SIOUX FALLS – With three wins in five games, the University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball Team (3-2) will meet a pair of NSIC foes at the Microtel Thanksgiving Classic on Friday, Nov. 26 and Saturday, Nov. 27 at the Nemzek Fieldhouse at Moorhead, Minn. In the classic hosted by MSU Moorhead, USF faces U-Mary at 3 pm on Friday and MSU Moorhead at 3 pm on Saturday.

After the two nonconference games, USF returns to play city rival Augustana on Thursday, Dec. 2 at the Sanford Pentagon before a home NSIC encounter with Wayne State on Dec. 4.

Follow USF Men's Basketball - Broadcast - Social Media

Follow USF Men's Basketball on Twitter at @USFCooBBall or USF_Athletics. All USF's home and road games and NSIC contests are streamed for free through Blue Frame at the NSIC Network (schedule page, click on NSIC Network). Veteran announcer Tom Frederick will provide play-by-play for the conference radio broadcasts on KWSN.com. Live stats for home games are available at www.sidearmstats.com/mbball.  The Microtel Classic in Moorhead will have live stats and live video available. 

How Things Stand - USF is 3-2 through five games

USF is 3-2 after suffering a 70-69 setback at home to SMSU to open the NSIC season. Now USF steps back out of conference play for a pair of nonconference games against NSIC opponents in Mary and MSUM. Mary, which is directed by former USF associate head coach and now U-Mary Head Coach Jack Nelson, stands 1-3 overall after a 78-74 win over Minot State on Nov. 23 in MInot, N.D. Early they lost to Maryville State, 80-76; Central Oklahoma, 80-71; and Northeastern State, 80-70.  MSU Moorhead, which is led by veteran coach Chad Walthill, the host of the classic this weekend, has opened 5-3 and defeated Northern State, 75-65, on Nov. 23. They also had a 84-70 win over Mayville State; 136-64 decisin over Crown College; 79-78 win over Southeastern Oklahoma State and 81-71 verdict over Colorado Mesa. They have lost to Daemen College, 67-63; West Texas A&M, 87-65; and Oklahoma Baptist, 90-87 in double overtime. 

Series Breakdown - USF lead U-Mary, 9-2 

USF has a 9-2 all-time lead in the series, including 8-2 while members of the NSIC. The A year ago, USF defeated U-Mary, 64-60  on Jan. 2, 2021 and 71-68 in overtime on Jan. 3 with both games in Sioux Falls due to the rescheduling of games and 16-game season impacted by CoVID-19 a year ago.  In the overtime win, USF outscored U-Mary, 12-9 in overtime after the teams played to a 59-59 regulation. It was USF's fifth straight win as Jack Thompson had 18 to lead USF.  In the 64-60 win, USF had 16 points from Chase Grinde and 11 by Wesley Oba.

In other games of the series

Cougars recorded a 59-53 win at Bismarck on January 17, 2020 as Chase Grinde had 19 points and Jack Thompson added 14 included a clutch layup late in the contest. Mary had 12 points and nine rebounds from Matthew Kreklow and 11 points from Connor Hellebust.

USF took a 77-72 win at the Stewart Center on Jan. 18, 2019 as Trevon Evans had 26 points. U-Mary was led by Connor Hellebust and Tom Kubank with 15 points while guard Jaylan White added 12. In a game that included eight lead changes and eight ties, USF and U-Mary were tied at 30 at halftime. The Cougars outscored the Marauders, 47-to-42 in the second half. 

USF registered a 75-66 win over U-Mary on Feb. 2, 2018 at the Stewart Center. Drew Guebert led all scorers with 26 points and Trevon Evans added 19 as USFtook a 31-25 lead at halftime and with a 44-41 second half advantage took the nine point win. Mary had 17 from both Keith Hunter and Matt Kreklow. 

On Feb. 3, 2017, U-Mary defeated USF,  81-73 at Bismarck. Damonta Henry scored 25 and Bryan Jefferson supplied 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Mack Johnson led USF with 18 points while Clint Thomas had 13. USF led, 26-25, at half but the Marauders had a 56-46 margin in the second half. The 102 combined points in the second half is the most combined in a half in the series. Mary's 56 points is the most by one team in a half in the series with USF's 53 on Feb. 9, 2013 the most by USF. 

On Dec. 12, 2015, U-Mary took a 69-65 decision at Sioux Falls. Clint Thomas had 17 points and USF had a 29-22 advantage on the boards, 10-to-5 edge in made threes and 7-4 margin in blocked shots but fell to Mary at home. Damonta Henry led the Marauders with 12 points. Marquelis Edwards, who had 11 points, made a pair of free throws in the final seconds to ice the victory. 

On Dec. 13, 2014, USF edged U-Mary, 75-73 at Bismarck. Jordan Stotts (19 points) hit a three-pointer at the 1:23 mark of the second half to give USF a 71-70 lead. On Feb. 15, 2014, USF picked up a 79-71 overtime win at Bismarck. USF led 37-31 at halftime, outscored the Marauders, 12-4 in overtime. DaMonta Henry sent the game into overtime tied at 67 with a three with six seconds left. In overtime, USF didn't make a basket from the floor but converted all 12 of its foul shots, including six by Ward. 
On Feb. 9, 2013, USF defeated U-Mary, 75-70 at the Sioux Falls (Stewart Center). Derek Brown scored 21 points, including 6-of-9 from three point range to lead USF. The Cougars outscored the Marauders, 53-39 in the second half after trailing 31-22 at the break. USF, which also had 14 points from David Maxwell, hit 11-of-25 from three-point range. The 53 points is the most by USF in a half in the series. 

The first-ever meeting was a nonconference matchup in the NAIA in 1999. The Cougars, which had 15 points from Corey Smith and nine rebounds from Brad Kennett, took a 75-63 win at the Stewart Center. 

USF  trails MSU Moorhead, 9-4 in all-time series  
As the two teams face each other in a nonconference match up  before playing against at Moorhead, Minn., on Jan. 14, the Cougars trail the series, 9-4. However, USF won the last matchup on Feb. 8, 2020 when Chase Grinde had a career-high 29 points. In that game, USF broke from a 34-31 lead with a 45-37 second half margin for the 11-point win at the Stewart Center.  Since joining the NSIC USF is 3-4 vs MSUM.  

On Jan. 9, 2019, MSUM took a 75-71 decision at Moorhead despite a season-high of 39 points from Trevon Evans.  MSUM led, 37-29 at the halftime break before USF outscored them 42-38 in a rally that fell just short. 

On Jan. 27,, 2018, USF took a 70-67 win over MSUM at Moorhead, MInn., as Trevon Evans had 29 points and 10 rebounds. USF led, 34-30, at the haftime break but but MSUM led, 59-53 before the Cougars responded with a 17-8 run over a four-minute span to pick up the win as Evans hit a dramatic three to win the game in the final seconds.

MSUM won three games prior to that dramatic win with a 84-59 win on Jan. 28, 2017; 78-55 decision on Jan. 15, 2016 at Moorhead and a 81-65 win at the Stewart Center on Jan. 16, 2015, USF took a 92-70 verdict on Jan. 3, 2014 also the Stewart Center. 

G1 Southern Nazarene 73 Sioux Falls 52 -- Jack Thompson scored 13 points and Matt Cartwright added 12 but USF dropped a 73-52 decision to Southern Nazarene in the season opener at the Central Region Challenge in Kansas City, Mo., on Friday (Nov. 12). USF hit just 19-of-56 field goals for 33.9 percent and was just 3-of-19 from three-point range for 15.8 percent. However, USF controlled the boards, finishing with a 37-33 margin. In a game with four lead changes and a tie, USF trailed just 31-29 at halftime after leading for a good share of the first half. However, SNU outscored USF, 42-23, in the second half. SNU hit 16-of-27 shots for 59.26 percent after the break, including 6-of-10 from three-point range to create separation from the Cougars. As for USF, they made just 8-of-26 field goals for 30.77 percent including 3-of-11 from three-point range. Two other categories in stats favored SNU, including its 20-11 edge in points off turnovers and 20-8 margin with points in the paint. Thompson, who now has 20 career double-digit scoring games, led USF with 13 points as he hit 6-of-13 shots from the field while adding an assist, two rebounds and a steal. Cartwright had 12 points in 32 minutes. USF also had nine points from both Chase Grinde, who added three rebounds and two assists, and Austin Slater, who had a team-high nine rebounds.

G2 – Sioux Falls 83 No. 1 Northwest Missouri State 77 -- In one of the biggest wins in USF history, the Cougars (1-1) knocked off defending NCAA DII national champion and No. 1 ranked Northwest Missouri State (2-1), 83-77 at the Central Region Challenge in Kansas City, Mo. In the victory, the Cougars upended the No. 1 Bearcats 45-straight game-winning streak on a neutral floor.  It was the longest active win streak among all NCAA Div. I, II and III schools. The Bearcat's last loss on a neutral floor came Nov. 13, 2015, vs. Upper Iowa (L, 76-72). It is USF's first win over a top-10 opponent in the DII era. In adding a little historical twist, the Cougars won for the first time in 81 years and in three meetings with NWMSU. The Bearcats had held a 2-0 lead with USF but had not met since 1939-40 or 81 years ago. In 1939-40 the Bearcats won 52-32 and they had a 39-27 win in the 1937-38 season. USF led from start to finish as they jumped ahead 26-9 by the 7:32 mark of the opening half. They led by 21, 60-39 in the second half before NWMSU closed to within two and the Cougars held on for an 83-77 win with crucial plays in the final minutes Senior Matt Cartwright led USF with 29 points as he made 9-of-18 field goals and was a sizzling 6-of-9 from three-point range.  He also had seven rebounds, two steals and an assist in 37 minutes on the floor. Junior guard Jack Thompson added 20 points as he was 7-of-18 from the floor and had a pair of triples to go with five assists and a steal. Senior forward Austin Slater had a solid post game and finished with seven points and five rebounds along with a block and two assists. Also, USF had nine points and seven rebounds from junior guard Chase Grinde while both sophomore guards Jake Kettner and Noah Puetz had eight points each. Overall, USF shot 44.4 percent from the floor on 28-of-63 shooting. In that total, USF was 11-of-25 from the three-point range as they made 5-of-12 in the opening half and followed up with 6-of-13 for 46.1 percent in the second 20 minutes. At the foul line, USF was 16-of-22 for 72.7 percent.  

G3 – USF 71 Dakota State 61 -- Matt Cartwright scored 28 points and Jack Thompson had a 17 to USF to a 71-61 nonconference victory over Dakota State (2-6) in USF's home opener at the Stewart Center. Cartwright hit 12-of-24 field goals, including 2-of-6 from three-point range while grabbing five rebounds and recording an assist and steal. Thompson was 6-of-11 from the floor and added nine assists, three rebounds and two steals in a solid floor game. Also for USF, Wesley Oba helped USF to a 31-26 rebound edge by recording a game-high 10 boards. He also had six points including a flush near the end of the game off a pass from Thompson.  USF outscored Dakota State, 29-21, in the first half and had a 42-40 edge in the second 20 minutes for the 71-61 win and a second straight decision over the Trojans. Overall, USF was 27-of-59 from the field for 45.8 percent, which included 7-of-19 from the three-point range for 36.8 percent. The Cougars, which had a 19-6 margin in points from turnovers, made 10-of-14 free throws for 71.4 percent. USF also had a 9-2 margin in fast-break points and had a 12-11 margin in points off the bench.

G4 – USF 74 Chadron State 56 -- The trio of Matt Cartwright, Chase Grinde and Jake Kettner combined for 69 points to lead the University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball Team (3-1) to a third straight nonconference win in a 96-78 decision over Chadron State (0-4) on Friday nightFor the third straight game, Cartwright, a senior from Sioux Falls, S.D., scored at least 28 points in a win. In his 28 tonight, he hit 9-of-13 from the field with 3-of-4 from three-point range and 7-of-9 free throws while adding four rebounds and two assists in 34 minutes.   Junior guard Chase Grinde had a season-high with 24 points as he surpassed double digit scoring for the 35th time and the first time this season. He now has six 20-point games in his career. On the night, the Spring Grove, Minn., native, made 10-of-14 field goals, including 1-of-3 from three and 3-of-3 at the foul line while grabbing eight rebounds and dishing three assists in 24 minutes. Also for USF, Jake Kettner of New Ulm, Minn., had a career-high of 19 points as he was 6-of-11 from the field and 2-of-3 from three while hitting 5-of-6 foul shots. The Cougars, which defeated Chadron State for a third straight time in the series, had a season high with 20 assists, committed just seven turnovers and owned a 32-26 edge in rebounds. The Cougars raced to a 47-29 lead by halftime and with 49 points in the second half recorded a season-high points in the 96-78 decision. The point total is the highest offensive output most since recording a 96-51 win over Minot State in the NSIC playoffs on Feb. 27, 2019. On the night, USF hit 54.2 percent from the field on 32-of-59 shooting. USF was 7-of-15 from the three-point range and 25-of-32 for 78.1 percent at the foul line. USF had a 28-20 margin with points in the paint, 33-31 total in bench points and a 10-8 advantage in points off the break.

G5 -- SMSU 70 USF 69: U n a back and forth tussle, USF dropped a close 70-69 decision to Southwest Minnesota State (4-1, 1-0 NSIC) in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference opener at the Stewart Center on Tuesday night (Nov. 23). The Cougars had a three-game winning streak come to an end with the setback. SMSU now has a 23-15 lead in the all-time series. In the series, SMSU has won five of the seven games decided by two points or fewer. SF was led by senior guard Matt Cartwright, who had 19 points, including 4-of-11 from three-point range. Cartwright, who is drawing closer and closer to 1,000 career points (933), now has scored in double-digits in all five games this season and already has scored 116 points. In total, USF had three players in double-digits with junior guard Chase Grinde adding 12 points, a team-high seven rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot. Grinde now has 37 career games of double-digit points and now is just seven points from 800 for his career (793). Sophomore guard Jack Thompson added 10 points with a team-high six assists, two rebounds and a steal. For Thompson, he has 23 double-digit scoring games and pushed his career point total to 497. In addition, USF also had seven points apiece from Marko Coudreau and Jake Kettner.

Breaking Down USF – Inside the Numbers

Through five games, USF is averaging 74.2 points per game (9th, NSIC), while allowing 71.8 points per game (11th, NSIC) for a margin of 2.4 points per game (11th, NSIC). From the field, USF is hitting 43.8 percent on 131-of-299 field goals while holding opponents to 44.0 percent (121-of-275) from the field.  USF is sixth in the league at 36.8 percent on made threes, converting 39-of-106. Opponents are hitting 38.7 percent on 41-of-106, a mark that is 13th in the NSIC. 35.9 percent from three on 28-of-78. In USF which is averaging 7.8 three-pointers per game, which places USF eighth in the NSIC. The Cougars are hitting free throws at 72.9 percent on 70-of-96  or eighth in the NSIC. USF is outrebounding opponents at a 34.2-to-30.8 or 3.4 which is 10th in the league. USF  is fifth in the NSIC in offensive boards at 11.8 per game. 

Player Profiles – Inside look

Senior forward Matt Cartwright is averaging a league-best 23.2 points and 4.0 rebounds with five straight double-digit (12, 29, 28, 28, 19) scoring games. Cartwright (116 total points) has scored 28 or more points in three of four  games as he is hitting 39-of-84 for 46.4 percent and 16-of-36 from three-point range for 44.4 percent, a total which is fifth in the NSIC. His 3.2 threes per game rank second in the NSIC. He is also hitting 22-of-27 (81.5%) from the foul line. During his career at USF and Augustana, Cartwright has 933 points and has made 40 starts in 76 games. He also has 160 career threes and 232 rebounds along with 95 assists and 46 steals. His career-high is 37 points against Minnesota Crookston in 2018-19 with a high of 29 points at USF against Northwest Missouri State on Nov. 13.

Sophomore guard Jack Thompson is supplying 13.4 points per game and is hitting 83.3 percent from the foul line (10-of-12). He is averaging 5.0 assists per game and has five steals. He ranks fourth in the NSIC in assists and sixth in assist-turnover ratio at 2.4. An honorable mention All-NSIC in 2019-20, he has started 39-of-46 games with 23 career double-digit scoring games with four in five games this season He has a season-high of 20 points against No. 1 Northwest Missouri State. Thompson had a career-high of 27 points on Jan. 31, 2021 with a career-best five triples against Augustana on Jan. 4, 2020. He also has nine of nine assists against Dakota State on Nov. 16, 2021. He has scored 495 career points, including 312 a year and 67 this season.

Junior guard Chase Grinde, who has 36 double-digit scoring games and six 20-point games, is supplying 11.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Grinde, who has 793 career points (57 in 2021-22) had a season-high 24 points against Chadron State. His career-high is 29 against MSU Moorhead on Feb. 8, 2020 and four times has registered nine rebounds in a game. His career-best in assists is eight against Minot State. Grinde, who has hit 66-of-170 from three for 39.6 percent, has made 68 starts in 80 games at USF. Grinde has 384 rebounds, 179 assists, 82 steals and 21 blocked shots.

Freshman Jake Kettner is averaging 8.2 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. He has hit 6-of-13 from the three-point range. Kettner has five starts in 17 games with 106 career points. During his career, Kettner has totaled 17 assists, seven steals and knocked down 39 threes on 108 attempts for 36.3 percent. Kettner had a career-high of 19 points against Chadron State on Nov. 19, 2021. He also has a high of eight rebounds against Upper Iowa on Jan. 8, 2021, and six assists against Augustana on Feb. 13, 2021. 

Sophomore forward Wesley Oba has made three starts in 17 games with USF with 66 career points and 98 career rebounds with eight blocks and 10 steals. This year he has averaged 7.2 rebounds and 2.4 points per game. He has a career-best of 11 points against Minnesota State on Jan. 30, 2021, and Mary on Jan. 2, 2021, along with a high of 10 rebounds against Minnesota State on Jan. 31, 2021, and Dakota State on Nov. 16, 2021.

Senior center Austin Slater, who has a career total of five double-doubles and 15 double-digit scoring and 11 double-digit rebound games, is supplying 5.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. He is hitting 42.1 percent (8-of-19) from the field and 61.1 percent (11-of-18) at the foul line. Slater has 29 rebounds of which 13 are off the offensive glass. In his career, Slater has totaled 546 points and 561 rebounds, including 200 off the offensive glass. He has 43 blocked shots, 35 steals and made 17-of-59 from the three-point range for 28.8 percent. He is shooting 42.7 percent from the field and 67.9 percent at the foul line for his career. Slater has made 60 starts and played in a team-high 105 games.

USF HC Chris Johnson is USF's all-time wins leader

USF Head Men's Basketball Coach Chris Johnson, who was named the NSIC Coach of the Year in the history-making 2019-20 season, is in his 14th season (15th overall) at the helm of the men's basketball program. Since taking over as the program's 22nd coach in 2008, Johnson has guided the Cougars to six 20-win seasons, three post-season appearances, two conference tournament championships and one regular season conference crown. In the Covid- In 2019-20, USF had a program-best 22-8 overall record and captured its first-ever Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference South Division title. With a 17-5 mark, USF, which finished second overall and earned the No. 1 seed in the South in the NSIC Postseason Tourney, registered the program's top record in NSIC play. As a result, Johnson was named the NSIC Coach of the Year for the first time. 

During Johnson's tenure, USF is 243-173 (.583), with a 73-69 win (Feb. 18, 2017) at Concordia St. Paul making him the program's career wins leader. He is 227-158 (.590) at USF. On that special night, Johnson passed Shane Murphy (154, 2001-08). He registered his 200th overall career win on Dec. 14, 2018 against Minnesota-Duluth on the road. Johnson registered his 200th win at USF against SMSU, 74-56, on Nov. 30, 2019, at the Stewart Center.  The milestone came in his 376th career game. He has compiled a 130-51 mark at home and a 75-90 road record with an 18-13 mark on a neutral floor. In NSIC play, he has a 97-92 record, including a 56-39 mark in home league games and 41-53 mark in away games. Johnson is 5-8 in the postseason. He is also 53-5 in non-conference games.

Johnson has led the team to 15 wins 10 times and recorded six 20-win seasons with the 25-10 campaign in 2009-10 the best finish. Just twice in his 14-year coaching career has one of his teams finished below .500. At the NCAA DII level, USF's mark of 22-8 in 2019-20 is a program-best. With the 17-5 mark in the NSIC in 2019-20, USF had its best league mark. This past season of success followed a 20-10 in 2017-18 for the second 20-win season in three years. USF, which was 10-4 at home and 9-2 on the road with a 3-2 neutral court mark, had a 79-68 win over Minot State in the first round of the NSIC Tourney before falling to Minnesota State, 60-59, in the quarterfinals. Johnson is the only coach in the league to lead his team to five straight appearances in the NSIC Postseason Tournament.