THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball team (5-4, 2-3 NSIC) continues NSIC play with two games this week, first hosting the University of Sioux Falls (4-6, 2-3 NSIC) on Thursday, Dec. 14, with tip-off slated for 5:30 p.m. inside the R/A Facility.
•On Saturday, SMSU travels to Sioux Falls, S.D., to face Augustana University (5-5, 1-4 NSIC) with tip-off set for 5:30 p.m. inside the Sanford Pentagon.
•As of Dec. 10, SMSU, which has played three teams ranked among the top 12 nationally, has the second toughest schedule in Division II with its nine opponents combining for a winning pct. of .724.
•Following the two league games this week, SMSU will close its pre-holiday schedule with two non-conference games in Wisconsin Dells, Wis., next Monday and Tuesday. Eleven of SMSU's first 14 games will be neutral site or road contests.
•A preview for both USF and AU can be found on page 4.

    BROADCAST INFO
•Games will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with Ryan Rohlik providing play-by-play.
•Live stats, radio and video broadcasts of all games can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.
 
    SERIES HISTORY VERSUS SIOUX FALLS
•SMSU and USF meet for the 42nd time with SMSU leading 25-16 in a series that started in 1968-69.
•SMSU has won 10 of the 17 games since the 2015-16 season, including winning twice last season.
•SMSU leads the series 17-4 in games played in Marshall, but USF has won four of the last seven in Marshall since 2017.
•SMSU head coach Brad Bigler is 13-10 all-time versus USF.
•Game-by-game results of the series is located on page 17.

    SERIES HISTORY VERSUS AUGUSTANA
•SMSU and Augustana meet for the 46th time with AU leading 30-15 with the first meeting in 1972-73.
•AU has won the past 10 games with SMSU's last victory coming on Feb. 24, 2018, in Sioux Falls, S.D.
•SMSU is 5-16 in road games in the series with its last road win coming on Feb. 20, 2018.
•SMSU head coach Brad Bigler is 8-20 all-time versus Augustana.
•Game-by-game results of the series is located on page 18.

    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 226-181, including 152-142 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.

    MUSTANG TIP-OFF TIDBITS   
•SMSU shot 71 percent (15 of 21) from the field in the second half versus Minnesota Duluth on Saturday. It was the first time SMSU shot 70 percent or higher in a half since Feb. 12, 2022, at Winona State (17 of 21).
•Junior Dunwa Omot returned to action last weekend playing in both games after missing three games and nearly all of a fourth game the previous two weeks. He is averaging 7.8 ppg with seven 3-pointers on the season after starting all 28 games and averaging a team-high 16.6 ppg with a team-high 52 3-pointers last season.
•In the last Division II national statistics of Dec. 10, SMSU ranks 36th in turnovers per game (10.7), 49th in effective field goal pct. (55.5), 50th in free throw pct. (75.8) and 70th in 3-point field goal pct. (37.2). SMSU in the latest NCAA stats can be found on page 15.
•After making nine or more 3-pointers in five of its first seven games, SMSU combined to make just four 3-pointers last weekend's split, while CSP and UMD combined to make 28 3-pointers.  
•Freshman Aeron Stevens scored a career-high 21 points in the loss to Concordia-St. Paul on Friday.
•Senior Jake Phipps ranks second in team history with 127 blocked shots in 104 career games. Current SMSU associate head coach Nick Smith (2010-14) holds the school record with 174. This past weekend versus CSP and UMD, Phipps moved past Smith in the SMSU career record book in both scoring and field goals made.
•Senior Cliff Cofield scored a career-high 31 points with a career-high 10 field goals and a career-high five 3-pointers in a win over Truman State on Nov. 26. It's the most points scored by a Mustang player since Kenny Byers scored 33 at Minnesota Crookston on Jan. 31, 2020.
•SMSU has two victories over top 15 teams this season, including defeating No. 1 ranked Northwest Missouri State on Nov. 11. It was the program's first-ever over a No. 1 ranked team. SMSU also defeated No. 12 Minnesota Duluth on Dec. 9.
•SMSU scored a season-high 89 points and shot a season high 61.5 percent (32 of 52) from the field in a Dec. 2 loss at Minnesota State.

    SMSU SPLITS FIRST TWO HOME GAMES    
•SMSU played its first two regular season home games of the season last weekend, losing to Concordia-St. Paul, 88-68, before rebounding with an 85-72 victory over No. 12 Minnesota Duluth.
•In the loss to CSP, the Golden Bears connected on 17 3-pointers, while SMSU was limited to one 3-pointer.
•Aeron Stevens led the Mustangs with a career-high 21 points on 7 of 11 shooting versus CSP, while Jake Phipps (16), Cliff Cofield (12) and Dunwa Omot (10) also scored in double figures for the Mustangs.
•In the win over UMD, Jake Phipps had a big game, recording a double-double with 22 points, making 10 of 13 shots, while grabbing 11 rebounds.
•Aeron Stevens chipped in with 17 points,  a career-high six rebounds, while shooting 9 of 10 from the free throw line.
•Cliff Cofield collected a team-high five assists in addition to his 14 points and three rebounds.

    MUSTANGS BY THE NUMBERS
•For the season, SMSU has three players averaging double figures in scoring with senior Jake Phipps scoring a team-high 15.9 ppg and is also the leader in rebounding at 7.4 rpg. He ranks 50th in Division II in field goal pct. (58.4) and is 89th in total rebounds.
•Senior Cliff Cofield averaging 14.3 ppg with a team-high 36 assists and team-high 14 steals. He ranks 78th in the country in total assists.
•Freshman Aeron Stevens ranks third on the team with 12 ppg and has made a team-high 41 free throws, which ranks 65th in Division II.
•Senior Kyle Luedtke is averaging 9.6 ppg and has made a team-high 21 3-pointers.
•Junior Dunwa Omot is scoring 7.8 ppg while connecting on seven 3-pointers.
•SMSU is shooting 49 percent from the field, 37 percent from 3-point range, 76 percent from the free throw line and is plus-2.1 in rebound margin. The Mustangs are averaging 75 points per game, while opponents are averaging 74 ppg.

    COFIELD IN THE SMSU RECORD BOOK
•Senior Cliff Cofield ranks among the top five in two statistical categories in team history. He ranks fifth in program history in steals (141) and is fifth in assists (314).

    PHIPPS MOVING UP IN THE RECORD BOOKS
•Senior Jake Phipps currently ranks 15th in team history with 1,200 points in 104 games.
•He is also second all-time in blocked shots (126), fifth in field goal pct. (56.4, 491 of 871), 10th in rebounds (597) and 12th in field goals made (491).

    MUSTANG CAREER 20-POINT GAMES  
•Four current SMSU players, senior Cliff Cofield, senior Jake Phipps, junior Dunwa Omot and freshman Aeron Stevens have scored 20 or more points in a game during their careers.
•Cofield recorded his first career 20-point game earlier this season versus No. 1 NW Missouri State and then scored a career-high 31 versus Truman State. Omot has reached the 20-point mark nine times in his career, including one 30-point game, Phipps has reached 20 points twice this season and 13 times in his career, while Stevens had reach the mark once.
20 or More Point Games in Career
    31    Cliff Cofield    Truman State, 11/26/23
    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    Minnesota Duluth, 12/9/23
    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    Aeron Stevens    Concordia-St. Paul, 12/8/23
    21    Dunwa Omot    Northland, 12/19/22
    21    Jake Phipps    Davenport, 11/20/21
    20    Jake Phipps    Upper Iowa, 11/25/23
    20    Cliff Cofield    NW Missouri State, 11/11/23
    20    Jake Phipps    Minot State, 2/21/23
    20    Jake Phipps    Minnesota Duluth, 1/21/21
    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

    2022-23 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.
•Phipps led SMSU in rebounding (7.0), field goal pct. (55.1) and blocked shots (38), while ranking  second in scoring (13.3) and fourth in 3-point field goals made (25).

    JAKOB BRAATEN NOTES
•Has started all nine games and is averaging 6.6 ppg and 4.1 rpg.
•Has grabbed season-high seven rebounds in three games.
•Career-high 16 points with three 3-pointers vs. Upper Iowa (11/25/23).
•Played in 25 games with 17 starts last season and averaged 5.9 ppg and 3.6 rpg.  
•Pulled down career-high eight rebounds vs. Mt. Marty (11/26/22).
•Sat out the 2021-22 season as a redshirt.

    MASON LUND NOTES
•Has started all nine games and is scoring 6.0 ppg and averaging 3.8 rpg.
•Scored 14 points in the season opener vs. Southeastern Oklahoma State with two 3-pointers.
•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 career-high 16 points on 6 of 11 shooting with two 3-pointers vs. Mt. Marty (11/26/22).

    CLIFF COFIELD NOTES
•Changed last name from McCray to Cofield this past summer.
•Has started all nine games and is averaging 14.3 ppg with a team-high 36 assists.
•Scored career-high 31 points on 10 of 14 shooting with five 3-pointers vs. Truman State (11/26/23) with three assists and five rebounds.
•Scored 20 points in win over No. 1 NW Missouri State earlier this season.
•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).
•Started all 27 games, while averaging 9.5 ppg and dishing out a team-high 92 assists in 2021-22.
•Played and started nine games in 2021, while averaging 7.7 ppg and a team-high 6.0 rpg.
•Led the team in 2021 with 41 assists.

    KYLE LUEDTKE NOTES
•Transfer from Division I Omaha, where he played in 81 games over four seasons and scored 287 points.
•Has played in all nine games with five starts and is averaging 9.6 ppg with a team-leading 21 3-pointers.
•Poured in 16 points with four 3-pointers at Minnesota State (12/2/23).
•Scored season-high 19 points with five 3-pointers at Winona State (12/1/23).

    LANCE MOSLEY NOTES
•Has not appeared in a game this season.
•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
•Has played in six games with four starts and is averaging 7.8 ppg with seven 3-pointers. Has missed three games and most of another with an injury.
•Scored season-high 15 points vs. NW Missouri State.
•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 last season.
•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.
•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
•Has started all nine games and leads the team in both rebounding (7.4) and scoring (15.9).
•Season-high 10 field goals with 22 points and 11 rebounds vs. Minnesota Duluth (12/9/23).
•Scored season-high 20 points vs. Upper Iowa (11/25/23).
•Recorded a double-double at Wayne State (11/21/23).  
•Named All-NSIC second team in 2022-23.
•Started all 28 games and averaged 13.3 ppg and a team-high 7.0 rpg 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.
•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.

    CALEB SCHLAAK NOTES
•Transfer from Truman State (Mo.) where he played five games in 2022-23.
•Has played in one game this season.

    MEKHI SHAW NOTES
•Has played in all nine games and is averaging 5.2 ppg with 19 assists.
•Scored season-high 10 points on 4 of 8 shooting vs. Upper Iowa, 10 points at Winona State (12/1/23) and scored 10 vs. Minnesota Duluth (12/9/23).
•Made 5 of 6 field goals with four rebounds vs. UMD.
•Redshirted during the 2022-23 season.

    AERON STEVENS NOTES
•Has played in all nine games and is averaging 12 ppg and 4.7 rpg.
•Scored career-high 21 points with seven field goals vs. Concordia-St. Paul (12/8/23).
•Scored 18 points at Minnesota State (12/2/23).  
•Only true freshman expected to play this season for SMSU.

    MATT THOMPSON NOTES
•Has played in four games and connected on 3-pointers vs. Upper Iowa (11/25/23) and Truman State (11/26/23).  
•Redshirted during the 2022-23 season.

    HOME AND AWAY IN 2023-24
•SMSU is 1-1 at home this season and has a home record of 120-65 since head coach Brad Bigler took over in 2009-10.
•SMSU, which is 4-3 in road/neutral site games in 2023-24, is 106-116 in 222 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 2023-24:
        W-L    FG%    3-FG%    FT%    REB    PTS    TO    
Home    1-1    50.0    14.8    81.4    33.0    76.5    5.5
Away    4-3    48.1    40.9    73.6    34.3    75.1    12.1    

    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 252-112 (.692) in 364 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    1-1    1-1    0-0
    Totals    252-112    168-84    84-28

    CONSECUTIVE 3-POINT GAMES
•SMSU has made at least one 3-point field goal in 725 straight games.
•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.

    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 led the NSIC last season (league games only) in scoring defense (64.5), opponent field goal pct. (39.8) and 3-point field goal pct. defense (30.6).

    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 2022-23 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.  

    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.

    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 401-443 in 844 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 1,551 games compiling an all-time record of 718-833.
•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 SIOUX FALLS
•The Cougars are 4-6 overall, 2-3 NSIC, and snapped a three-game losing skid on Saturday with a home win over Concordia-St. Paul
•Senior guard Jack Thompson averages 13.5 ppg with 13 3-pointers and has dished out a team-high 42 assists.
•Junior guard Shawn Warrior is scoring 12.8 ppg and averaging 4.9 rpg.
•USF is shooting 43 percent from the field, 37 percent from 3-point range, 71 percent from the free throw line and is plus-1.8 in rebound margin.
•USF is averaging 73 points per game, while opponents are averaging 72 points per game.
•Head coach Chris Johnson is in his 16th season at USF with a record of 266-190. He was also head coach at Culver-Stockton for one season (2004-05) and has 282 career victories.  

    SCOUTING AUGUSTANA
•The Vikings are 5-5 overall, 1-4 NSIC, and will play at Wayne State on Wednesday.  
•Senior guard Isaac Fink is scoring a team-high 18.5 ppg and leads the team with 6.0 rpg. He scored a career-high 42 points at Concordia-St. Paul on Dec. 2.
•Senior guard Jadan Graves is averaging 14.6 ppg and has made a team-high 28 3-pointers.
•AU is shooting 45 percent from the field, 34 percent from 3-point range, 74 percent from the free throw line and is plus-1.9 in rebound margin.
•AU is averaging 77 points per game, while opponents are averaging 76 points per game.
•Head coach Tom Billeter is in his 21st season with a record of 379-218. He led the Vikings to the 2016 NCAA Championship. Billeter has a career record of 476-268 in 25 seasons overall having spent four seasons as head coach at North Dakota State.