What Lies Ahead:  The Minnesota State men's basketball team, ranked #3 in the latest NABC Division II Coaches poll hits the road again this weekend as it travels to Wayne State and Augustana.  Friday's tilt against the Wildcats is slated to begin at 8 p.m., while Saturday's game against the Vikings is set for 7 p.m.

What's in a Win:  A win Friday would mark the 1,143rd win in program history...It would also mark the 183rd win for head coach Matt Margenthaler...A win Friday over the Wildcats would mark the fifth time MSU has defeated WSC under head coach Matt Margenthaler and the ninth win in program history against the Wildcats...A win Friday would be Minnesota State's 25th win as members of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference...Finally, a win Friday would mark the 17th consecutive win for Minnesota State, marking its longest winning streak in school history.

What's Up With The Wildcats:  Wayne State enters the weekend owning a 8-8 record, including a 5-4 mark in the NSIC, which is in a three-way tie for fifth-place.  Last weekend, WSC split a pair of games, falling 67-63 at Winona State before earning a 57-53 win at Upper Iowa.  Over its last eight games, Wayne State has earned six victories.
   
For the season, WSC is averaging 68.1 points per game, while allowing 64.90.  The Wildcats are shooting .496 from the floor and .362 from down town and own a +7.8 rebound margin over opponents.  Senior forward Brett Spiker leads the team in scoring at 13.3 points per game while junior forward Brad Starken is averaging 13.2 and freshman guard Amry Shelby is averaging 12.2.  Spiker also leads the team in rebounding averaging 9.7 per game.  The Wildcats are coached by Paul Combs who is in his first year with the program.

MSU-WSC Noteables:  Minnesota State head coach Matt Margenthaler is 4-0 all-time against Wayne State...MSU is 8-2 all-time against Wayne State...The last time MSU played at Wayne State came on Dec. 4, 1999, when it suffered an 87-72 loss to the Wildcats...This is just the second time the two schools have faced each other as league rivals...In MSU's 87-71 victory over Wayne State last year, senior center Travis Nelson scored 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting and hauled in eight rebounds, five of which were offensive.

All About Augustana:  The Vikings enter the weekend with a 14-2 record and are 7-2 in the league, which is tied with St. Cloud State for second.  Over the last 10 games, the Vikings have recorded nine wins.
   
As a team, Augustana is scoring 80.3 points per game while giving up 67.2.  The Vikings are shooting 46.1 percent from the floor, 39.7 from downtown and 70.7 from the line while owning a +1.8 margin on the boards.
   
Sophomore guard Cody Schilling – who eclipsed the 1,000 point barrier in the Vikings win over Winona State last weekend – leads the team in scoring at 15.7 points per game.  Senior guard David Foster is second in scoring at 12.6, while freshman guard Cameron McCaffrey comes off the bench to score 11.3 points.  Sophomore post Derrick De Zeeuw is the squads leading rebounder at 5.1 per game.

MSU-AC Noteables:  Minnesota State is 53-43 all-time against Augustana while head coach Matt Margenthaler is 13-4 all-time against the Vikings...MSU looks to avenge a 113-101 loss at Augustana it suffered last season, the only time MSU has scored a 100 points and lost in school history...Under Margenthaler, MSU is 5-3 against Augustana in Sioux Falls...Last season, Sioux Falls native Jesse Clark scored a career-high 26 points in the Maverick's loss to the Vikings and is averaging 9.1 points per game and 3.5 assists per game in eight career games against the Vikings...Senior center Travis Nelson averaged 11 points against Augustana last year and holds the highest scoring average against the Vikings among active Mavericks.

What Lies Ahead:  Minnesota State returns home for a four-game homestand next week as it hosts Bemidji State and Minnesota Duluth.  Both games are set for 8 p.m.

A .pdf of the release can be found HERE