SIOUX FALLS --  The University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball Team  (8-8, 4-4 NSIC) will build look to build on a two-game winning streak when the Cougars return to the Stewart Center to host Upper Iowa (10-4,  7-1 NSIC) and Winona State (7-5, 4-4 NSIC) on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 6-7. The Cougars face Upper Iowa at 8 p.m. on Friday before facing Winona State at 6 p.m. on Saturday.

USF will face Upper Iowa for the 13th time, trailing 9-3 in the all-time series. The Cougars will meet Winona State for the 11th time, trailing the Warriors, 6-4 in the all-time series.

USF  MBB has won 4-of-5 after sweeping a pair of road games over Wayne State  (64-58) at Rice Auditorium and city rival Augustana (69-62) at the Sioux Falls Arena.  USF recorded its third straight win over WSC and defeated Augustana for the first time since Nov. 22, 1994 on the Vikings home floor (93-87). The victory also ended a seven-game losing streak to the Vikings, dating to a 79-58 win on Feb. 15, 2013 at the Stewart Center.

USF, which has lost six games by four points or less, including five by two or fewer points, used its league-leading defense to pick up a pair of wins. The Cougars held WSC to 58 points and Augustana, which was averaging 84 points per game, to 62 on their home floor. In fact, USF's defense held the Vikings and Wildcats to a combined 36.9 percent from the floor and 21.3 percent from three-point range with a 38.5-to-34.5 margin on the boards.

How to watch/listen
All of USF's home games and NSIC contests will be streamed live via Stretch Internet and are available at USFCougars.com/watch. Veteran broadcaster Tom Frederick is on the call for the game with Upper Iowa on KWSN AM 1230 or FM 98.1 with pregame starting 15 minutes prior to tip-off.  The game with Winona State on Saturday will be broadcast on 107.9. Links for all USF home games are available at USFCougars.com/livestats and links to road contest live stats are available on the USF Men's Basketball schedule.

New Cooper to be unveiled
USF is ushering in a new mascot at the women's and men's basketball game against Upper Iowa on Friday with games at 6 & 8 p.m. Along with Stomp and Tiptoe from the Stampedge and Cagey from the Canaries, the new Cooper will be available for photos with fans of all ages.

Head Coach Chris Johnson approaching 150 career wins at USF
With the next victory by the USF men's basketball team, ninth year men's basketball coach Chris Johnson will record his 150th career win at Sioux Falls. Johnson, who stands 149-113, will coach in his 263rd game on Friday against Upper Iowa. Overall, he has 165 career wins in his career.

Breaking down USF's wins and losses by the numbers
In its eight losses, USF has lost by combined 36 points or 4.5 ppg. In fact, USF has outrebounded opponents, 35-9-to-34.8 in those games, when they have been outshot, 44.6 percent to 42.8 percent from the field by opponents, which has a 39.6 percent to 36.5 percent edge from three point range.

In its eight wins, the Cougars have won by 153 total points or 19.12 ppg, although USF has won by a combined 36 points or 9.0 ppg in league play.  In USF's wins, they own a 80.8 to 61.8 ppg advantage. The Cougars hold a 42.9-to-30.3 edge on the boards, a 40.7-to-28.9 shooting percentage margin in three point shots (9.0 made per game to 6.5 for opponents) and a 49.2 percent-to-38.2 percent edge in field goal shooting in those wins.

Upper Iowa edged USF, 78-76 in early December
Earlier this year, the Peacocks edged USF, 78-76 (Dec. 3),  as Carson Parker converted four free throws down the stretch to seal the win.  Josh Weeber led UIU, which has a 9-3 series lead over USF, with 21 points. The Cougars were  led by Drew Guebert with 22 and Mack Johnson with 15. USF hit 11-of-26 from three point range in the hard luck loss. Upper Iowa, which is tied with SMSU for the NSIC South Division lead at 7-1, has had a strong start to the season at 10-4 overall. They have won 9-of-10 games, including three straight NSIC wins, after a 1-3 start. UIU's only loss in league play was a 85-67 home loss to Winona State on Dec. 17. The Peacocks, which have only a 78.6 to 76.5 winning margin in 14 games this season, are led in scoring by Jimmy Roth at 13.4 ppg.

USF defeated Winona State, 90-81 on Dec. 2
The Cougars,  with 23 points from Mack Johnson and 21 by Drew Guebert, to turn back Winona State on the road. Kyle Bauman had 22 points and seven rebounds for the Warriors. WSU is one of the league's top defensive unit, allowing just 70.9 ppg (3rd, NSIC) and rank first in field goal percentage defense (.413). The Warriors, which are led by Riley Bambanek with 18.6 ppg, have won three of four games.

Cougar Tracks
~ USF ranks second in the NSIC in rebounds as a squad at 39.4 per game, USF has won the rebound battle in 13-of-16 games, including six games with the margin of 11 or better.  
'~ In total, USF has had 54 double digit scoring games with Drew Guebert leading way with 13 and Mack Johnson, 11.
~ Senior forward Daniel Hurtt has the Cougars' top offensive performance with 33 points against Minnesota Duluth (12-10-16). In that game, Hurtt scored 21 points by halftime and also tied a career-best with five three pointers on just six shots. Against Wayne State (12-30-16), he passed 500 career points and with 27 points this past weekend has 526.   
~ Sophomore forward Drew Guebert, who has 577 points in 46 games, is leading USF in scoring with his 16.6 ppg, ranking 10th in the NSIC. Guebert, who has seven 20-point games this season and 10 in his career,  is supplying 5.8 rebounds per game . He had a season-high of 30 points in the season opener against Emporia State. He recorded his only  career double double with 19 points and 14 rebounds in a 69-52 win over UPR-Mayaguez.  He has 27 games with double digit points.
~  Senior forward Clint Thomas (10. 8 ppg) ranks fourth in the league in three point shooting at 52.3 percent on 45-of-86 shooting. Thomas has  105 career 3's on 230 attempts for 45.7 percent. He is 14 away from moving into the top 10 all-time at USF (Corey Smith, 119, 1999-01). Thomas is 43 points (457) from 500 career points at USF.
~ USF has made 10 or more three-pointers in a game seven times, a high of 14 on 27 attempts against Winona State on Dec. 2.  
.~ In games, USF has led at halftime, they are 7-3, 1-1 when tied at the break and 0-4 when trailing at halftime.
~ USF has shot over .500 five times this season and are 4-1 in those games. The season best performance was the 39-of-63 performance for 61.9 percent against Concordia-Wisconsin on Nov. 19. In games, USF has outshot opponents, the Cougars are 8-4.
~  Junior forward Tom Aase has set a program D2-best with 114 career blocks, owning USF's D2 mark for season blocks with 56. Brian Kielpinkski who had 135 career blocks from 2011-15, had the D2 mark of 108 career blocks at USF. Kielpinski had 27 blocks in USF's transition season to D2 (2011-12).

Mack Johnson owns school record for 3's; sits 10th on USF's scoring list
With 240 points this season, including 11 double digit scoring games (68 in his career), Mack Johnson has moved into the top-10 on USF's all-time list.  Johnson, who will play in his 103rd career game against Upper Iowa, needs 91 points to pass Tim Dykstra (1,524) for ninth on the career list. After making 28-of-85 three point baskets this season, Johnson is the school's all-time leader in made three-point shots with 210. He is hitting 38.3 percent from three point range on 598 attempts. Johnson, who is shooting 84.2 percent from the foul line (212-of-252) owns 21 games of 20 points or more and three games of 30 points or more, including his career best 39 vs. Upper Iowa on Dec. 4, 2015