Looking Ahead: The Minnesota State Mavericks will host the Mustangs of Southwest Minnesota State Saturday at 2 p.m. in Taylor Center. The Mavericks enjoy a one-game week ahead.

What’s in a Win: A win Saturday would mark the 569th win in program history...A victory would also mark the 77th win at Taylor Center in program history....A win against the Mustangs will be the sixth consecutive win against Southwest Minnesota State.

Promotional Information: Saturday’s game is sponsored by HickoryTech.  The first 2,000 fans will receive a Maverick Stadium Cup which are furnished by HickoryTech.  Additionally, there will be a three-point promotional flyer on the back of every chair in the arena.  At halftime, there will be the: Charter Oversized bean bag toss, Planet Beach free throw shoot-out and Topper Pizza Court bowling.

MSU-SMSU: Saturday’s game against Southwest Minnesota State will be the 32 match-up between the two teams. MSU has an overall winning record against the Mustangs, 18-14. The last time the Mavericks lost to the Mustangs was in 2005 when the Mavericks were defeated, 74-61. Since then, MSU has won five consecutive match-ups against SMSU. During the 2008-09 season the Mavericks defeated the Mustangs on the road, 74-63 (Dec. 6), and then at Taylor Center, 91-64 (Feb. 21).

Mustang Musings:  The Mustangs ended their 2008-09 campaign with an overall record of 14-16 and 6-14 in the NSIC. The Mustangs return three starters from last season. The lone senior returning, guard Megan Sadler averaged 4.6 apg and 6.4 ppg last season.  Joining her is junior guard Tori Fink who averaged 8.4 ppg in 2008-09.
    In the 2009 NSIC Women’s Basketball Pre-Season Coaches Poll, Southwest Minnesota State was ranked 11th with 66 points, 110 points less than the Mavericks. The Mustangs have started their 2009-10 season 3-1, averaging 63 ppg. Junior guard Tori Fink is averaging 16.5 ppg and 4.8 rpg. Sophomore center Abby Kenealy is averaging 11.8 ppg and 8 rpg. Southwest Minnesota State is coached by Mike Jewett (fourth season), he is assisted by; Jina Johansen, Andie Mason and Aimee Burmester.

Who We Are: According to official University guidelines, there are only three acceptable usages of the school name. The first official acceptable name is “Minnesota State University, Mankato” and is to only be used on the first reference of the school. Following that, the only other acceptable usages of the school name are “Minnesota State,” or “MSU” and no others.

Live Stats: All Minnesota State home women’s basketball games will be stream over the Internet on livestats. Simply direct your browser to: www.msumavericks.com and click on the multimedia tab, then women’s basketball.

Web Streaming: Through the cooperative efforts of the Minnesota State Athletic Department and the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, the MSU women’s basketball games will be streamed over the web courtesy of Penn Atlantic Video. Simply log on to www.msumavericks.com and click the Maverick multimedia link.

All-Time: The 2009-10 season marks the 45th year of women’s basketball as a varsity sport at Minnesota State. MSU currently holds a 568-509 (.527) and has made three NCAA Tournament Appearances in 1986, 2008 and 2009.

For a complete version of these notes click HERE