THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball team opens the 2023-24 regular season with a pair of games this Friday and Saturday in St. Joseph, Mo., at the Hillyard Tip-Off Classic hosted by Missouri Western State University.
•SMSU opens play on Friday taking on Southeastern Oklahoma State University (1-1) with game time set for 1 p.m. before closing the weekend on Saturday with a 3:15 p.m. match-up versus No. 1 ranked Northwest Missouri State University. Both games will be played at the MWSU Fieldhouse.
•Both opponents are NCAA Central Region foes with Southeastern Oklahoma State a member of the Great American Conference (GAC), while Northwest Missouri State is a member of the Mid-American Athletic Association (MIAA). Both teams were picked to win their respective conferences. Southeastern opened the season last weekend at the D2CAA Invitational in Lubbock, Texas.
•Following this weekend's games, SMSU will play an exhibition game at Division I Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Nov. 14. The game will count as a regular season game for Drake.
•SMSU, which plays its first eight games (including the exhibition at Drake) away from Marshall, will not play at home until Dec. 8.
•A preview for both SE Oklahoma State and NW Missouri State can be found on page 4.

    BROADCAST INFO
•Live stats and video broadcast of both games this weekend can be found at SMSUmustangs.com. There will be no local radio coverage.

    SERIES HISTORY VERSUS SOUTHEASTERN OKLAHOMA STATE AND NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE
•SMSU will be meeting Southeastern Oklahoma State for the first time in program history. SMSU is 4-1 all-time versus current members of the GAC and last played a GAC foe on Nov. 10, 2019, suffering a 70-55 loss to Arkansas-Monticello in Warrensburg, Mo. SMSU defeated both Arkansas Tech and East Central (Okla.) at the 2017 NCAA Tournament in Maryville, Mo.  
•SMSU and Northwest Missouri State meet for the seventh time with the series tied at 3-3. The two teams last met in the championship game of the 2017 NCAA Central Region Tournament with NWMSU earning a 55-52 victory. Saturday will be the first meeting on a neutral court. A complete game-by-game listing can be found on page 17.
•SMSU head coach Brad Bigler is 3-2 all-time versus NWMSU.

    SEASON OPENERS
•SMSU is 30-26 all-time in season openers having won nine of its last 17 and 17 of its last 26 season lid-lifters.
•SMSU, which defeated Rogers State (Kan.) to begin last season, has opened the season on the road eight times in the last nine seasons.
 
    SMSU HEAD COACH BRAD BIGLER
•Brad Bigler, the all-time wins leader in program history, is in his 15th season as head coach and has an overall record of 221-177, including 150-139 in NSIC play.  
•The 2012-13 and 2016-17 NSIC Coach of the Year, Bigler has led SMSU to eight winning seasons, including one 28-win season, one 25-win season and two 19-win seasons.
•SMSU won NSIC Tournament titles in 2012 and 2017 and won back-to-back NSIC South Division championships in 2016-17 and 2017-18.  
•SMSU has played in five NSIC Tournament championship games during his tenure (2010, 2012, 2017, 2018, 2019).
•SMSU's 11th head coach in team history, Bigler spent six seasons (2003-09) as an assistant coach at SMSU, including the last three as associate head coach.
•SMSU's 71 combined victories from 2016-19 was the best three-year stretch in program history.
•Bigler's complete bio is found on page 16.

    ALL-NSIC RETURNERS   
•SMSU senior center Jake Phipps and junior guard Dunwa Omot both earned All-NSIC second team honors in 2022-23.
•Omot led SMSU in scoring (16.6), 3-point field goals made (52) and free throw percentage (87.0), while ranking second in both assists (63) and steals (38). He shot 46.1 percent (166 of 360) from the field, including 37.1 percent (52 of 140) from 3-point range and made 80 of 92 from the free throw line. Omot scored double figures in 25 of 28 games with eight 20-point games, including a career-high 30 points in the first round of the NSIC Tournament. In NSIC play, Omot ranked fourth in the league in free throw pct. (87.5), 10th in steals (29), 14th in field goals made (123), 15th in scoring (15.8), 20th in field goal pct. (43.6), and 22nd in 3-pointers made (39).
•Phipps led SMSU in rebounding (7.0), field goal pct. (55.1) and blocked shots (38), while ranking  second in scoring (!3.3) and fourth in 3-point field goals made (25). In NSIC play, Phipps ranked second in the conference in field goal pct. (57.1), second in blocked shots (31), eighth in rebounds (6.9) and 16th in field goals made (116).

    ABOUT SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE IN 2023-24   
•SMSU returns six letter winners and four starters from last season's 16-12 team that placed fourth in the NSIC South Division with a 12-10 league mark.   
•SMSU senior center Jake Phipps was named a 'Player to Watch' in the NSIC this season. He was named All-NSIC second team last season after starting all 28 games, while averaging 13.3 points per game and leading SMSU in rebounding (7.0), field goal pct. (55.1) and blocked shots (38). He scored double figures in 17 games, including five 20-point games. He has scored 1,057 points in 95 career games.
•The Mustangs return six players that started four or more game last season. Joining Phipps as a returning double-digit scorer from a year ago is junior guard Dunwa Omot, who averaged a team-high 16.6 ppg and led the team with 52 3-pointers, while earning All-NSIC second team accolades. He shot 37 percent from 3-point range (52 of 140), while his 87 percent (80 of 92) shooting from the free throw line ranks eighth in team single-season history. He scored 20 or more points eight times, including a career-high 30 in an NSIC Tournament first round loss to Minot State.
•Senior guard Cliff Cofield (formerly Cliff McCray) has started all 93 games in his career and last season led the squad in both assists (87) and steals (40), while ranking third on the team in scoring at 10.8 ppg. Sophomore guard Jakob Braaten played in 25 games last season with 17 starts and averaged 5.9 ppg with 55 assists. Also returning is sophomore guard Mason Lund, who had a promising start to his rookie season in 2022-23, averaging 7.7 ppg with 17 3-pointers in 13 games (six starts) before suffering a season-ending injury. Senior guard Lance Mosley also returns after seeing limited time last season.
•The roster features a pair of four-year transfer players in senior guard Kyle Luedtke and sophomore forward Caleb Schlaak. Luedtke appeared in 81 games with six starts at Division I Omaha, scoring 287 points with 53 3-pointers and 55 assists. Schlaak comes to SMSU after spending two seasons at Division II Truman State.
•The roster also includes redshirt freshmen guard Mekhi Shaw and center Matt Thompson, along with true freshmen forward Aeron Stevens, guard Nathan Fenske, forward Calvin Buss, guard Buay Koak and center Ethan Koltz.

    MUSTANG TIP-OFF TIDBITS
•SMSU finished the 2022-23 season shooting 46 percent from the field, 35 percent from 3-point range, 76 percent from the free throw line and was plus-2.1 in rebound margin. The Mustangs averaged 68 points per game, while opponents averaged 64 ppg.
•SMSU's 10 home victories last season was the program's highest since winning 12 in 2018-19.
•SMSU finished the 2022-23 NSIC (league games only) season first in scoring defense (64.5), first in opponent field goal pct. (39.8) and first 3-point field goal pct. defense (30.6).
•Dunwa Omot ranked fourth in the NSIC (league games only) in free throw pct. (87.5) and 15th in scoring (15.8); Jake Phipps finished ranked second in field goal pct. (57.1), eighth in rebounding (6.9) and second in blocked shots (1.4); Cliff Cofield was tied for third in steals (1.6).

    MUSTANG DEFENSE ONE OF THE BEST IN 2022-23
•SMSU limited opponents to 39.9 percent shooting from the field and 30.5 percent from 3-point range last season setting team single-season records in both categories.
•SMSU allowed 64.5 points per game last season ranking as the third-lowest in team history.

    SMSU IN THE FINAL 2022-23 NCAA RANKINGS
•In the final 2022-23 Division II national statistics, SMSU ranked 10th in field goal pct. defense (39.9), 10th in 3-point field goal pct. defense (30.5), 17th in scoring defense (64.5) 19th in fouls per game (13.8) and 42nd in free throw pct. (76.2).
•Dunwa Omot ranked 37th in free throw pct. (87.0), while Jake Phipps is 39th with 37 blocked shots and is 39th in field goal pct. (56.9).
•Omot ranks first in team history in free throw pct. (87.3, 117 of 134) and is second in 3-point field goal pct. (45.4, 108 of 238). Earlier this season he became the 19th player in program history to connect on 100 3-pointers.

    COFIELD CLOSES IN ON COACH BIGLER
•Senior Cliff Cofield ranks eighth in team history in assists (278) and seventh in steals (127). He is eight assists away from tying Brad Bigler for seventh in program history (286) and is four steals shy of tying Bigler for sixth in team history (131).

    PHIPPS 1,000 POINTS AND MORE IN THE BOOKS...
•Senior Jake Phipps became the 26th member of the program's 1,000-point club last February and currently ranks 22nd in team history with 1,057 points.
•Phipps also ranks 19th in field goals made (432), third in blocked shots (115) and fifth in field goal pct. (56.1, 432 of 770).
•He is two blocked shots shy of tying Jeremy VanKlompenburg (2003-07) for second all-time at 117. Current SMSU associate head coach, Nick Smith, holds the program record of 174.  
 
    MUSTANG CAREER 20-POINT GAMES  
•Two current SMSU players, senior Jake Phipps and junior Dunwa Omot have scored 20 or more points in a game during their careers.
•Omot reached the mark eight times last season, including one 30-point game and has scored 20 or more points nine times in his career. Phipps reached 20 points five times last season and 11 times in his career.
20 or More Point Games in Career
    30    Dunwa Omot    Minot State, 2/21/23
    28    Jake Phipps    Upper Iowa, 2/10/23
    28    Dunwa Omot    Minnesota Duluth, 1/21/23
    28    Dunwa Omot    Minot State, 2/23/22
    27    Dunwa Omot    St. Cloud State, 1/20/23
    25    Dunwa Omot    Minnesota Duluth, 1/28/22
    25    Jake Phipps    Concordia-St. Paul, 12/17/21
    24    Dunwa Omot    Concordia-St. Paul, 12/16/22
    24    Jake Phipps    Northern State, 1/14/22
    24    Dunwa Omot    UMary, 1/8/22
    23    Dunwa Omot    Winona State, 2/12/22
    22    Jake Phipps    Concordia-St. Paul, 2/4/23
    22    Dunwa Omot    Bemidji State, 1/27/23
    22    Jake Phipps    UMary, 1/6/23
    22    Jake Phipps    Minnesota State, 12/18/21
    22    Jake Phipps    Sioux Falls, 11/23/21
    22    Jake Phipps    Sioux Falls, 2/21/21
    21    Dunwa Omot    Northland, 12/19/22
    21    Anthony Costello    Newman, 11/12/22
    21    Jake Phipps    Davenport, 11/20/21
    20    Jake Phipps    Minot State, 2/21/23
    20    Jake Phipps    Minnesota Duluth, 1/21/21
    20    Anthony Costello    Northern State, 1/14/23
    20    Dunwa Omot    Sioux Falls, 12/31/22
    20    Dunwa Omot    Mount Marty, 11/26/22
    20    Dunwa Omot    St. Cloud State, 1/29/22
Bold indicates 2023-24 season

    JAKOB BRAATEN NOTES
•Played in 25 games with 17 starts last season and averaged 5.9 ppg and 3.6 rpg. Missed three games with an injury.
•Scored season-high 11 points with five field goals at Wayne State (12/3/22) and scored 11 points at Winona State (12/9/22).
•Pulled down career-high eight rebounds vs. Mt. Marty (11/26/22).
•Sat out the 2021-22 season as a redshirt.

    MASON LUND NOTES
•Missed the last 15 games a season ago due to injury.
•Played in the first 13 games with six starts and averaged 7.7 ppg and 3.7 rpg.
•Grabbed a career-high nine rebounds vs. Mt. Marty (11/26/22).
•Scored season-high 16 points on 6 of 11 shooting with two 3-pointers vs. Mt. Marty (11/26/22).
•Scored 12 points on 5 of 8 shooting with six rebounds vs. Newman (11/12/22).

    CLIFF COFIELD NOTES
•Changed last name from McCray to Cofield this past summer.
•Started all 28 games last season and averaged 8.0 ppg, while leading the team with 87 assists.
•Season-high 10 rebounds and scored 11 points for second career double-double at Minot State (1/7/23).
•Tied career-high with eight assists vs. Newman (11/12/22).
•Scored season-high 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds at Rogers State (11/11/22).
•Started all 27 games, while averaging 9.5 ppg and dishing out a team-high 92 assists in 2021-22.
•Tied career-high with 19 points vs. Minnesota Morris (11/29/21).
•Played and started nine games in 2021, while averaging 7.7 ppg and a team-high 6.0 rpg.
•Led the team in 2020-21 with 41 assists.
•One of two true freshman to play in 2019-20.

    LANCE MOSLEY NOTES
•Played in two games last season scoring two points and grabbing two rebounds vs. Northland (12/19/22).
•Played in two games with one rebound last season.
•Played in three games in 2021 scoring two points vs. Minnesota State (1/23/21).

    DUNWA OMOT NOTES
•Named All-NSIC second team in 2022-23.
•Started all 28 games and scored a team-high 16.6 ppg with a team-high 52 3-pointers.
•Scored 20 or more points eight times with one 30-point game.
•Scored career-high 30 points on 12 of 19 shooting with 12 rebounds vs. Minot State (2/21/23).  
•Named NSIC South Division Player of the Week on Jan. 23, 2023, after scoring 28 points on 10 of 17 shooting vs. Minnesota Duluth (1/21/23) and scoring 27 points vs. St. Cloud State (1/20/23).
•Played in all 27 games with eight starts in 2021-22 averaging 11.9 ppg and 1.8 rpg, while leading the team with 56 3-pointers.
•Shot 56.6 percent on 3-pointers in 2021-22 ranking first in school history, while his 87.5 free throw pct. ranks seventh in team single-season history.
•Scored 20 or more points in five games.
•Scored 28 points with six 3-pointers at Minot State (2/23/22)
•Played in four games and averaged 1.3 ppg and 0.8 rpg in 2021.

    JAKE PHIPPS NOTES
•Named All-NSIC second team in 2022-23
•Started all 28 games and averaged 13.3 ppg and a team-high 7.0 rpg.
•Finished with four double-doubles last season.
•Scored career-high 28 points on 12 of 17 shooting with three 3-pointers vs. Upper Iowa (2/10/23).
•Grabbed career-high 15 rebounds at Wayne State (12/3/22).
•Started all 27 games in 2021-22 averaging 12.7 ppg and a team-high 6.4 rpg.
•Recorded a team-high five double-doubles in 2021-22.
•Scored a season-high 25 points with 12 field goals at Concordia-St. Paul (12/17/21).
•Twice was named NSIC South Player of the Week in 2021-22.
•Started 10 of 11 games in 2021 and averaged 11.1 ppg and 4.6 rpg.
•Appeared in all 29 games with three starts in 2019-20 and averaged 7.2 ppg and 3.8 rpg.
•Sat out the 2018-19 season as a redshirt.

    HOME AND AWAY IN 2022-23
•SMSU finished 10-5 at home in 2022-23 and has a home record of 119-64 since head coach Brad Bigler took over in 2009-10.
•SMSU, which finished 6-7 in road/neutral site games in 2022-23, is 102-113 in 215 road/neutral site games during the Bigler era.
•The following is a statistical comparison of the Mustang team averages for home and away/neutral games in 2022-23:
        W-L    FG%    3-FG%    FT%    REB    PTS    TO    
Home    10-5    44.9    34.3    78.3    37.0    70.3    11.7    
Away    6-7    47.8    35.3    72.3    32.2    65.2    15.1

    HOME SWEET HOME
•The 2023-24 season marks the 28th year the R/A Facility has served as the home arena for SMSU men's basketball.
•SMSU has an all-time record of 251-111 (.693) in 362 games with 23 winning 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    12-2    10-1    2-1
    2018-19    12-5    7-4    5-1    
    2019-20    4-9    2-9    2-0
    2020-21    2-6    1-5    1-1
    2021-22    6-5    5-5    1-0
    2022-23    10-5    8-3    2-2
    2023-24    0-0    0-0    0-0
    Totals    251-111    167-83    84-28

    SMSU PICKED 7TH IN NSIC PRESEASON POLL
•SMSU was picked to finish seventh in the 15-team NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
•SMSU senior center Jake Phipps was named a "Player to Watch".
•Minnesota Duluth was selected as preseason favorite with UMD senior guard Drew Blair named the preseason Player of the Year.

    CONSECUTIVE 3-POINT GAMES
•SMSU has made at least one 3-point field goal in 716 straight games through the 2022-23 season.
•The last time SMSU failed to connect on a 3-pointer was on Dec. 11, 1998, versus MSU Moorhead (0 for 10) at the North Dakota State Classic.

    MUSTANGS AND THE CENTURY MARK
•SMSU last scored 100 points in a game on Feb. 1, 2019, versus Minnesota Crookston (100-78).
•SMSU is 40-8 all-time when scoring 100 points, including 8-2 under head coach Brad Bigler.

    WORKING OVERTIME
•SMSU finished 0-2 in overtime games in 20220-23 following a 72-68 home loss to Winona State on Feb. 11 and an 86-85 triple overtime setback to Minot State on Feb. 21.
•SMSU is 51-42 all-time in overtime games.
•SMSU is 8-6 in double overtime and 1-3 in triple overtime games all-time.

    SMSU IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
•SMSU has made five NCAA Tournament appearances (2001, 2009, 2012, 2017, 2018) since moving to Division II in 1995-96.
•SMSU is 9-5 all-time in NCAA Tournament games appearing in three region championship games with region titles and Elite Eight appearances in both 2001 and 2009.  

    NEW LOOK NSIC REGULAR SEASON AND TOURNAMENT
•Due to Upper Iowa University leaving for the Great Lake Valley Conference, the NSIC is a 15-team conference in 2023-24.
•The NSIC regular season championship will be based on the 22-game unbalanced schedule with each team playing eight teams twice and another six teams once.
•The 12-team NSIC Men's Basketball Tournament begins on Feb. 28 with the top four seeds receiving a first round bye. First round games will be played on campus with the quarterfinals, semifinals and championships set to take place March 2-5 at the Sanford Health Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

    SMSU ALL-TIME IN THE NSIC
•The 2023-24 campaign marks the 55th season SMSU has competed in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
•SMSU has an all-time record of 399-440 in 839 conference games, finishing in the top half of the final standings 26 times in 54 seasons.
•SMSU has captured one regular season championship (2000-01), two NSIC South Division titles (2016-17) and (2017-18) and two tournament championships (2012) and (2017).

    MUSTANG HISTORY
•SMSU is in its 57th season of men's basketball in 2023-24.
•SMSU has played 1,542 games compiling an all-time record of 713-829.
•SMSU has won two NSIC regular season championships (2001 & 2009), two NSIC South Division championships (2017 & 2018), two NSIC Tournament championships (2012, 2017), two NCAA Region championships (2001 & 2009) and has appeared in five NCAA Tournaments (2001, 2009, 2012, 2017, 2018).
•SMSU has recorded 26 winning seasons in program history with 19 coming in the last 26 years.

    SCOUTING SOUTHEASTERN OKLAHOMA STATE
•The Savage Storm are 1-1 on the season after competing at the D2CAA Tipoff Classic last weekend in Lubbock, Texas.
•SE defeated Northern Michigan, 108-101, on Saturday before losing to No. 7 West Texas A&M, 106-89, on Sunday.
•SE enter the season as the Great American Conference favorites and received votes for the preseason NABC Top 25.
•Southeastern closed the 2022-23 season 18-10 overall, including 15-7 in the GAC.
•The Storm returns seven of its top eight scorers from a season ago and four players who started 19 or more games.
•Junior guard Brennen Burns, a second team All-GAC honoree last season, is averaging 26 ppg, while shooting 60 percent in the first two games.
•Junior guard Kody Clouet is scoring 21.5 ppg with seven 3-pointers after two games.
•SE is shooting 51 percent from the field, 33 percent from 3-point range, 76 percent from the free throw line and is minus-5.5 in rebound margin.
•SE is averaging 99 points per game, while opponents are averaging 104 points per game.
•Head coach Kelly Green is in his 13th season at Southeastern.

    SCOUTING NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE
•The Bearcats, picked to win the MIAA, are ranked No. 1 in the NABC preseason Top 25 after finishing 31-3 last season. Northwest was upset at home in the NCAA Central Region Tournament semifinals by Southern Nazarene.
•Northwest, which plays Northern State to open the season on Friday, has suffered only 16 losses in the last seven seasons.
•Northwest returns a pair of second-team all-MIAA performers in senior Wes Dreamer and sophomore Bennett Stirtz. Dreamer averaged 12.8 points per game and led the team in rebounding at 5.2 rpg. Stirtz was named the MIAA Freshman of the Year after he ranked second on the team in scoring at 12.6 ppg.
•Head coach Ben McCollum is in his 15th season and has a career record of 365-86 and has guided the Bearcats to national championships in 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2022.