Mankato, Minn. --- The Minnesota State women's basketball team will open its 2016 portion of its schedule with a pair road games against St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth. The Mavericks first take on St. Cloud State on Saturday at 2:00 p.m., before taking on Minnesota Duluth on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
 

Last Time Out: MSU last played on December 19 and was able to take down Concordia-St. Paul in a high scoring affair, 92-87. In the game the Mavericks nailed 10 three-pointers and were able to outrebound the Golden Bears, 57-35. MSU was also able to connect on 20-of-28 of its free throw attempts, while CU shot 6-of-9 from the charity stripe.
 

Sophomore Claire Ziegler [Mankato, Minn.] was the star of the game for the Mavericks as she set new career highs with 29 points and 13 rebounds in the win. Ziegler shot an efficient 12-of-14 (86%) from the field in the game, which helped her earn not only NSIC South Division Player of the Week honors but also was named U.S. Basketball Writers Association Women's Division II National Player of the Week.
 

Junior point guard Britney Scherber [Bloomington, Minn.] also has a notable game as she finished one point shy of her career-high with 26 points as she connected on 4-of-6 of her three point attempts and finished 10-of-12 from the free throw line. Sophomore guard Madison Lee [Coon Rapids, Minn.] tied her career-high of 16 points and set a new career-high six rebounds, while senior McKenzie Hoelmenn [Lakeville, Minn.] recorded her third double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
 

Concerning St. Cloud State: The Huskies enter Saturday with a 5-4 overall record and a 5-1 record in NSIC play, with their lone conference loss coming against Northern State. SCSU is coached by former Minnesota State head coach Lori Fish who is in her eighth season at the helm.
 

Saturday's matchup will mark as the 93rd all-time meeting between the Mavericks and Huskies. Last season, MSU defeated SCSU at Taylor Center, 91-78.
 

The Huskies this season are averaging 62.8 points per game and their opponents are scoring 62.3 points a game. SCSU is shooting 38% from the field and the 32% from the beyond the arc. The Huskies also grab 43 rebounds a contest which is fourth best in the NSIC and own a +7.2 rebounding margin. SCSU dishes out 14.6 assists per game and currently own a -1 turnover margin. Lastly, the Huskies are averaging 5.67 blocks per game which ranks second in the NSIC.
 

Senior Lexy Peterman leads the Huskies in scoring with 13.9 points per game and has made a team-leading 19 three-pointers so far this season. Peterman is shooting 43% from beyond the arc and leads the team with a 47% field-goal percentage which is sixth best in the NSIC. Junior Chelsea Nooker is second on the team with 12.3 points per game and is also averaging 7.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists per contest. Senior Karissa LeCaptain is the lone other SCSU player averaging double-figures with 11.7 points per game this season. She leads the team in rebounding with 8.0 boards a game, which ranks sixth in the NSIC.
 

Concerning Minnesota Duluth: The Bulldogs enter the week with a 2-7 overall record and a 2-4 record in NSIC play, as they have lost their last three contests to Northern State, MSU Moorhead and St. Cloud State. UMD is coach by first-year head coach Mandy Pearson.
 

Sunday's matchup will mark as the 56th all-time meeting between the Mavericks and Bulldogs, as MSU has won the last four meetings in the series, including a 76-57 win last season at Taylor Center.
 

The Bulldogs are averaging a conference low 56.8 points per game, while their opponents are averaging 65 points a game. UMD is shooting 35% from the field and are holding its opponents to 37% from the field which is fourth best in the NSIC. The Bulldogs pull down 39.1 rebounds per game and own a -5.3 rebounding margin. UMD also dishes out 10.3 assists per contest and turn the ball over 15 times each game. Finally, the Bulldogs hold a -2.4 turnover margin and tally 4.9 blocks per game.
 

Junior Allyson Harris leads the Bulldogs in scoring so far this season with 13 points per game. Harris is also averaging 5.3 rebounds per game is shooting 44% from the field. Junior Kenzie Kane is also averaging double-figures with 10.1 points per contest and ranks third in the NSIC in free throw percentage with 90% (27-30). Freshman Sammy Kozlowski is averaging 9.0 points and a team-leading 6.2 boards a contest. Kozlowski has also tallied a team-leading 12 made three-pointers and is averaging a team-best 35.8 minutes per contest, which places her second in the NSIC.