Mankato, Minn. --- The Minnesota State women's basketball team is back home this weekend, after a four-game stint on the road the past two weekends. The Mavericks will host Southwest Minnesota State on Friday at 6 p.m. before they take on Sioux Falls on Saturday at 4 p.m.
 
Last Week: The Mavericks split a pair of road games against Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston last weekend.

In Friday's game against Bemidji State, the Mavericks beat the Beavers by the score of 80-63, before they fell to Minnesota Crookston on Saturday in overtime 80-75.
 
Scouting the Mustangs: Southwest Minnesota State enters the contest with a 2-14 overall record and a 2-10 NSIC record. The Mustangs are coached by Allison Kruger who is in her fifth season at the helm. Friday's matchup will mark the 42nd all-time meeting between the two schools in program history. The Mavericks own a 27-14 win-loss record against the Beavers and have won the last 14 meetings in the series.

As a team, SMSU averages 59.4 points a game, whereas its opponents are averaging 75.4 points a clip. The Mustangs are shooting 38% from the field, including 25% from behind the arc. SMSU averages 33.2 rebounds a game and dishes out 11.3 assists a game. The Mustangs rebounding margin is -5.6 and their assist/turnover ratio is 0.7. 

The Mustangs are led by junior guard Annessa Rosch who logs a team-high 33.9 minutes a game. Rosch leads the team in scoring, steals and assists, as she averages 12.8 points, 4.3 points and 1.6 steals a game. 

Some other key players for SMSU are a pair forwards in Lauren Hedlund and Ellen Degler. Hedlund is second on the team in scoring and first in rebounding, as she averages 11.1 points and 5.38 rebounds a game. Hedlund also leads the team in field goal percentage, shooting 47% from the field, while Degler averages nine points and 5.3 boards a game.

Scouting the Cougars: Coming into the week, Sioux Falls owns a 13-3 overall record, including a 9-3 record in NSIC play. The Cougars are coached by Travis Traphagen, who is in  his sixth season at the helm. Saturday's matchup between the Cougars and Mavericks will mark the 5th all-time meeting between the two schools, as the Mavericks own a 3-1 all-time record against the Golden Eagles. MSU has been victorious in the last three meetings between the two teams.

As a team, USF averages 72.8 points a game, while its opponents are averaging 61.7 points on them. The Cougars rank third in the NSIC in scoring offense and fourth in scoring defense. USF shoots 36% from behind the arc which places them third in the conference, and on average make 8.3 three-point field goals  a game, which ranks them second in the NSIC. The Cougars also rank second in the NSIC in rebounding margin, with +11.2 and third in the conference in block shots a game with 4.5.

USF has four players averaging double-figure in points per game. Leading the way is junior guard Taylor Varsho, as  she leads the Cougars in scoring, assists and steals. Varsho averages 12.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.6 steals a game. She currently ranks third in the NSIC in assists per game and qualifies for fourth in the conference in three-point field goal percentage with .358 (16-34).

Senior guard Jaicee Ulmer is second on team in scoring with 11.6 points a game is first on the team three-point percentage with an impressive 48% from deep. Ulmer currently ranks first in the NSIC in three-point percentage.

Rounding out the quartet are sophomore forward Sam Knecht and junior forward Teagan Molden. Knecht leads the Cougars in rebounding, as she averages 7.1 boards a game, which places her top-ten in the NSIC. Knecht also averages 11.2 points and 1.9 blocks a game, which ranks her fifth in the NSIC for blocked shots. Finally, Molden averages 10.1 points and 5.8 rebounds a game, and has racked up 29 assists, 19 blocks and 14 steals on the year. 

Pair of Doubles-Doubles: Senior guards Aubrey Davis and Ashley Olson each notched their first career double-doubles in last Saturday's losing effort to Minnesota Crookston. Davis matched a previous career-high of 23 points, to go along with her 10 rebounds, while Olson posted 15 points, which all came from three-point range, and also recorded 10 rebounds  of her own against Minnesota Crookston.

Potent Offense: After posting 70 or more points in five of its last six games, MSU currently ranks fourth in the NSIC in scoring offense.

Team Rebounding: MSU sits in third in the NSIC in total rebounds, as the Mavericks are averaging 41.8 boards a game. MSU has outrebounded its opponents in 10 of its 16 games on the year and ranks fourth in the conference in rebounding margin with +3.3.

Dropping Dimes: The Mavericks currently rank fourth in the NSIC in assists per game, with 15.38 a game.

Board Game: After posting 19 more rebounds this past weekend, senior forward Lexie Ulfers currently ranks fifth in the NSIC in rebounds per game with 7.8 a game. Ulfers has now notched nine or more rebounds in nine games this year.

Efficient Shooting: Senior forward Lexie Ulfers, ranks third in the conference in field-goal percentage, shooting 53% (79-149).

From the Charity Stripe: Sophomore guard Sammie Delzotto is shooting 87% (42-48) from the free-throw line, which ranks her third in the NSIC.

Assisting the Way:  Senior guard Aubrey Davis finds herself currently second in the NSIC in assists per game with 4.1, after tallying nine more assists this past weekend.

Block Party: After notching six more blocks this past weekend, senior forward Lexie Ulfers currently sits in second in the NSIC in block shots per game with 2.1.

Pick Pocketer: Senior guard Ashley Olson finds herself in the top-ten in the NSIC in steals per game. Olson is seventh, tallying 1.8 a game.

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