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THIS WEEK: The Southwest Minnesota State women's basketball team (8-2, 2-1 NSIC) opens play in the new year with a key Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference weekend road trip to Minnesota State Moorhead (9-2, 3-1 NSIC) and Minnesota, Crookston (4-6, 2-2) this weekend.  SMSU will play MSUM on Saturday and UMC on Sunday.  Both contests are 4 p.m. tip-offs.

THE SERIES:  Saturday marks the 72nd meeting between SMSU and MSUM in a series that began during the 1973-74 season.  The Mustangs are 36-35 all-time against the Dragons.  Sunday will be the 23rd contest between SMSU and UMC in a series that dates back to 1996-97.  The Mustangs are 17-5 versus the Golden Eagles.

SMSU BASKETBALL ONLINE:  Live statistics for home games and live audio and video streaming for all women's basketball games are available at www.smsumustangs.com.

TUNE IT IN:  SMSU women's basketball can be heard all season long on 105.1 KARL FM.  Aaron Ziemer, the voice of the Mustangs, will again handle play-by-play.

EARLIER THIS WEEK:  SMSU had six players score in double figures and got a double-double from Laura Kramer to roll past Clarke (Iowa) 96-50 Tuesday night in non-conference action in Marshall.  The win was SMSU's fifth straight.  Miley Hunziker led all scorers with 15 points.  Abby Kenealy scored 14, Heather Smith and Lucia Puchelova added 13 each and Megan Stadler and Kramer each had 10.  Stadler dished out a game-high six assists.  SMSU shot a season-high 55.6 percent in the win.

THE COACHES:  Mike Jewett is in his fourth year at the helm of the SMSU women's basketball program.  Jewett owns a 41-55 record at SMSU.  Under his direction, the Mustangs have charted improved records each season, going from seven wins in 2006-07 to twice that in 2008-09. The sixth head coach in the program's 41-year history, Jewett is in seventh overall season as a head coach at the collegiate level, where he has an overall record of 103-75.  Prior to taking over at SMSU, Jewett had stints as an assistant coach at Augustana and St. Cloud State and also served as the head coach at Franklin (Ind.).
    Karla Nelson returns for a ninth season as head coach at Minnesota State Moorhead in 2009-10, owning a 171-102 record.  Nelson's tenure has been a successful one--a school record 140 career victories, 21 all-conference certificates, three trips to the NCAA Division II post-season play, two national statistical titles, conference and region Coach of the Year endorsements and a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference championship.
    Mike Roysland enters his fourth season as the leader of Minnesota, Crookston women's basketball where he has totalled a 19-72 record.  He has 42 combined years of head coaching experience in the high school and college ranks. He coached girl's volleyball for 15 years at Win-E-Mac and finished with a record of 364 wins and 51 losses. Roysland was the head boy's basketball coach for a combined 27 years at Win-E-Mac and Fosston and finished with a record of 360 wins and 237 losses.

MUSTANG NOTES:
• Tori Fink did not hit a three-pointer for the first time in eight games against Clarke on Tuesday.
• Landi Hunziker scored her first points of the season on Tuesday; the true freshman connected on three of her four three-point attempts for nine points.
• SMSU shot a season-high 55.6 percent from the floor on Tuesday.
• The Mustangs outrebounded Clarke 53-28--their largest margin of the season.
• SMSU's 96-point performance on Tuesday was also a season high.
• The Mustangs are outscoring their opponents by an average of 10 points per game.
• SMSU has won eight of its last nine games.

SOLID START:  The Mustangs' 8-2 record to start the 2009-10 is the best since the 1995-96 squad went 11-2 to open the season.  The spurt is head coach Mike Jewett's best start at SMSU since  his squad from last season went 6-4 in its first 10 games.

DOUBLE THE FUN:  SMSU had six player score in double-figures on Tuesday against Clarke--a feat that was a season first.  Megan Stadler, Abby Kenealy, Heather Smith, Laura Kramer, Miley Hunziker and Lucia Puchelova all reached double figures in the win.  Kramer also grabbed 10 rebounds to record her first double-double of the season.

ABOUT SMSU:  The Mustangs enter this weekend's contests riding a five-game winning streak and owning a 8-2 overall record and 2-1 mark in conference play.  Abby Kenealy has moved into the top scoring spot on the squad, averaging 12.o points per game.  She is one of three  Mustangs averaging in double figures as Heather Smith and Tori Fink average 11.8 and 11.5 points per outing, respectively.  Laura Kramer controls the glass for SMSU, pulling down 7.2 rebounds per game.  Megan Stadler continues to quarterback the Mustang offense and has dished out 53 assists this season (5.3 apg).  As a team, SMSU presents a legitimate threat from behind the arc, connecting on 31.3 percent of its three-pointers.

ABOUT MINNESOTA STATE MOORHEAD:  The Dragons enter Friday's tilt sporting a 9-2 record and 3-1 in NSIC action.  MSUM, which received votes in the latest national top-25 poll, relies on a threesome of front-court players for a majority of its scoring.  Forward Alison Nash-Gerlach, forward Angie Jetvig and center Meghan Rettke all average more than 12 points per game.  The trio also makes up the squad's top-three rebounders, with  Rettke tops on the team with 10.0 per contest.  Betsy Dickson heads up the Dragons' guard play and has handed out 33 assists on the year.

ABOUT MINNESOTA, CROOKSTON:  The Golden Eagles head into the weekend with a 4-6 record and 2-2 in NSIC play. UMC's two conference wins came over Winona State and St. Cloud State.  Bri Zabel and Jamie Zelinsky each average just under 15 points a game and are also their team's top rebounders.  UMC shoots 42.1 percent from the floor as a team and is equally impressive from long range, connecting at a 37.5 percent clip.

WE LIKE MIKE:  Head coach Mike Jewett recorded his 100th career victory on Saturday, Dec. 12, when the Mustangs downed Mary 62-58.  The fourth-year head coach used 38 wins at SMSU and another 62 from his stint at Franklin (Ind.) to reach the milestone.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:  SMSU enters its 41st season of women's basketball this season.  SMSU has played 997 games, compiling an all time record of 538-459.  SMSU has racked up 25 winning seasons with 10 coming in the last 15 years.  The 2000-01 squad won a school record 25 games and made an appearance at the NCAA Tournament.

ALL BY HERSELF:  Guard Megan Stadler (Sioux Falls, S.D.) holds the distinction of being the lone senior on this year's squad.  Stadler is in her fifth year with the program and has been a mainstay in the SMSU backcourt. 

PRESEASON COACHES' POLL:  The NSIC's 14 head coaches tabbed SMSU 11th in their annual preseason poll.  The Mustangs received 66 points in the poll.  Defending NCAA Division II national champion Minnesota State, Mankato received nine first-place votes and 176 points to take the top spot in the poll.  Concordia- St. Paul, Augustana and Winona State also received first-place votes and checked in at No. 2, No. 3 and No. 5, respectively.
    1.     Minnesota State (9)    176
    2.     Concordia-St. Paul (2)    154
    3.    Augustana (2)    145
    4.     MSU Moorhead    142
    5.     Winona State (1)    140
    6.     Minnesota Duluth    131
    7.     Wayne State    111
    8.     St. Cloud State    99
    9.     Mary    96
    10.     Northern State    73
    11.     Southwest Minnesota State    66
    12.     Minnesota, Crookston    55
    13.     Bemidji State    37
    14.     Upper Iowa    32
    ( ) First Place Votes

STADLER IN THE RECORD BOOK:  Senior Megan Stadler (Sioux Falls, S.D.) began the season ranked ninth in career assists at SMSU, but the guard has quickly jumped a few spots throughout the season.  She is just seven assists away from passing Erin Frye's mark of 366 and moving into the No. 4 spot in school history.
    1. 493    Michelle Bruns - 2001-05
    2. 425    Mary Roddel - 2000-04
    3. 401    Dani Coleman - 1996-00
    4. 366    Erin Frye - 1997-01
    5. 360    Megan Stadler - 2005-10
    6. 341    Lillie Brown - 1992-96
    7. 330    Abby Oakland - 2005-09

HOME, SWEET HOME:  The R/A Facility, the home of SMSU basketball, has been a tough place to play for opponents since opening its doors for the 1996-97 season.   In 14 seasons of playing in the Mustang home arena, SMSU women's basketball has compiled a record of 109-65.
    Year    Overall    NSIC    Non-Conf.
    1996-97    6-5    2-4    4-1
    1997-98    5-6    3-3    2-3
    1998-99    11-2    6-0    5-2     
    1999-00    11-3    7-2    4-1     
    2000-01    12-0    9-0    3-0
    2001-02    11-2    8-1    3-1
    2002-03    11-3    7-2    4-1
    2003-04    3-7    2-6    1-1     
    2004-05    10-4    5-2    5-2
    2005-06    5-9    3-4    2-5
    2006-07    5-8    3-6    2-2
    2007-08    4-8    2-5    2-2
    2008-09    9-6    3-6    5-0
    2009-10    6-1    2-0    4-1   
       Totals:    109-65    62-41    47-22

MUSTANGS ADD FIVE DURING EARLY SIGNING PERIOD:  Head  coach Mike Jewett announced on Nov. 11 the signing of four student athletes for the 2010-11 season.  Breanna Holleman from Hancock, Minn., Hannah Beeler from Indianola, Iowa, Jessie Watts from Omaha, Neb., Ellen Degler from Chaska, Minn., and Samantha Abens from Knoxville, Iowa, have all signed letters of intent to continue their academic and athletic careers at SMSU.