SIOUX FALLS -- The University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball Team (2-0), which recorded a pair of overtime wins at MIAA-NSIC classic this past weekend, will host the University of Wisconsin-Superior (0-0) in the home opener on Tuesday, Nov. 14 at the Stewart Center. The game will be part of a USF men's and women's basketball doubleheader, beginning with the USF Women's Basketball game against Presentation College at 6 p.m. The USF Men's Basketball Team will tip against UW-Superior about 8 p.m.

For the first time in the NCAA DII era, the Cougars recorded back-to-back overtime wins with the 94-89 decision over host Emporia State and a 96-92 victory over Fort Hays State at the MIAA-NSIC Challenge in Emporia on Nov. 10-11.  Junior Trevon Evans averaged 29 points and 10.5 rebounds and Drew Guebert supplied 22.5 points per game in the two victories.

USF has opened 2-0 for the first time since 2012-13 when they ran off four straight wins to open the season. The Cougars scored 90 points or more in consecutive games for the first time since NSIC wins over Minnesota Duluth, 95-73, and over St .Cloud State, 98-80, on Jan. 29-30, 2016. Interesting note about the wins over Emporia State and Fort Hays State, the Cougars trailed 42-38 at the break and won both in overtime.

Over the past 10 home openers, the Cougars have a 6-4 record. A year ago, they fell to Emporia State, 101-94. The Cougars hosted U-W Superior in 2013-14, emerging with a 93-69 win at the Stewart Center.

Cougars finish 2-0 at the MIAA-NSIC Challenge in Emporia
In the first game of the season, the Cougars picked up a road win, defeating Emporia State, 94-89 in overtime, as part of the MIAA-NSIC Challenge series. Trevon Evans scored 28 points with nine rebounds and Jerrod Walton added 23 points and eight rebounds to lead USF to a 94-89 win. After leading 13-5 early, the Cougars trailed 42-38 at halftime. Down 55-46 in the second half, the Cougars put together a 33-to-19 run and led 79-74 in the final minute. ESU rallied and tied the game at 79.  USF opened the extra session with six straight points and held off ESU with clutch free throw shooting from Walton and Evans. Evans scored 19 of his 28 points in the second half. Redshirt freshman Teathloach Pal had 14 points, nine rebounds and three assists in his first game in the Cougar gear. Junior Drew Guebert added 13 points. USF held a 41-to-22 advantage on the boards. After a slow start, USF, led by Evans's first career double double of 31 points and 12 rebounds, rallied to defeated Fort Hays State, 96-92 in overtime on Saturday, Nov. 11. USF trailed 34-18 with 6:19 to play in the first half before making a comeback. Led by Evans and Guebert, who had a career-high 32 points on the night, USF cut the deficit to just 42-38 at halftime. The Cougars outscored FHSU, 58-50, in the second half and overtime to record their second straight win to open the season. Aside from Evans and Guebert, USF received a strong outing from true freshman Drew Maschoff, who scored 14 points, knocking in all three of his three-point shots.

UW-Superior will be led by Shaq Coleman
Under the direction of interim head coach Greg Polkowski, UW-Superior was picked to finish sixth in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference. A year ago, Yellowjackets were 7-18 including 6-10 in the UMAC. Polkowski, a native of Goodman, Wisc. took over the Yellowjacket program after two seasons as the assistant coach at UW-Eau Claire (2015-17), working for coach Matt Siverling.  He played at UW-Superior, appearing in 58 games from 2004-08. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in physical education and Master's degree in education from Carroll University in 2011. The top returner is Shaq Coleman, who averaged 14 points and five rebounds per game a year ago in earning UMAC honorable mention honors. UW-Superior also returns Montroy Scott, who supplied 12 points and three rebounds per game, and Nate Kalien, who averaged 7.6 points and hit 40.4 percent from three point range. 

Series Notes
In the DII era, USF owns a 2-0 lead over UW-Superior. The Cougars defeated the Yellowjackets, 91-46 on Nov. 24, 2015 at the Stewart Center. Daniel Hurtt had 17 points, and Mack Johnson and Drew Guebert, 12. USF hit 51.7 percent from the floor (30-58), 27.2 percent from three-point range (6-of-22) and 75.8 percent (25-of-33) from the foul line. The Cougars, which owned a 33-23 rebound edge, led at halftime, 47-27. Zach Schradle scored 20 points for UW-Superior. On Nov. 9, 2013, USF recorded a 93-69 victory over the Yellowjackets as six players scored in double digits. Mahlon Jones led USF with 15 points. The Cougars hit 50 percent from the floor (33-of-66), 33.3 percent from three-point range (7-of-21) and 66.6 percent from the foul stripe (20-of-30). Jarrod Peterson had 20 points and seven rebounds for UW-Superior.

With offensive explosion, Evans earns NSIC Player of the Week honors
Junior guard Trevon Evans has opened his career at USF in a big way, leading the Cougars to a pair of overtime victories on Nov. 10-11. Through two games, he leads the NSIC in scoring and rebounding at 29.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game and ranks fifth in made threes with six through two games. That is some feat for the 6-0, 175 pound guard from Wichita, Kan. In averaging 29.5 ppg, he had games of 28 points and nine rebounds in the 94-89 OT win against Emporia State on Nov. 10. He bettered his performance on the second day, lighting it up for a career-best 31 points and grabbing 12 rebounds as USF defeated Fort Hays State, 96-92 in overtime. In the two games, he hit 19-of-35 field goals for 54.3 percent, including 6-of-12 from three point range and 15-of-18 from the foul line for 83.3 percent. He also had three assists and 21 rebounds while averaging 41 minutes per game.  A transfer from Dodge City Community College, Evans had his best collegiate total against FHSU.

Guebert sets career-high; now has 853 career points
Junior forward Drew Guebert  had a career high 32 points as USF rallied to defeat Fort Hays State, 96-92 OT on Saturday, Nov. 11. In the two games, Guebert averaged 22.5 points (45 points) and 5.5 rebounds (11 rebounds) against the pair of MIAA squads. He made 17-of-32 field goals for 53.1 percent and 7-of-8 free throws for 87.5 percent. Guebert 's 45 points over the weekend, pushed him closer to the 1,000 point mark. He now has 853, which puts him 147 away from the milestone. With two more double figure scoring games, he now has 42 in his career. Additionally, the junior forward has 13 career games of 20 points or more and two games over 30 (Emporia State, 30, 11/12/16; and Fort Hays State, 32, 11/11/17). In both of his games of 30 points or more, which happened one day and one year apart, he had four made three pointers.

Breaking it down through two games
The Cougars lead the league  in six categories and rank in the top five in eight statistical categories. USF has scored 190 points (94, 96) scoring or 95.0 per game. In scoring defense, USF is 13th at 90.5 ppg and sit third in point differential at 4.5 points per game. USF is sixth in free throw shooting at 75 percent (48-of-64), third in field goal percentage at 50.4 percent (64-of-127), second in three-point shooting percentage at 38.9 percent (14-of-36) and first in rebounding at 38.5 per game. The Cougars also rank second in rebounding defense at 24.3 per game , offensive rebounds at 12.5 per game, fourth in defensive rebounds with 26.0 per game, and lead the NSIC in rebounding margin at 14.0 per game. They also hold the lead in defensive rebound percentage at 85.2 percent (52-to-9) and offensive rebound percentage at 38.5 percent (25-to-40).

USF picked ninth in NSIC preseason poll
Northern State received eight first-place votes and was tabbed the favorite to win the NSIC with 213 points. They were also the North Division favorite with six first-place votes and 48 points. MSU Moorhead, which was picked fourth overall (four first place votes and 187 points) was picked second in the North Division with 42 points followed by St. Cloud State with 38 points. In the South Division, SMSU received four first-place votes and 45 points to head into the season as the favorite. The Mustangs were picked second overall as they earned seven first-place votes and 211 ballot points, just two behind NSU. Augustana was selected third overall with 190 points and second (44 points) in the South Division followed by Minnesota State, Upper Iowa and Sioux Falls. The Cougars received 97 ballot points for ninth place overall and were also projected to finish fifth (23 points) in the NSIC South.  Junior forward Drew Guebert was named USF's Player to Watch.

USF signs recruits Troy Houghton and Wesley McCullough
USF Men's Basketball Head Coach Chris Johnson announced Wednesday the signings of Troy Houghton and Wesley McCullough, who will continue their academic and athletic careers with the Cougars in the fall of 2018. Today, Nov. 8 was the first day of the fall signing period for NCAA basketball programs. The USF signees include Wesley McCullough, a 6-8 forward from Raymore, Mo.; and Troy Houghton, a 6-3 guard from Council Bluffs, Iowa.   McCullough, who is the son of Bill and Cristie McCullough, is a standout wing forward at Raymore-Peculiar High School where he averaged 17 points, seven rebounds and two assists per game for the Panthers in 2016-17. He was named both first team all-conference and all-district a year ago.  Wesley played his summer hoops with the KC Magic AAU program. A member of the National Honor Society, he served as a Student Leadership Team Captain and has been involved in the Lamp of Learning for three years. A nominee for Boys State as a junior, McCullough has been named to the Principal's Honor Roll three years and served as a Panther Young League member. At USF, McCullough plans to major in pre-medicine. Houghton, the son of Troy Houghton and Sharnell Jones, is a standout guard at Abraham Lincoln High School in Council Bluffs, Iowa. As a junior, he averaged 13.1 points (289) and 5.8 rebounds in helping lead the Lynx to an 18-4 record. He connected on 49.8 percent from the field and 60 percent at the foul line with 58 assists, 33 steals and 38 blocks in 22 games. Named the Team MVP, he was selected Missouri River All-Conference in 2016-17. Houghton played summer basketball with the SW Iowa Select AAU program. He has participated in service events such as helping feed the homeless and in a walk for autism. He plans to major in sports management at USF.

USF fall to South Dakota, 73-64, in exhibition play
USF placed three players in double digits but dropped a 73-64 decision to DI South Dakota in exhibition play on Saturday at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center. USD, the defending Summit League regular season champions, trailed USF early but led 33-24 at halftime. Both teams scored 40 points in the second half. Leading the way for USF was junior forward Drew Guebert, who had 14 points, including 4-of-9 shots from the field and 6-of-7 from the foul line before fouling out with seven minutes to play.  Redshirt freshman forward Teathloach Pal added 12 points with seven rebounds. He was 3-of-7 from the field and knocked down a three-pointer. Junior guard Trevon Evans added 11 points with seven rebounds and was 2-of-5 from three-point range. Also for USF, senior forward Jerrod Walton provided eight points, four assists and four rebounds while senior guard Zach Wessels provided six points and three rebounds. Off the bench Austin Slater had six rebounds and four points.