St. Cloud State
University of Minnesota Duluth
Men's basketball opens 2022 with #9 Minnesota-Duluth
12/29/2021 10:09:00 AM | Men's Basketball
ST. CLOUD, MINN. - It feels like forever since the St. Cloud State University men's basketball team last took the floor in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) play. After a week off, the Huskies return to action this Sunday, as they host #9 Minnesota-Duluth at 2:00 p.m. in St. Cloud, Minnesota.
This will be the second meeting between the Huskies and Bulldogs this season, the first of which occurred on November 23, 2021. Minnesota-Duluth won the initial meeting, taking down St. Cloud State by a final score of 86-69. Since then, the Huskies have won four of their last six NSIC games, including a thrilling 84-80 win over Northern State to close the first half of the season on December 18.
Tip off on Sunday is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. in Halenbeck Hall on St. Cloud State's campus. Live stats and video will be available via the St. Cloud State website and Athletics app, and a radio broadcast stream will be available on the Varsity Network App. Score updates will be made to the team's Twitter page (@SCSUHUSKIES_MBB) when possible.
Here are the five things to know before Sunday's tip off:
9 - The Bulldogs were ranked #9 in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) top-25 rankings this week, the highest Minnesota-Duluth has been ranked in multiple years. The team earned the ranking after opening 2021-22 with a perfect 13-0 record thanks to a 7-0 start in NSIC play. The Bulldogs are the last undefeated team in the conference this season and the only team to hold a 7-0 record in NSIC play.
82.4/78.0 - Minnesota-Duluth is very good at scoring, as the Bulldogs are averaging 82.4 points per game in conference play this season. The Huskies should be able to keep pace, as they are also averaging a lot of points against NSIC opponents in 2021-22. St. Cloud State enters the weekend averaging 78.0 points per game, and the team has scored at least 70 points in five NSIC games this season. In fact, the Huskies are 4-1 when scoring 75+ points in conference contests this year and hold the same record when scoring 80+ points in games.
2-2 - Neither St. Cloud State nor Minnesota-Duluth have held an advantage in the last four meetings between the two teams. The Huskies and Bulldogs split their two-game series in 2021-22, as St. Cloud State clinched a berth to the NSIC Tournament with a 91-86 victory in the final game of the regular season. Prior to last year, however, Minnesota-Duluth won three consecutive games against the Huskies from December of 2018 to December of 2019.
20.1/18.4 - Both teams boast two of the top scorers in the NSIC this season. St. Cloud State's Anthony Roberts (Chicago, Ill. / Oak Park) has put up big numbers in the Huskies first seven conference games of the season, averaging 20.1 points thanks to a .476 shooting percentage on the floor. The Bulldogs are currently led in scoring by Austin Andrews in conference contests. The sophomore is currently averaging 18.4 points in NSIC games this season, while teammate Drew Blaire is averaging 16.7 points against conference opponents in 2021-22.
2 - Roberts isn't the only St. Cloud State student-athlete putting up big scoring numbers this season. Caleb Donaldson (Bloomington, Ill. / Bloomington) is averaging 15.0 points per game, while his shooting numbers are off the charts. The junior guard boasts a .698 field goal percentage on 44-63 shooting from the floor, which ranks second in the conference entering this weekend. Josh Tomasi (Melbourne, Australia / Box Hill) is averaging 11.2 points on .520 shooting. Like Donaldson, Tomasi's shooting percentage ranks top-10 in the conference, clocking in at No. 8.
