PREVIEWING THIS WEEKEND
•The Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball team (19-7, 15-5 NSIC), currently riding a five-game winning streak, concludes the regular season this Friday and Saturday with a pair of games at the R/A Facility.
•SMSU will face NSIC South Division leading Minnesota State University (20-6, 16-4 NSIC) on Friday, Feb. 16, with tip-off set for 8 p.m.
•SMSU concludes the weekend with a 7 p.m. match-up versus Concordia University St. Paul (5-21, 4-16 NSIC) on Saturday, Feb. 17.  
•SMSU begins the weekend in second place in the NSIC South Division standings and fourth place overall.  
•SMSU can clinch at least a share of its second straight NSIC South Division championship with a pair of victories.
•MSU opens the weekend in first place in the NSIC South standings and tied for second overall, while CSP is seventh in the South standings and tied for 14th overall.

    SENIOR NIGHT SET FOR SATURDAY
•Southwest Minnesota State will honor its three seniors, KJ Davis, Carter Kirk and Turner Moen prior to Saturday's night game.
•Davis, a junior college transfer, is a two-year letter winner and has played in 60 games with 57 starts. He has scored 592 points with 83 steals.
•Kirk is a four-year letter winner, having played in 116 games with 71 starts. He ranks 12th in program history with 1,210 points and is second with 813 rebounds. He is the program's all-time leader in field goal percentage (58.8) and also ranks sixth in free throws attempted (402), sixth in blocked shots (84) and eighth in field goals made (488).
•Moen has played in 116 games with 91 starts during his four-year career. He has scored 779 points while dishing out 249 assists and ranks sixth in team history with 129 steals. He also ranks fifth in team history in 3-point field goal percentage (42.0).

    NSIC/SANFORD HEALTH TOURNAMENT SCENARIOS
•To secure the No. 1 seed in the South Division, SMSU must win both games this weekend and have Minnesota State lose both games.
•If SMSU and MSU tie atop the division standings, MSU will earn the No. 1 seed via either head-to-head (if MSU wins on Friday) or by recording a better division record. MSU is 11-1 in South Division games entering the weekend, while SMSU is 8-4 in division games.

    NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS ANNOUNCED WEDNESDAY
•The first official NCAA region rankings will be announced on Wednesday, Feb. 14.
•Polls will also be released on Feb. 21 and Feb. 28, before the official 64-team Division will be announced on March 4.   

    20-WIN SEASONS IN TEAM HISTORY
•SMSU needs one more victory to secure its second straight 20-win season and sixth in team history.
•The last time SMSU won 20 or more games in back-to-back seasons came during the 2000-01 and 2001-02 campaigns.

    SERIES HISTORY VS. MINNESOTA STATE
•Southwest Minnesota State and Minnesota State meet for the 58th time with MSU leading 41-16.
•The two teams first met during the 1969-70 season.
•MSU leads 17-8 in games played in Marshall, but SMSU has won the last two games in Marshall.
•MSU's last win in Marshall came on Feb. 21, 2015.
•MSU has won nine of the last 12 games overall in the series since the 2012-13 season, but SMSU's three victories have come in the last five games.
•MSU won earlier this season, 72-70, in Mankato on Jan. 20.
•SMSU head coach Brad Bigler is 6-13 all-time versus MSU.
•Game-by-game results of the series are on page 19.

    LAST TIME VERSUS MINNESOTA STATE
•Minnesota State held off a late SMSU charge to earn a 72-70 win in Mankato on Jan. 20.
•Ryan Bruggeman paced the Mustangs with 21 points with six assists and three steals.
•Carter Kirk added 16 points and 12 rebounds, while Nick Dufault scored 14 points on 5 of 9 shooting, including four from 3-point range.
•SMSU shot 42 percent in the contest, including 7 of 20 from 3-point range. The Mustangs also were a perfect 9 of 9 from the free throw line.
•Chris Kendrix led the Mavericks with 20 points, while Charlie Brown added 19 points with 17 coming in the second half.
•MSU shot 38 percent (23 of 60) from the field and finished the game making 19 of 24 free throws.
•The game box score is located on page 22.

    SERIES HISTORY VS. CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL
•Southwest Minnesota State and Concordia-St. Paul meet for the 39th time on Saturday with SMSU leading 28-10.
•The two teams first played during the 1980-81 season.
•CSP joined the NSIC prior to the 1999-2000 season.
•SMSU is 16-3 all-time in games played in Marshall and have won six of the last seven played at the R/A Facility.
•SMSU has won three straight in the series, including 79-64 on Jan. 19 in St. Paul.
•SMSU head coach Brad Bigler is 11-6 all-time versus CSP.
•Game-by-game results of the series are on page 21.

    LAST TIME VERSUS CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL
•Ryan Bruggeman scored a team-high 17 points and dished out seven assists to pace SMSU to a 79-64 victory over Concordia-St. Paul on Jan. 19.
•Bruggeman was one of five Mustangs to score in double figures as Taylor Schafer (12), Carter Kirk (11), Michael Lee (11) and Turner Moen (10) helped a balanced Mustang attack.
•SMSU shot 46 percent (28 of 61) from the field and connected on 9 of 24 from 3-point range. SMSU was also solid from the foul line making 14 of 16 shots.
•CSP, which shot 47 percent from the field, were led by Bryndan Matthews' 23 points on 9 of 15 shooting.
•The game box score is located on page 23.

    SMSU HEAD COACH BRAD BIGLER
•Brad Bigler, the all-time wins leader in program history, is in his ninth season as head coach and has compiled an overall record of 155-108, including 110-84 in conference play.
•Bigler became the all-time wins leader on Dec. 2, 2017, passing Greg Stemen (141, 2001-09).
•The 2012-13 and 2016-17 NSIC Coach of the Year, Bigler has led SMSU to five winning seasons, including one 28-win season and three of 19-win seasons, including this season.
•SMSU won NSIC tournament titles in 2012 and 2017 and also won the NSIC South Division championship in 2017.  
•SMSU's 11th head coach, Bigler spent six seasons (2003-09) as an assistant coach at SMSU, including the last three as associate head coach.
•Bigler's complete bio is found on page 19.

    MUSTANGS CLOSE ROAD PLAY WITH TWO VICTORIES
•SMSU closed its regular season road schedule defeating Wayne State, 75-60, and Augustana, 81-77, last weekend.
•SMSU hit 10 3-pointers as a team and Carter Kirk dominated inside with 15 points and 13 rebounds in the win over WSC.
•KJ Davis tied for the team lead with 16 points on 7 of 9 shooting while Taylor Schafer went 4 of 7 from deep and finished with 16 points as well.
•Ryan Bruggeman recorded a career-high 12 assists.
•Michael Lee poured in a career-high 19 points with five 3-pointers to help pace a balanced scoring attack for the Mustangs in the win over Augustana.
•Carter Kirk picked up his 13th double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while KJ Davis added 15 points and Ryan Bruggeman chipped in with 14 points and six assists.

    ABOUT SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE
•SMSU is 19-7 overall, 15-5 NSIC, and has tied a season-high with five straight victories and has won nine of its last 11 games.
•Ryan Bruggeman is averaging a team-high 16.4 ppg with a team-high 150 assists. He ranks seventh in the NSIC in scoring (17.0) and third in assists (6.2).
•Carter Kirk is scoring 14.8 ppg with a team-high 10.5 rpg. He also has a team-high 25 blocked shots and is shooting 61 percent from the field. Kirk leads the NSIC in rebounding (11.0) and is fifth in field goal pct. (61.0).
•KJ Davis is scoring 10.3 ppg with 22 3-pointers, 45 assists and 36 steals.
•Michael Lee has made a team-leading 57 3-pointers, while Taylor Schafer has made 40 3-pointers and Nick Dufault has connected on 39 3-pointers.
•SMSU is shooting 49 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range, 74 percent from the free throw line and is plus-2.3 in rebound margin.
•SMSU is averaging 79 points per game, while opponents are average 73.


    MUSTANG TIP-OFF TIDBITS
•SMSU is shooting 48.9 percent from the field this season which ranks fifth highest in team history. Seven of the top nine shooting teams in team history have come under head coach Brad Bigler.
•Turner Moen ranks sixth in team history with 129 steals. He is two away from tying Brad Bigler (131) for fifth all-time.
•Ryan Bruggeman's 150 assists this season is the third highest single-season total in team history. He finished with 166 assists last season. Marques Pena holds the record with 185 in 2000-01.
•SMSU has nine home victories this season tying last season's total. The last time SMSU reached double figure home wins came in 2013-14 with 11.
•Carter Kirk's 813 career rebounds rank 11th among active players in Division II. He currently ranks second in SMSU history behind Frank Belmont (1971-75), who recorded 848.  
•Carter Kirk's 60.9 field goal pct. currently ranks fifth best in a single-season team history.
•SMSU is 16-2 when opponents shoot less than 50 percent from the field.  
•SMSU has shot 50 percent or higher in 10 games this season. Last season, SMSU shot 50 percent or higher in 15 games.
•SMSU has made eight or more 3-pointers in 13 of its last 16 games.
•SMSU has committed nine or less turnovers in nine games.
•SMSU's 116 points versus Crown College on Nov. 21 was the second highest point total in school history.

    SMSU 8TH IN D2SIDA REGIONAL POLL
•SMSU is ranked eighth in the final D2SIDA Central Region poll released on Monday, Feb. 12.
•Each of the eight regions has six representatives from D2SIDA that coordinate the regional committee, with a regional poll that will be released every Monday during the regular season.
•The D2SIDA weekly rankings are independent of the official NCAA Regional Rankings that will be start on Feb. 14 and determine the NCAA Tournament teams.
D2SIDA Central Region Poll (Feb. 12)
    Rank    (First-Place Votes)                   W-L    Pts.    Prev.
    T1.    Northwest Missouri State (3)    21-2    57    1
    2.    Southern Nazarene (3)    20-1    56    2
    3.    Northern State    25-3    49    3
    4.    Central Missouri    19-5     39    4
    5.    Minnesota State    20-6    35    5
    6.    Washburn    18-6    29    6
    7.    St. Cloud State    20-6     28    7
    8.    Southwest Minnesota State    19-7    17    8
    9.    Northwestern Oklahoma State    16-6    11    9
    10.    Missouri Southern State    16-8    5    RB

    SCOUTING MINNESOTA STATE
•MSU is 20-6 overall, 16-4 NSIC, and is currently in first place in the NSIC South standings. MSU is coming off a loss to Winona State last Saturday night.
•Charlie Brown is averaging a team-high 16.2 ppg with 36 3-pointers and a team-high 100 assists.
•Kevin Krieger is scoring 16.1 ppg with a team-high 55 3-pointers.
•Chris Kendrix leads the team with 7.0 rpg and is averaging 12.3 ppg.  
•Cameron Kirskey is averaging 11.8 ppg with a team-high 27 blocked shots.
•MSU is shooting 48 percent from the field, 43 percent from 3-point range, 76 percent from the free throw line and is plus-2.0 in rebound margin.
•MSU is scoring 84 points per game, while opponents are averaging 75 per game.
•Matt Margenthaler is in his 17th season with a record of 370-149. MSU has qualified for the NCAA tournament in 11 of the last 13 seasons.  

    SCOUTING CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL
•CSP is 5-21 overall, 4-16 NSIC, and is currently seventh place in the NSIC South standings
•CSP, which plays at Sioux Falls on Friday, lost at home last weekend to Winona State and Upper Iowa.
•Bryndan Matthews leads the team averaging 17.1 ppg and also paces the club with 7.4 rpg.
•Avan Ward is scoring 15.6 ppg with a team-leading 66 3-pointers.
•Tad Brown is averaging 8.0 ppg and is second on the team with 5.0 rpg.
•CSP is shooting 45 percent from the field, 34 percent from 3-point range, 69 percent from the free throw line and is plus-4.1 in rebound margin.
•CSP is scoring 69 points per game, while opponents are averaging 80 per game.
•Joey James is in his fourth season as head coach with a record of 43-73. He was the head coach at South Dakota in 2013-14, finishing with a 12-18 record.

    NCAA STATISTICS
•A complete listing of SMSU and Mustang individuals in the latest NCAA statistics (Feb. 12) can be found on page 18.
•SMSU ranks 14th in turnovers per game, 24th in 3-point field goal pct., 24th in assist/turnover ratio and 28th in field goal pct.
•Carter Kirk ranks fifth in total rebounds, 11th in double-doubles, 15th in rebounds per game and 18th in field goal pct.
•Ryan Bruggeman ranks 19th in total assists, 24th in free throws made, 27th in assists per game, 30th in assist turnover ratio, 31st in free throw attempts and 34th in total steals.
•Turner Moen is ranked 43rd in assist/turnover ratio.

    NSIC STATISTICS
•A complete listing of SMSU and Mustang individuals in the latest NSIC statistics (NSIC games only) can be found on pages 16-17.
•Ryan Bruggeman ranks second in assist/turnover ratio, second in steals, third in assists, seventh in scoring and 10th in free throw pct.
•Carter Kirk ranks first in rebounding and fifth in field goal pct.
•Turner Moen ranks fourth in steals, eighth in assist/turnover ratio and eighth in 3-point field goal pct.
•KJ Davis has moved into eighth in steals.
•SMSU ranks fourth in 3-point field goal pct., fourth in scoring defense, fourth in 3-point field goal pct. defense, fourth in field goal pct. defense, fifth in field goal pct., sixth in scoring offense and sixth in rebound margin.

    BRUGGEMAN SETS SMSU ASSISTS RECORD AND MORE
•Ryan Bruggeman broke the program's career assist record on Jan. 19 at Concordia-St. Paul.
•He now has 442 assists in 88 games, breaking the previous record of 396 held by Vinard Birch (2010-14).
•Bruggeman also ranks first in team history in assists average, third in steals, third in free throws made, fifth in free throw pct. and ninth in scoring.

    TOUGHEST SCHEDULE IN THE NSIC
•SMSU has played a strong schedule this season and the latest NCAA statistical numbers back it up.
•SMSU has played the 54th toughest schedule in Division II and the toughest among all NSIC schools as of Tuesday, Feb. 12.
•SMSU's Division II opponents have a combined record of 299-256 (not including games with SMSU).

    KIRK TIES SCHOOL SINGLE-GAME RECORD
•Carter Kirk's 21 rebounds at Northern State on Jan. 27 tied the school single-game record joining Frank Belmont versus Colorado Tech (1972-73) and Sam Leggett versus Northern State (Nov. 28, 1975) for the team record.
•The 21 rebounds are tied for the seventh highest in Division II this season.
•Kirk became the first SMSU player to grab 20 rebounds in a game since Juan Mitchell versus Winona State on Feb. 28, 1987.







    WINS VERSUS NATIONALLY RANKED TEAMS
•SMSU defeated No. 7 (D2SIDA)/No. 12 (NABC) Northern State on Jan. 27, 64-57, in Aberdeen, S.D., recording its third win over a ranked team in the last two seasons.
•SMSU beat No. 21 (NABC) MSU Moorhead and No. 16 Augustana (D2SIDA) last season.
•Prior to this season, SMSU's last victory over a Top 10 team was on March 3, 2010, at No. 8 (NABC) Minnesota State in the quarterfinals of the NSIC Tournament.

    SMSU TRUE "ROAD WARRIORS" LAST TWO SEASONS
•SMSU finished the regular season 10-5 away from Marshall this season, including 8-5 in "true" road games and 2-0 in neutral site games.
•SMSU finished 12-3 in "true" road games last season, recording the most road wins in team history.
•SMSU closed last season 19-3 in away/neutral site games setting a program record for victories away from Marshall.

    BRUGGEMAN & KIRK JOIN 1,000-POINT CLUB
•Senior Carter Kirk and junior Ryan Bruggeman both reached the 1,000 career points milestone in December.
•Bruggeman reached 1,000-career points during SMSU's win at Minnesota Duluth on Dec. 8 and currently ranks ninth in team history with 1,250 points in 88 games.
•Kirk became the 23rd SMSU player to reach 1,000 career points in SMSU's win over Wayne State on Dec. 31. He currently ranks 12th all-time with 1,210 points in 116 games.   
•A complete list of SMSU's 1,000-point scorers is listed on page 4.

    MUSTANG 20-POINT GAMES  
•Southwest Minnesota State has five players who have scored 20 or more points in a game during their careers, including 16 times this season.
•Junior Ryan Bruggeman has 22 career 20-point games, including 10 this season. Last season he led the team with nine 20-point games which included one 30-point game.
•Junior Taylor Schafer and senior Carter Kirk have six 20-point games, Turner Moen has two 20-point games and redshirt freshman Nick Dufault has one.
20 or More Point Games - 2017-18 Season
    28    Ryan Bruggeman    at Sioux Falls, 11/25/17
    26    Ryan Bruggeman    Minot State, 2/2/18
    26    Ryan Bruggeman    at MSU Moorhead, 1/26/18
    25    Carter Kirk    Bemidji State, 1/13/18
    24    Ryan Bruggeman    Winona State, 12/2/17
    24    Ryan Bruggeman    Upper Iowa, 12/1/17
    23    Carter Kirk    Wayne State, 12/31/17
    23    Nick Dufault    Crown, 11/21/17
    22    Carter Kirk    U-Mary, 2/3/18
    22    Ryan Bruggeman    Minnesota Crookston, 1/12/18
    21    Ryan Bruggeman    at Minnesota State, 1/20/18
    21    Ryan Bruggeman    at Minnesota Duluth, 12/8/17
    22    Ryan Bruggeman    at Winona State, 1/5/18
    20     Ryan Bruggeman    vs. Northern Michigan, 11/18/17
    20    Carter Kirk    Northern State, 11/15/17
    20    Carter Kirk    at Emporia State, 11/11/17

    KIRK NAMED NSIC SOUTH PLAYER OF THE WEEK...AGAIN
•Senior Carter Kirk was named the NSIC South Division Player of the Week for the second time this season on Jan. 15.
•Kirk averaged 20 points and nine rebounds, while shooting 67 percent from the field in home victories over Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji State.
•Kirk was also named the NSIC South Division Player of the Week on Jan. 2, averaging 20 points and 15 rebounds, while shooting 70 percent from the field in home games versus Augustana and Wayne State.

    BRUGGEMAN NAMED NSIC SOUTH PLAYER OF THE WEEK
•Junior Ryan Bruggeman was named the NSIC South Division Player of the Week on Dec. 4.
•He averaged 24 points, 7.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds, while shooting 54 percent from the field in home victories over Upper Iowa and Winona State.

    Kolin Bartlett NOTES
•Averaging 2.7 ppg and 2.5 rpg in 26 games.
•Scored 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting vs. Crown (11/21/17).
•Scored six points on three field goals vs. Sioux Falls (12/16/17).
•Played in just two games last season due to an injury.
•Younger brother of former Mustang Joey Bartlett (2013-17).

    Vydal Bradford NOTES
•Has played in six games this season.
•Scored 11 points on 5 of 6 shooting vs. Crown.
•Sat out last season as a redshirt.

    Ryan Bruggeman NOTES
•Averaging a team-high 16.4 ppg and leads team with 150 assists.
•Scored season-high 28 points at Sioux Falls (11/25/17).
•Has 10 20-point scoring games this season.
•Has scored double figures in all but two games this season.
•Ranks first in team history averaging 5.0 assists per game.
•Ranks first in team history with 442 assists.
•Ranks third in team history with 140 steals.
•Ranks third in team history with 340 free throws made.
•Ranks fifth in team history with 83.5 career free throw pct.
•Has started every game in his career.
•Named MVP of the 2017 NSIC Tournament.
•Named to the 2017 NCAA Central All-Tournament team.

    Kenny Byers NOTES
•Has played in 26 games during his true freshman season and is averaging 3.6 ppg and 2.5 rpg.
•Scored season-high 11 points vs. Wayne State (12/31/17) on 5 of 6 shooting with one 3-pointer.
•Scored 10 points at St. Cloud State (12/9/17).
•Season-high eight rebounds vs. Upper Iowa (12/1/17).

    KJ Davis NOTES
•Averaging 10.3 ppg and has connected on 22 3-pointers while starting all 26 games this season.
•Has scored double figures in 15 games this season.
•Scored a career-high 19 points with 12 free throws made vs. Upper Iowa (12/1/17).
•Led the team a season ago with 47 steals.

    Nick Dufault NOTES
•Has played 26 games and is averaging 6.9 ppg with 39 3-pointers.
•Has scored double figures in six games.
•Scored season-high 23 points vs. Crown (11/21/7) on 8 of 12 shooting with five 3-pointers.
•Scored 14 points at Minnesota State (1/20/18) with four 3-pointers.
•Sat out last season as a redshirt.

    Braedan Hanson NOTES
•Has played in eight games this season.
•Sat out last season as a redshirt.

    Carter Kirk NOTES
•Has started all 26 games and averaging 14.8 ppg and team-high 10.5 rpg while shooting 61 percent from the field.
•Tied school single-game record with 21 rebounds at Northern State (1/27/18).
•Has seven or more rebounds in 24 of 26 games this season.
•Team-high 13 double-doubles and has 20 in career.
•Has reached double figuring scoring in 20 games, including five 20-point games.  
•Scored a career-high 25 points vs. Bemidji State (1/13/18).
•Recorded 19 points and 21 rebounds at Northern State (1/27/18).
•Ranks first in team history with a career 58.8 field goal pct.  
•Ranks second in team history with 813 rebounds.
•Shot a team-high 61.7 percent from the field a season ago.

    Michael Lee NOTES
•Has started all 26 games and is averaging 8.1 ppg with team-high 57 3-pointers.
•Career-high with 19 points at Augustana (2/9/18) with five 3-pointers.
•Scored 15 points on 5 of 5 from 3-point range at MSU Moorhead (1/26/18).
•Has scored double figures in nine games.
•Has made three or more 3-pointers in 10 games this season.
•Tied for second on the team last season with 52 3-pointers.

    Turner Moen NOTES
•Averaging 7.4 ppg and 5.4 rpg while starting all 26 games.
•Second on the team with 84 assists and second with 41 steals.
•Ranks fifth in team history in 3-point field goal pct. (42.0) and sixth in steals (129).
•Scored a season-high 15 points vs. Sioux Falls (12/16/17).
•Tied career-high with 10 rebounds vs. Bemidji State (1/13/18).
•Recorded first career double-double at Minnesota Duluth (12/8/17) with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
•Ranked second on the team last season with 73 assists.

    Taylor Schafer NOTES
•Averaging 8.5 ppg with 40 3-pointers in 26 games.  
•Tied season-high with 16 points at Wayne State (2/9/18) and also scored 16 vs. Minnesota Crookston (1/12/18) with four 3-pointers.
•Has nine double figure scoring games this season.
•Ranks 10th in school history with 155 3-pointers.
•Connected on a team-high 58 3-pointers last season.











    HOME AND AWAY
•SMSU is 9-2 at home this season after finishing 9-3 last season.
•SMSU is a combined 107-39 at home since the 2007-08 season.
•SMSU is 10-5 in road/neutral site games this season and are a combined 83-75 in 158 road/neutral site games since 2009-10.
•The following is a statistical comparison of the Mustang team averages for home and away/neutral games in 2017-18:
        W-L    FG%    3-FG%    FT%    REB    PTS    TO    
Home    9-2     .522    .417    .758    35.0    84.8    10.0        
Away    10-5    .464    .391    .733    34.2    75.3    10.4    
           
    NSIC SOUTH VS. NSIC NORTH
•SMSU finished 7-1 versus teams from the NSIC North Division in conference play this season and are a combined 32-16 versus North teams in conference play since divisions were introduced prior to the 2012-13 season.
•This year's 7-1 record is the best finish for SMSU versus the North since divisions were formed.
•SMSU finished 6-2 last season, recorded a 3-5 mark in 2015-16; 5-3 in 2014-15; 5-3 in 2013-14; and 6-2 in 2012-13.
•The NSIC South holds a 234-150 advantage over NSIC North teams in conference play since divisions were formed in 2012-13, including finishing 38-26 this season.
•The South Division has held the advantage in every season. In 2016-17, the South finished 35-29; 2015-16, the South led 37-27; in 2014-15, the South finished 35-29; in 2013-14, the South finished 42-22, while in 2012-13, the South went 47-17.

    SMSU RANKED IN THREE PRESEASON POLLS
•SMSU opened the 2017-18 regular season ranked in three separate preseason polls.
•SMSU was ranked No. 15 by the NABC, No. 14 by D2Bulletin and No. 13 in the D2SIDA poll.
•SMSU closed the 2016-17 regular season ranked No. 18 in the final NABC Top 25 poll.

    2017-18 NSIC PRESEASON POLL; BRUGGEMAN PRESEASON POY
•SMSU was picked to finish second overall and first in the South Division in the annual 16-team NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll released in October.
•Northern State was chosen as the overall favorite earning 213 points, including all eight first-place votes.
•SMSU junior guard Ryan Bruggeman was named the NSIC South Division Preseason Player of the Year.

    SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE IN 2016-17
•SMSU finished the 2016-17 season 28-6 overall and won the NSIC South Division with a 17-5 conference record.
•SMSU's 28 victories last season tied the 2000-01 and 2008-09 teams for the most in team history.
•SMSU won the NSIC Tournament championship and advanced to the championship game of the NCAA Central Region Tournament.
•SMSU's 28 victories a season ago tied the 2000-01 and 2008-09 teams for the program single-season record. SMSU won region titles in both 2001 and 2009 and finished as region runner-up in 2017.
•SMSU scored 2,749 points in 2016-17, the second highest output in team history. The 2000-01 team scored 2,897 points.
•SMSU had a season-high eight-game winning streak heading into the NCAA region title game last season. SMSU also had one winning streak of seven games and two streaks of six straight wins during the season.  

    2016-17 NSIC SOUTH CHAMPIONS
•Last season SMSU earned the program's first NSIC South Division title since divisions were formed prior to the 2012-13 season.
•SMSU tied with Northern State for second place overall in the 16-team conference.

    2017 NSIC TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS
•SMSU captured the program's second NSIC tournament championship last season defeating Upper Iowa, 71-58, in Sioux Falls, S.D.
•SMSU won its first NSIC tournament in 2012 in Rochester, Minn.

    BRUGGEMAN NAMED ALL-NSIC; BIGLER EARNS TOP HONOR
•Ryan Bruggeman was the lone SMSU player to be named first team All-NSIC in 2016-17.
•In the final NSIC statistics (conference games only), Bruggeman finished fourth in the league in assists (4.5), fourth in free throw pct. (.843), fifth in steals (1.4), 11th in assist/turnover ratio (2.2) and 20th in scoring (15.0).
•Bruggeman was the first SMSU player to earn first team All-NSIC honors since Jordan Miller in 2012-13.
•Brad Bigler was named NSIC Coach of the Year for the second time during his tenure (2012-13). Tim Miles (2000-01) and Greg Stemen (2008-09) are the only other coaches to earn the award in team history.

    HOME SWEET HOME
•This season marks the 22nd year the R/A Facility has served as the home arena for SMSU men's basketball.
•SMSU has a record of 214-81 (.725) in 295 games with just two losing seasons.
SMSU in the R/A Facility
    Year    Overall    NSIC    Non
    1996-97    6-4    3-2    3-2    
    1997-98    8-5    4-2    4-3    
    1998-99    10-3    5-1    5-2    
    1999-00    12-3    7-2    5-1    
    2000-01    12-1    9-0    3-1    
    2001-02    12-2    7-2    5-0    
    2002-03    9-5    7-2    2-3
    2003-04    9-5    5-3    4-2    
    2004-05    6-8    3-4    3-4
    2005-06    10-5    3-4    7-1    
    2006-07    13-2    8-1    5-1
    2007-08    12-2    7-2    5-0
    2008-09    13-3    8-2    5-1
    2009-10    12-3    7-3    5-0
    2010-11    10-3    8-3    2-0
    2011-12    10-2    9-2    1-0
    2012-13    7-4    7-4    0-0
    2013-14    11-4    8-3    3-1
    2014-15    6-8    4-7    2-1
    2015-16    8-4    7-4    1-0
    2016-17    9-3    8-3    1-0
    2017-18    9-2    8-1    1-1    
    Totals    214-81    142-57    72-24

    CONSECUTIVE 3-POINT GAMES
•Southwest Minnesota State has connected on at least one 3-point field goal in 581 straight games.
•The last time SMSU failed to score a 3-pointer was on Dec. 11, 1998, versus MSU Moorhead at the North Dakota State Classic.

    MUSTANGS REACH 100 AND THEN SOME
•Southwest Minnesota State has reached 100 points once this season in a 116-80 win over Crown College on Nov. 21. It was the second highest point total in team history.
•SMSU is 37-8 all-time when scoring 100 points in a game.

    WORKING OVERTIME
•SMSU is 45-39 all-time in overtime games, including 0-1 this season, after losing 91-85 at Sioux Falls on Nov. 25.
•SMSU finished last season 2-1 in overtime games.
•SMSU is 7-6 in double overtime games and 0-2 in triple overtime games all-time.

    SMSU ALL-TIME IN THE NSIC
•The 2017-18 campaign marks the 49th season SMSU has competed in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
•SMSU has an all-time record of 359-385 in 744 conference games, finishing in the top half of the final standings 25 times in 49 seasons, which includes this season.
•SMSU has finished in the top half of the NSIC standings in 16 of the last 21 seasons since 1997-98.

    SMSU IN THE NSIC TOURNAMENT
•SMSU is 20-15 all-time in the NSIC tournament, with two championships (2012 & 2017), since the tournament began in 2000.
•The Mustangs are 9-2 at home, 1-7 on the road and 10-6 in neutral sites games.
•SMSU has advanced to the semifinals 10 times and have played in seven championship games (2001, 2002, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2017).    

    SMSU ALL-TIME IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
•SMSU made its fourth appearance in the NCAA tournament last season and first since 2012. SMSU is 8-4 in 12 all-time tournament games.
•SMSU has appeared in three region championship games in team history winning titles in both 2001 and 2009.  

    MUSTANG HISTORY
•Southwest Minnesota State is in its 51st season of men's basketball in 2017-18.
•SMSU has played 1,407 games compiling an all-time record of 647-760.
•SMSU has won two NSIC regular season championships (2001 & 2009), one NSIC South Division championship (2017), two NSIC tournament championships (2012, 2017), two NCAA region championships (2001 & 2009) and has appeared in four NCAA tournaments (2001, 2009, 2012, 2017).
•SMSU has recorded 22 winning seasons in program history with 15 coming in the last 19 years.