Huskies hit road for nonconference series at Mary

ST. CLOUD, MINN. - It's not exactly same song, second verse for the St. Cloud State women's basketball team this weekend. It's more like same team, second go around. After a wild start to the week, the Huskies will experience a smidge of normalcy, as they hit the road to face the University of Mary for the second consecutive weekend.

This week has been nothing short of wild for St. Cloud State, which was originally scheduled to play Minot State University in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) North Division match up. That series was ultimately cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols at Minot State and will not be rescheduled per NSIC guidelines. Mary also saw its series against Minnesota-Duluth cancelled for similar reasons, allowing the Huskies and Marauders to schedule a nonconfernece series in Bismarck, North Dakota.

This will be the second consecutive meeting between the two teams, as the two faced off last weekend in St. Cloud, Minnesota. St. Cloud State dominated in the first game, winning 90-54, before a last second shot by Minnesota native Megan Voit resulted in a 70-67 Mary win.

Fans can follow along via live stats and video. Score updates will also be made on the team's official Twitter account (@SCSUHUSKIES_WBB).

Here are the five thing to know before this weekend's series at Mary:

8-4 - This will be the Huskies first road test of 2020-21, as they have played their last four games in the comforts of Halenbeck Hall. Last season, St. Cloud State posted an 8-4 record in road games and additionally was 5-0 on a neutral court. Friday and Saturday's games will certainly not be neutral, as the Huskies have gone 5-3 in their last eight games in Bismarck.

36 - St. Cloud State defeated Mary 90-54 in the series opener last weekend, which was historic in many ways. The 36-point difference accounts for the largest margin of victory in the history of the series and brings the Huskies total points scored against the Marauders to 1314.

11.5/9.5 - Erin Navratil (Albany, Minn. / Albany) may be St. Cloud State's biggest threat heading into the weekend. The junior was a force to be reckoned with last weekend, as she averaged 11.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in two games against Mary. In fact, Navratil led the NSIC in rebounds in Friday night's victory, pulling in a career high 10 while scoring nine points on the floor. Her scoring abilities were on display Saturday, as she scored 14 point, just three short of her career high, and tallied nine rebounds, one shy of her first career double-double. Navratil currently ranks first in the NSIC in rebounds per game (9.5) vs. conference opponents.

14.0 - The Huskies defense was on fire last weekend, holding the Marauders to .376 shooting from the floor and a 62.2 points per game average. However, there was one weakness in St. Cloud State's game plan: lob passes, particularly to Mary senior Lauren Rotunda. The guard was the Marauders top offensive player against the Huskies, averaging 14.0 points per game by scoring 28 total points. She additionally led the team in scoring in Friday night's loss with 12 points and added 16 in Saturday's win.

5 - St. Cloud State's offense was the most well rounded it's been all season, as five different Huskies averaged double-digit points against Mary. Tori Wortz (Hutchinson, Minn. / Hutchinson) continued to lead the team in scoring, averaging 15.5 points while shooting .407 from the floor, while Brehna Evans (De Pere, Wis. / West De Pere) was right on her heels averaging 13.0 points a game. Nikki Kilboten (Eau Claire, Wis. / Eau Claire North) and Katrina Theis (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove) both had offensive sparks this weekend, as they averaged 12.5 and 10.5 points respectively, and Navratil concluded the weekend averaging 11.5 points a game.