#16 Huskies close regular season with Minnesota-Crookston, Bemidji State

ST. CLOUD, MINN. - The past four months have seemingly gone by in a blur for the St. Cloud State University women's basketball team. After officially opening the season on Friday, November 19, the Huskies will close the regular season this weekend with one final Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) series. St. Cloud State will host Minnesota-Crookston in its final home game of 2021-22 on Thursday, February 17 before hitting the road to face Bemidji State on Saturday, February 19.

The Huskies will host the Golden Eagles at 5:30 p.m. Thursday night before taking on the Beavers at 2:00 p.m. Saturday. This will be fans last chance to see St. Cloud State in action at Halenbeck Hall this season, as the Huskies can finish no lower than second in the NSIC North Division standings. This means the team will receive a bye in the opening round of the NSIC / Sanford Health Tournament and will advance straight to the quarterfinal round, which will take place February 26-27 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Live stats and video will be available for both games this weekend, and fans can also tune in to a live radio broadcast on the Varsity Network App. Score updates will be made to the team's Twitter account (@SCSUHUSKIES_WBB).

Here are the five things to know before this weekend's tip off:

16/7 - The Huskies were once again ranked in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) and D2SIDA top-25 polls this week. St. Cloud State clocked in at #16 in the WBCA Division II top-25 poll after spending back-to-back weeks in the #18 slot. The Huskies then proceeded to earn the #7 ranking in the D2SIDA poll, which is voted on weekly by sports information directors and athletic communications professionals working in Division II.

3 - While Bemidji State has the better record entering the weekend, St. Cloud State can't overlook Thursday's game against Minnesota-Crookston. The Golden Eagles have caught fire as of late, winning three consecutive games against Minot State (91-65), Northern State (79-73) and MSU Moorhead (68-60). Minnesota-Crookston additionally nearly pulled off a big win over Mary on February 4, falling 72-70 on a last second shot by Reese Wishart.

46.0- The Huskies did sweep the Golden Eagles and Beavers earlier this season, defeating Minnesota-Crookston 60-41 on the road before besting Bemidji State 69-51 at home. It marked one of St. Cloud State's most dominating defensive performances of the weekend, as the Huskies held their opponents to 46.0 points per game and under .350 shooting in the first half.

11 - St. Cloud State's defensive performance against the Beavers was especially impressive, considering the team held Bemidji State to just 11 first half points back in early December. In fact, the Beavers shot just .181 from the floor in the first quarter and .231 in the second, as the Huskies held them to 5-24 shooting from the floor, including a 0-8 mark from three-point range.

983 - Brehna Evans (De Pere, Wis. / West De Pere) has been impressive for St. Cloud State throughout her entire career. The reigning NSIC Defensive Player of the Year has not only been a stalwart of the Huskies defense but has been an offensive catalyst for St. Cloud State as well, averaging 12.3 points per game in her fourth season with the program. It should come as no surprise, then, that she is 17 points away from eclipsing the 1000 career point milestone. Evans will become the second player to score her 1000th career point this season, joining fifth year senior Nikki Kilboten (Eau Claire, Wis. / Eau Claire North), who did so in the second game of the 2021-22 season.