DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica men's basketball team is back at the Reif Gymnasium this weekend when it welcomes Finlandia University (Mich.) on Friday and Northland College on Saturday.
Where:
Reif Gymnasium (Burns Wellness Center – Duluth, Minn.
When:
Friday vs. Finlandia – 7:30 p.m.
Saturday vs. Northland – 5 p.m.
Live Video: http://www.csssaints.com/ssn
Live Stats: http://saintscholastica.statcrew.com/mncaab/2016/current/live.html
Social Media:
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/CSSsaints
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/csssaints
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/css.saints
St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 2-4, 1-1 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
Last Action: The Saints won their conference opener on Friday, downing North Central University 74-59 … The game was played at Crown College in St. Bonifacius …
Kory Deadrick (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) recorded a career-high 22 points in the victory, while
Brandon Newman (Barnum, Minn./Barnum HS) added 15 points and four steals … CSS then lost in a rematch of last year's UMAC Tournament championship game, falling to the University of Northwestern 76-69 … CSS led by as much as 11 late in the first half, but were out-scored 27-14 over the final nine minutes to suffer the defeat … It was Newman leading the way with 23 points.
Non-Conference/Conference: Finlandia is Northland's travel partner in the UMAC schedule rotation, but the Lions are not affiliated with the league … Friday's game is a non-conference game, while Saturday against Northland will be a UMAC matchup.
Second Half Struggles: Opponents have scored at least 40 points in the second half against the Saints in every game thus far … St. Scholastica has only out-scored its opponent in the second half once … CSS has a plus-20 margin in the first half and minus-38 margin in the second half … The Saints are shooting an average of 40.5 percent from the floor in the second half on the year.
UMAC Preseason Poll
1. Northwestern - 62 points (7 First Place Votes)
2. St. Scholastica - 58 (2)
3. Minnesota Morris - 46
4. North Central - 42
5. Bethany Lutheran - 32
6. Northland - 31
7. Crown - 25
8. UW-Superior - 19
9. Martin Luther - 9
Upcoming Opponents
Finlandia Lions
Record: 1-3
The Lions are coming off a last second loss to Crown College on Saturday, in which they led for all of the game, except the final two seconds … Finlandia's lone win on the year came against Alma College (Mich.) … Brandon Robinson leads the team in scoring, averaging 22.8 points per game … Robinson has made 10 of the team's 17, 3-point field goals this season … Marcus Geralds averages a double-double of 19.5 points and 10.3 rebounds.
Northland LumberJacks
Record: 3-4, 2-0 UMAC
The LumberJacks are off to a 2-0 start in league play after defeating both Crown College and the University of Minnesota Morris last weekend … Northland will be at the University of Wisconsin-Superior on Friday night, before facing the Saints on Saturday … Thomas Whiting, who also played goalkeeper for men's soccer team in the fall, leads the squad in scoring, averaging 14.4 points per game … Whiting is tied for the third in the league with seven blocked shots … The 'Jacks also feature two of the top three 3-point shooters in the conference … Dan Campion leads the UMAC , making 45 percent on his 3-point attempts and is second with 19, 3-point field goals made … Rijo Jackson is third in the conference, making 41 percent of his attempts and has made 18 on the year … Campion is also second in the conference with a 1.9 assist-to-turnover ratio … The LumberJacks are the best free throw shooting team in the league (.806), but are at the bottom in shooting offense, in general (.407).
Series Records:
-CSS leads Finlandia 21-8
(Last Meeting: 81-74 CSS – 1/29/2016)
-CSS leads Northland 56-20
(Last Meeting: 83-79 (ot) NC – 1/30/2016)
Series Histories: The Saints have won three straight against Finlandia … CSS has not lost at home to the Lions since February of 2003 and have won nine straight at the Reif since then /// Northland ended a 12-game losing skid to the Saints with an overtime victory in Ashland last season … St. Scholastica is 30-4 all-time at home against the LumberJacks with only one loss since 1996.
Looking Ahead: The Saints are on the road at Martin Luther College and Bethany Lutheran College on December 16 and 17.
