  The Warriors have seven players that average over 6.9 points per game. Senior Kellen Taylor has had a standout year averaging 9.9 points per game to go along with a team high 8.1 rebounds per game and 35 steals.  Winona State's key to success is on the defensive side of the ball where they rank first in the NSIC, giving up just 66.0 points per game through 29 games this regular season. The Warriors also ranked first in the conference in field goal percentage defense, as they hold their opponents to 39.3 percent from the floor.

OFFENSIVE STRUGGLE: Minot State did not have a good two games when it comes to scoring points. The Beavers averaged just 56.5 points per game on the weekend, the fewest points the have scored during NSIC weekend this season. The 113 points marks the fewest scored in a two-game weekend since the  2012-13 season when Minot State scored just 111 (55.5 points per game) in two losses against Upper Iowa and Winona State at the Dome.

WEEKEND TO FORGET: E.J. Williams (Sr., G, Raleigh, N.C.) would like nothing more than to redeem himself after having one of his worst weekends in a Minot State uniform. Williams scored just five points in the two games this weekend, shooting just 2-of-14 from the field in 48 minutes of play. Williams has been a cornerstone for MISU over the past two years, and currently leads the team with 14.8 points per game.

GANDY GOES OFF: Isiah Gandy (Sr., G, West Palm Beach, Fla.) saw a season-high 20 minutes in Friday's loss at MSU Moorhead, and made the most of his minutes. Gandy scored a career-high 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the floor. He hit a career-high three 3-point shots on just three attempts while also recording two rebounds and two steals.

MCDONALD SCORING THE ROCK: A season ago, Dominique McDonald (So., G, Raleigh, N.C.) established his ability to pass the ball and find the open man as he led the Beavers in assists. This season, McDonald has also shown his ability to score as he is averaging 11.7 points per game including a 14.4 average over his last seven games. Over his career, he has scored 539 points in 51 games as a Beaver.

EAST FEASTS ON OFFENSIVE GLASS: Minot State senior Chris East (F, Toronto, Ontario) currently ranks second in the Northern Sun with 3.12 offensive rebounds per game as he has collected 81 offensive boards in 26 games. Throughout his career, East has grabbed 214 offensive rebounds including a season-high seven offensive rebounds against Winona State earlier this season.

LAST TIME AGAINST WINONA STATE: Minot State played competitively with Winona State for 30 minutes during the Jan. 11 78-64 loss in Winona, Minn. The key a 17-2 run by the Warriors in the second half that catapulted them to victory. Thomas Korf (Jr., G, St. Cloud, Minn.) led Minot State with 17 points in the game while Conrad Masberg netted 17 of his own for WSU.

BY THE NUMBERS
5,422: In Saturday's game at Northern State, the recorded paid attendance was 5,422, marking the largest crowd for a Minot State game, home or away, since the Beavers joining the NSIC. NSU has led NCAA Division II in attendance the past six seasons.

79.3: In the last six seasons, Winona State has compiled a record of 73-19, winning 79.3 percent of their games when playing on their home court at McCown Gymnasium.

44.5: Over his past 11 games, Dominique McDonald (So., G, Raleigh, N.C.) has shot an impressive 44.5 percent from the floor. In five of those 11 games, McDonald has shot over 50.0 percent from the floor.