Aberdeen, S.D. – The Northern State women's basketball team is set for a New Year's Eve and New Year's Day match-up against Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State this weekend. The Wolves will visit the NSIC leading Bulldogs on Saturday with a 1 p.m. tip-off scheduled in Romano Gymnasium. The Wolves are then set to square off against the Huskies on Sunday in Halenbeck Hall with a 1 p.m. tip-off.

GAME & FAN INFORMATION

• Links to watch and listen to the games, follow live stats, and view the NSU game notes are attached above

NORTHERN STATE STORYLINES

• Northern State enters this weekend's games with a record of 7-4 (2-3) NSIC; the Wolves are currently 11^th in the league and 6^th in the north division
• The Wolves split a pair of games at home in their last action before the holiday break, falling to Minnesota Crookston (61-50) before bouncing back to defeat Bemidji State (62-48) to snap a 3-game losing streak
• Northern is led by a trio of players averaging double figures in scoring with Kailee Oliverson (11.9), Laurie Rogers (11.7), and Rianna Fillipi (10.1)
• Rogers also leads NSU in rebounds (7.8) and blocked shots per game (2.0), while Fillipi leads the team in assists (3.5) and steals per game (1.7)
• Rogers leads the NSIC in rebounds per game (9.8) and is tied for first in free throw percentage (95.2%), having made 20 of 21 shots from the charity stripe in league contests
• Northern State leads all of NCAA Division II with 10.2 turnovers per game, the lowest mark in the country; the Wolves have five games this season with ten or fewer turnovers
• Northern also ranks top-25 nationally in two other statistical categories, ranking 12^th with a 1.27 assist/turnover ratio and 22^nd with 4.2 blocks per game
• Rogers ranks in the top-35 nationally of three statistical categories, ranking 14^th with 22 blocked shots and 2.00 blocks per game, while also tying for 35^th with four double-doubles
• Fillipi ranks 37^th nationally with a 2.79 assist/turnover ratio, dishing out 39 assists compared to 14 turnovers this season

RV MINNESOTA DULUTH STORYLINES

• Minnesota Duluth enters this weekend's games with a record of 9-2 (6-0 NSIC); the Bulldogs currently hold sole possession of first place in both the overall league standings and the north division
• The Bulldogs extended their winning streak to five games after completing the regular season sweep of St. Cloud State in a 64-55 victory in Duluth
• In league play UMD leads the NSIC in blocked shots per game (5.67) and is tied for first in field goal percentage (46.5%)
• Brooke Olson leads the Bulldogs with 18.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game; Olson also leads the NSIC with 20.7 points per game in league contests
• Maesyn Thiesen leads UMD with 3.7 assists per game, while Taya Hakamaki leads the team with 2.2 steals per game
• Minnesota Duluth ranks 14^th nationally in NCAA Division II with 4.7 blocked shots per game; the Bulldogs have recorded four or more blocks in eight games and set a season-high mark of nine blocked shots in their last match-up against SCSU
• Mandy Pearson is in her eighth season as the head women's basketball coach at Minnesota Duluth, holding a record of 133-66 during her time with the Bulldogs; Pearson holds a career record of 235-173 in her 16^th season as a head coach in collegiate women's basketball

LAST MATCH-UP

• Minnesota Duluth swept the season series last year, winning 66-62 in Aberdeen and 66-46 later in the year in Duluth
• Duluth leads the all-time series 42-33; Northern is looking for their first win in the series since a 57-44 victory in Aberdeen on February 16, 2018

ST. CLOUD STATE STORYLINES

• St. Cloud State enters this weekend's games with a record of 7-3 (4-2 NSIC); the Huskies are currently tied for sixth in the league and are tied for second place in the north division
• The Huskies saw their 5-game winning streak come to an end before the holiday break as they dropped their second game of the season to Minnesota Duluth by a score of 64-55
• SCSU leads the NSIC with a 1.36 assist/turnover ratio in league games, dishing out 15.2 assists per game compared to 11.2 turnovers per game against conference opponents
• The duo of Jada Eggebreacht and Katrina Theis leads the Huskies in scoring, averaging 14.5 and 14.3 points per game respectively
• Thies leads St. Cloud State with 8.3 rebounds, 1.8 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game; Thies is tied with Tori Peschel with a team high 2.6 assists per game
• Thies leads the NSIC in offensive rebounds per game (4.2) and field goal percentage (58.8%) in league games
• St. Cloud State ranks in the top-25 nationally of NCAA Division II in two statistical categories, ranking 18^th in turnovers per game (12.9) and 25^th in assist/turnover ratio (1.17)
• Lori Fish is in her 15^th season as the head women's basketball coach at St. Cloud State, holding a record of 234-156 during her time with the Huskies; Fish holds a career record of 296-209 in her 19^th season as a head coach in collegiate women's basketball

LAST MATCH-UP

• St. Cloud State swept the regular season series with a 66-50 win in Aberdeen and a 67-45 win in St. Cloud, the Huskies later defeated the Wolves 61-50 in the quarterfinal round of the NSIC Tournament in Sioux Falls
• St. Cloud State leads the all-time series 15-14; Northern last defeated St. Cloud State in a 64-56 win in Aberdeen on January 23, 2021