SIOUX FALLS --  The University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball Team (7-2, 3-0 NSIC) , which received support in the D2SIDA Central Region Poll, is off to a fast start after a weekend road sweep at Concordia St. Paul (78-71) and preseason NSIC favorite Minnesota State (86-81). The Cougars, which have won three straight games, now return home to face a big cross division task with North Division leader Minnesota Duluth (8-1, 3-0 NSIC) to face USF on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the Stewart Center. UMD has won seven straight games. On Saturday at 5:30 p.m., the USF Men's Team will host St. Cloud State (5-4, 2-1 NSIC). The Cougars are off to a 7-2 start with a 3-0 mark in NSIC play which places them in a tie in the NSIC South with Augustana.

UMD comes into the match up at 8-1 with a 3-0 record and the top spot in the NSIC North. SCSU is 5-4 and tied for second in the NSIC North with a 2-1 record. 

Follow USF Men's Basketball on twitter at @USFCooBBall. All USF's home games and NSIC contests are streamed for free through Stretch Internet at usfcougars.com/watch. Veteran announcer Tom Frederick will provide play-by-play for both the nonconference games on Stretch Internet and conference games at KWSN.com. Live stats for home games are available at www.sidearmstats.com/mbball. 

Breaking it down - USF shooting 51.8 percent in league play 

As a team, USF is averaging 70.8 points (13th, NSIC) and allow 67.4 per game (4th, NSIC) with 637 points scored and 607 allowed.  The Cougars own a 38.4-to-28.8 rebound edge which is a rebounding margin of 9.7 which ranks second in the NSIC. USF, which is second in the NSIC with 13.0 offensive rebounds per game, leads the NSIC in rebounding defense  (28.8 per game). In league play, USF is making 51.9 percent of their shots with 14-of-41 for 34.1 percent on treys. That total on threes is six percentage points better than their overall edge. Additionally, USF owns a 39.3-to-27.0 rebound edge over NSIC foes. In fact, USF had a 118-to-81 overall rebound in league play with a 36-to-22 margin in offensive rebounds.???????

Grinde has best weekend of his career

Sophomore guard Chase Grinde averaged 20.5 points and 5.5 rebounds to lead the USF Men's Team to a sweep over the weekend at CSP and MSU. Grinde, who is averaging 12.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, had 20 points, four rebounds, block, steal and assist as the Cougars turned back CSP, 78-71 on Dec. 6. He hit 8-of-9 field goals, his only three, and three free throws. In an 86-81 win over Minnesota State, Grinde had 21 points, seven rebounds, and an assist. He made 7-of-12 field goals and seven free throws. Grinde, who has 19, 20 and 21 points in three straight NSIC games, was 15-of-21 from the field in the weekend and now has made 22-of-29 for 75.9 percent over the past three games. He has double digit points 12 times in his career and scored 20 points three times. ???????

USF is 2-0 in December - 9-6 over past three years

USF was 5-2 in November this year and 15-5 over the past three seasons. The Cougars stand 2-0 in December and 9-6 over the past three seasons. ???????

Cougars open NSIC with three straight wins 

For the second time (2017-18) in three seasons, USF opened the NSIC season with three straight wins. USF had a successful NSIC home opener with a 74-56 win over SMSU as Chase Grinde had 19 points and Will Lybaek added 14 points while Teathloach Pal added eight points and 13 rebounds.  USF hit just three triples but hit 23-of-46 field goals for 50 percent. In shots inside the circle, USF was 20-of-33 for 60.6 percent.  In USF's road opener, the Cougars finished 2-0 with a 78-71 win at Concordia St. Paul and a 86-81 victory against league favorite Minnesota State on Dec. 7. In the CSP win, Grinde had 20 points to lead the way while four other players scored in double digit points. Freshman Jack Thompson set a career-high with 14 points as he had a career-best four 3-pointers on seven attempts. Pal had his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 13 boards while blocking two shots and dishing two dimes. Austin Slater and Troy Houghton added 10 points. In the 86-81 win against Minnesota State, the Cougars led by 17 in the first half and had a double digit lead for much of the second half as they upended MSU for a second straight year at the Taylor Center. Grinde had 21 points and seven rebounds for USF, which also had 15 points from senior captain Devin Green and a career-high 14 from Troy Houghton who made all six of his field goal attempts. USF also shot 52.7 percent for a second straight night and have made 50 percent or better of their field goal attempts in league play. 

In wrapping up the nonconference season, USF dropped a 94-69 decision to Minnesota Crookston as Harrison Cleary had 40 points. The loss dropped USF to 51-5 in nonconference game with Johnson. The loss to UMC ended USF's three game winning streak but USF has won four of five. In the setback to UMC, senior captain Devin Green had a career high in points with 16 and rebounds with seven. Jaxon Simons also had double digits with his career best of 11 points. Logan Dreier also had a career-high with nine points. 

With 16 points and 13 rebounds from Austin Slater, the Cougars turned back Chadron State, 62-59, in the first game at the Dacotah Bank Classic. In game two, junior guard William Lybaek had 15 points, including a trio of threes, and Teathloach Pal added 14 points and eight rebounds as USF captured its third straight victory with a 77-70 decision over CSU-Pueblo, also at the Dacotah Bank Classic.

In winning their 10th straight home opener, the Cougars handed Dakota State a 72-51 nonconference setback on Nov. 16 at the Stewart Center.  Earlier USF was 1-1 at the Central Region Challenge in Kansas City. USF defeated Lincoln University, 64-63, as Austin Slater had a career-high 22 points on Nov. 8. They also took a 62-55 loss to Pittsburgh State on Nov. 9 at the Central Region Challenge.???????

Inside look at UMD and SCSU

UMD, directed by second year head coach Justin Wieck I25-10, 2nd year), has opened 8-1 with a seven-game winning streak. They have a 3-0 mark in NSIC play with double digit wins in all three league games. UMD, which is receiving votes in the NABC poll, ranks second in the NSIC and 47th in DII in points per game with 87.7 points per game. UMD starts four seniors and is led by Brandon Myer with 20.3 points per game. Wisconsin transfer forward Alex Illikainen is sixth in the NSIC with 18.4 points per game and Drew Blair is adding 16.0 per game.  UMD is first in the NSIC in assists at 15.89 per game and second in 3-point field goal percentage at 38.1.  St. Cloud State is directed by sixth-year head coach Matt Reimer, who recently won his 100th game. SCSU. The Huskies, which face SMSU on Friday, is 0-3 in road games but have two straight league wins with victories over U-Mary, 88-56, and Minot State, 78-73, at the friendly confines of Halenback Hall.  SCSU, which is averaging 78.6 points and beating opponents by 11.9 points per game,  is led by guard Trevon Marshall with 16 points per game. Andrija Blatancic is adding 12.2 points and Ilya Tyrtyshnik scores 12.0 per game. ???????

USF leads UMD, 6-3 in all-time series

USF, which has won five straight against UMD, is 6-3 overall against the Bulldogs. That margin includes a 5-2 record in NSIC play. In the most recent game, Trevon Evans scored 29 points to lift USF to a 73-66 road win at Minnesota Duluth on Dec. 14 as USF Head Coach Chris Johnson won his 200th career game (184th at USF). USF, which shot 50 percent for the game (30-of-60 field goals), opened the game by shooting 56.7 percent in the first half on 17-of-30 shooting as they took a 38-30 lead. In the second half, they made just 13-of-30 field goals for 43.3 percent but held off UMD which charged into the lead with a 14-4 run to open the second stanza.  From three-point range, USF was 5-of-12 for 41.7 percent and added 8-of-11 from the foul line. On on Dec. 9, 2017, Trevon Evans and Drew Guebert both scored 26 points and USF shot 56.3 percent to record a 91-66 win over Minnesota Duluth at the Stewart Center. After trailing early 4-0, the Cougars took off on a 15-0 run to take a 22-9 lead (9:55, 1st half) on a Guebert trey and led by at least eight points the rest of the way. In the win, Teathloach Pal had a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds and Justin Taylor added 12 points, four rebounds and three blocks. On Dec. 10, 2016, USF defeated UMD, 83-70, led by a career-high 33 points from senior forward Daniel Hurtt. USF, which led by as many as 16 points in the second half (70-54, 8:29, 2nd), never trailed.  Hurtt was 11-of-17 shooting from the field and made 5-of-6 from three-point range. He was 6-of-6 from the foul line and had six rebounds. Senior Mack Johnson scored 21 points as he made 9-of-17 shots from the floor while also grabbing five rebounds. Drew Guebert added 17 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Overall, USF hit 30-of-66 field goals for 45.5 percent, including 10-of-21 from three point range for 47.6 percent and 13-of-18 from the charity stripe. USF had a 43-34 edge in rebounds. UMD, which was led by Luke Harris with 15 points and Kyle Schalow with 13, hit 26-of-62 shots for 41.9 percent. They were 6-of-20 from three point range for 30 percent and 12-of-14 from the foul line for 85.7 percent. USF recorded an 80-74 victory in the NSIC Tourney First Round at Romano Gym on Feb. 24, 2016.  In the victory, USF advanced to the conference quarterfinals in the tournament after Mack Johnson had 28 points, including 10-of-10 from the foul line to lead the way. Earlier, USF lit it up from the perimeter, hitting 17 three-pointers for a 95-73 win over Minnesota-Duluth at Romano Gym on Jan. 29, 2016.  Mack Johnson had 25 points, including 7-of-10 from three-point range, while also dishing seven assists. On Jan. 30, 2015, USF dropped a 74-70 decision to UMD. M. Johnson had 20 points in the loss at the Stewart Center. Brendon Pineda had 21 to lead the Bulldogs.  On Jan. 10, 2014, the Bulldogs took an 86-64 win at Romano Hall as Peter Crawford scored 34 points and Jordan Retz added 30. USF received 13 points and eight rebounds from Jordan Stotts. USF trailed UMD, 39-35, at halftime but were outscored 47-29 in the second half. USF's only other win over UMD was a 76-55 decision at the Stewart Center on Jan. 11, 2013. USF had five players score in double figures, including James Rader with 15. The Cougars made 11 3's. In the first game of the series, UMD took a 90-72 decision over USF in 1982-83. ???????

St. Cloud State leads all-time series, 13-2

St. Cloud State leads USF, 13-2 in all-time series, including 7-1 in NSIC play. In the most recent game, SCSU took an 83-73 decision on Dec. 15 in St. Cloud, Minn. A late rally by USF, keyed by Drew Guebert and Trevon Evans,  came up a little short in the North-South setback at Halenbeck Hall. Guebert scored 16 of his game-high 23 points in the second half to rally USF from an 18-point deficit (55-37, 13:12, 2nd half) to within four at 71-67 with 5:02 to play. Evans, who had 19 points, scored seven points during the 30-16 run. However, SCSU, which had 22 points from Gage Davis and Sean Smith, stopped the run with timely baskets down the stretch. Davis had six points in the final three minutes and Smith had a basket and pair of free throws to hold off the fast-charging Cougars. SCSU opened up a 34-29 lead at halftime and outscored USF, 49-44 in the second half to take the decision in a game between two of the preseason favorites in the NSIC. Chase Grinde also had 11 points for USF.  In the 2017-18 NSIC Tourney Quarterfinals, USF dropped a 67-56 decision at the Sanford Pentagon. Drew Guebert led USF with 22 points and 12 rebounds while SCSU had 18 points and 11 rebounds from Gage Davis.  Despite a career-high 32 points from Trevon Evans and 23 from Drew Guebert, USF dropped an 81-73 decision to SCSU at Halenbeck Hall. Evans, who had five points at halftime, broke free for 27 points, including 11 in the final minute, in the second half for his career-high 32. Against SCSU, Evans made 12-of-21 field goals, supplying a career-best five threes in seven attempts. He also had six assists and two rebounds. In the game, USF made just 44.6 percent from the field and SCSU hit 52.9 percent while owning a 37-28 rebound edge.  On Dec. 9, 2016, SCSU took a 90-74 decision at the Stewart Center.  Drew Guebert led USF in scoring with 20 points as he hit 7-of-14 shots from the field, including two three pointers and all four of his free throws.  Junior forward Tom Aase had a career 15 points while pulling down seven rebounds and recording a blocked shot. Junior guard Zach Wessels had 12 points, three rebounds and three assists before fouling out.  Scottie Stone led a hot-shooting SCSU squad with 28 points, hitting 8-of-14 field goals and 5-of-8 from three point range. He also was 7-of-7 from the foul line as SCSU made 15-of-22 as a team. But the story was the shooting by SCSU, which hit 33-of-57 from the floor for 57.9 percent, including a blazing 19-of-26 from the field in the second half for 73.1 percent. Besides Stone, Gage Davis had 17 points and Jon Averkamp, 16. The Cougars, which trailed, 39-31 at halftime, opened the second half fast, drawing within 39-35 with 19:25 to play when Mack Johnson knocked home a jumper. But that was as close as the Cougars would get on the night. In a series that dates to 1986-87. In 2015-16, the Cougars defeated SCSU, 98-80 as Mack Johnson had 24 points and Drew Guebert, 17. USF, which defeated SCSU for the first time in NSIC play, shot 59.2 percent (35-59) from the floor, including 10-of-23 from three-point range and 18-of-22 at the foul line at Halenbeck Hall on Jan. 30, 2016.  Gage Davis had two points on 1-of-8 shooting and Scottie Stone, 10 points. On Jan. 31, 2015, Jordan Poydras had 21 points and Scottie Stone, 16 in a 76-61 victory at the Stewart Center. USF had 23 from Charles Ward. On Feb. 26, 2014 at Halenbeck Hall, SCSU took an 86-75 win in the NSIC Tourney. Matt Craggs led SCSU with 29 while Charles Ward had 17 points and Mack Johnson 13 (3, 3's). On Jan. 11, 2014 in the regular season contest, SCSU defeated USF, 85-73 as Jordan Poydras had 18 points. Derek Brown had 15 points and Charles Ward, 15 points and 12 rebounds. On Jan. 12, 2013, SCSU took an 83-73 decision as Damarius Cruz had 25 points. The only other USF victory was 75-67 in the 2006-07 season at Halenbeck Hall in St. Cloud as Eric DePue had a double of 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Cougars. ???????

Pal has four double doubles this season

With four double-doubles in nine games this season, junior forward Teathloach Pal is part of a strong front court combo with junior Austin Slater. Pal was named the NSIC Men's Basketball Player of the Week on Nov. 18 after scoring a career-high 26 points and grabbing 16 rebounds in the win over Dakota State at the Stewart Center. Pal, a junior forward from Fridley, Minn., is averaging a double-double with 11.0 points and 10.6 rebounds per game, which ranks second in the NSIC.

Through nine games, Pal has produced four double digit scoring games and nine in his career.  Pal had a career-high 17 boards against Pitt State and registered double doubles in three straight games to open season.???????

Slater averaging 11.2 points and 7.4 boards  

Junior forward Austin Slater is averaging 11.2 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. He has reached double digits four times in nine games. Slater has seven career double digit scoring games and three double-double with seven games of double figure rebounds. He scored a career-high 22 points to lead USF to a 64-63 win against Lincoln and then had a team-high 14 points in a 62-55 loss to Pittsburg State. He had his first double-double of the season against Chadron State on Nov. 22 after scoring 16 and grabbing 13 rebounds. ???????

Cougars picked to finish fourth in the NSIC South

USF has been picked to finish fourth in the South Division and tied for 10th overall in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, according to the NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll released earlier this fall. USF, The Cougars officially opened practice on Oct. 15 and returned three starters & seven letter winners from a team that was 19-11 overall and 13-9 in league play as they advanced to the NSIC Quarterfinals for a fourth straight year.

Minnesota State was selected by the league coaches as the preseason favorites in the NSIC for the 2019-20 season. The Mavericks received 214 points with seven first place votes and six points ahead of Augustana with 208 points and six first place votes. Minnesota Duluth was third with 196 points and three first place votes. USF was 10th overall, and tied with Wayne State for 10th with 96 points. In the South Division, USF was fourth with 25 points. They sit behind favorite MSU, 47 points, five first place votes; Augustana, 44 points, three first place votes and Winona State with 37 points.