What's Up:  The 15th-ranked Minnesota State men's basketball team, 13-2, 9-2 NSIC opens a four-game homestand this weekend as it entertains Bemidji State (Friday, 8 p.m.) and Minnesota Duluth (Saturday, 6 p.m.).

Take A Kid to the Game:   Area youth ages 18-and-under are invited to attend Saturday's game against Minnesota Duluth and receive free admittance to the doubleheader with a paid adult ticket.  Youth in attendance also have the opportunity to participate in various in-game promotions and win great prizes.  Stomper will be on hand for photo opportunities with the youth in attendance. The first 500 fans attending the doubleheader receive a free shirt courtesy of Subway Restaurants.

Scouting The Beavers: Bemidji State enters the weekend owners of a 7-8 record and are 4-7 in the NSIC, which is good for a tie for tenth place.  Last weekend the Beavers dropped a 92-88 decision at St. Cloud State and a 79-73 loss at Concordia.
   
Junior forward James Ellisor leads the squad in scoring and rebounding as he averages 16.9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.  Senior forward Pat Cassidy averages 11.4 points per game while junior guard Bryce Tesdahl averages 11.2.  Sophomores Mason Walters (10.9) and Lance Rongstad (10.8) round out the Beavers averaging double-digits.
   
As a squad, BSU is averaging 77.6 points per game while allowing 74.7.  Bemidji State is shooting .485 percent from the floor and .783 percent from the line this year and own a +1.2 rebounding margin on its opponents.  The Beavers are coached by Matt Bowen who is in his fifth season with the program and the owner of a 38-84 career record.

Inside the Series: Minnesota State leads the all-time series, 62-31...Under head coach Matt Margenthaler the Mavericks are 4-0 against the Beavers and 3-0 in the Taylor Center...Senior wing Jefferson Mason is the active leading scorer against the Beavers with 14.0 points per game...Senior guard Marcus Hill has played in three games against BSU and is averaging 9.7 points per game and a 3:1 assist-to-turnover ratio while shooting 77.8 percent (7-of-9) from downtown...BSU Assistant Director Athletic Media Relations, Dax Larson, was a graduate assistant in the MSU Athletic Communications office from 2007-2009.

Scouting The Bulldogs:  Minnesota Duluth enters the weekend owners of a 7-8 record and are 5-6 in the NSIC, which is tied for eighth-place.  Last weekend the Bulldogs dropped a pair of games, falling to Concordia, 77-64 and St. Cloud State, 94-74.
   
The Bulldogs are led by junior guard Ryan Rasmussen who is averaging 17.2 points per game,  Sophomore guard Jake Hottenstine is second in scoring at 14.2 points per contest and leads the team in rebounding at 5.1 boards per game.
   
UMD is averaging 71.5 points per game while allowing 74.7.  UMD is shooting .429 from the floor and .772 from the line this season and are being outbounded by -0.5 rebounds per game.
   
Gary Holiquist is in his 13th season at the helm in Duluth and owns a career record of 189-176.

Inside the Series:  Minnesota State leads the all-time series, 35-29...Head coach Matt Margenthaler is 8-3 all-time against UMD, including a 7-0 in the Taylor Center...Senior wing Jefferson Mason leads all active Mavericks in scoring and rebounding against UMD averaging 18 points and 13 rebounds...Seniors Joe Drapcho and Marcus Hill have each played in five career games against UMD.

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