MANKATO, Minn. – The Minnesota State women's basketball team (15-2, 11-0 NSIC) continues its four-game homestand with a pair of conference games against MSU Moorhead (6-10, 4-6 NSIC) and St. Cloud State (9-6, 6-4 NSIC). The Mavericks play the Dragons on Friday, January 17 at 7:30 p.m. and the contest against the Huskies is on Saturday, January 18 at 5:30 p.m.
 
About the Mavericks
Streaky: With two wins last weekend against Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston, the Mavericks extended their win streak to 11 games. Minnesota State is yet to lose in conference play this season. First, MSU defeated the Beavers 96-64. Five Mavericks ended in double figures in the win. The team hosted Minnesota Crookston the following day and beat the Golden Eagles 95-56. Junior guard Natalie Bremer scored 20 points for the 10^th time this season.
 
WBCA Rankings: The Mavericks moved back into the Top 10 in the WBCA DII Top 25 Coaches Poll, as the team slotted in at No. 10 after the team's two wins. Concordia-St. Paul is tied for the No. 21 spot after the Golden Bears won their only game last week against St. Cloud State. Southwest Minnesota State won two games against MSU Moorhead and Minot State last weekend and slotted in at No. 23 in the poll.
 
Team Stats: Minnesota State boasts the best scoring offense in Division II, as the team averaged 88.8 points per game while shooting the seventh-highest field goal percentage in the nation at 46.3%. MSU also ranks 19^th in the country in scoring margin, defeating teams by an average o 15.9 points per game. The Mavericks are frequenters of the charity stripe, with the team ranking second amongst all DII teams in both free throw attempts and free throws made per contest. Rebounds are an important part of winning basketball games, and Minnesota State grabs more boards than any other team in the NSIC. The team is 12^th in the nation in rebounds per game and, equally as important, 12^th in offensive rebounds, which results in more second chances for the Mavericks. Defensively, MSU is eighth in the country in steals per game, 11^th in turnovers forced per game and turnover margin.
 
Star Power: Minnesota State's veteran starting guards, Natalie Bremer and Destinee Bursch, are key to the Maverick attack. Bremer, a junior from Lake City, Minn., is the ninth-best scorer in Division II, averaging 20.6 points per game while shooting 49.4% from the field. The guard is also averaging six rebounds and 3.1 steals per game. Bremer's 49 steals this season ranks seventh amongst all DII players and is the highest total in the NSIC. She set a new career-high scoring 32 points against Augustana back in December. She has recorded three double-doubles this season. Bursch is having a great senior season to close out her Maverick career. She is averaging a personal best of 16.8 points per game on 55% field goal shooting. The Chaska, Minn. native is also averaging 3.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.5 steals per contest this season. Bursch has reached 20 points in five games this season and currently ranks fourth in all-time scoring in Minnesota State history with 1,635 career points scored. Currently, she is 19 points behind Rhonda House for third in all-time points in program history. Neither Bursch nor Bremer have ended a game with less than 10 points this season.
 
Like Candy From a Baby: Minnesota State's intense full-court pressure speeds up the game and forces lots of mistakes from opposing teams. The Mavericks average the eighth-most steals per game and the 11^th-most forced turnovers per game amongst Division II teams. The team has three players on-roster who rank in the top 10 in steals in the NSIC. Natalie Bremer leads the team with a 3.1 steal-per-game average and has 49 this season. Hannah Herzig is second on the team with 33, averaging three per game. Nine Minnesota State players are averaging at least one steal per game.
 
Closing In On a Record: Minnesota State head coach Emilee Thiesse is closing in on the program record for wins. In 13 seasons, Thiesse holds an all-time record of 243-118 and an NSIC record of 180-85. Minnesota State has won 76 percent of its games in the Taylor Center under Coach Thiesse. She has led the Mavericks to six 20-win seasons and five NCAA Tournament appearances. Last season, Thiesse was named NSIC Coach of the Year for the first time in her career. She is currently four wins away from passing Mary Willerscheidt in career wins and becoming the winningest coach in program history.
 
 
About the Dragons
MSU Moorhead has been a streaky team all season. After losing their first four games of the season against regional opponents, the Dragons won six straight games, including an overtime win over Northern State to kick off their conference schedule. Since the team defeated Bemidji State on December 14, MSUM has lost six straight in the toughest stretch of its schedule. Last week, the Dragons lost to Southwest Minnesota State and Sioux Falls.
 
The Dragons are averaging 60.4 points per game on 34.8% field goal shooting. The team grabs 39.4 rebounds per game, dishes out 11.2 assists per game and turns the ball over 15.3 times each game. MSU Moorhead averages 7.4 steals and 1.4 blocks per game.
 
After missing some time due to injury, senior guard Natalie Jens made her return for the Dragons last weekend. The Beaver Dam, Wis. native is averaging 12.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Terryn Johnson is the team's leading scorer and rebounder. Johnson is averaging 10.4 points and 8.3 rebounds per contest while shooting 50% from the field.
 
MSU Moorhead head coach Karla Nelson has been with the women's basketball program for 25 years. In that time, Nelson has accumulated a 412-257 record and led the Dragons to 21 consecutive winning seasons. Nelson has been named the NSIC Coach of the Year four times, most recently in 2018-19.
 
The Mavericks are 30-18 against the Dragons and have won the last four games against them. The last team these two teams faced off was in last year's NSIC Tournament, where Minnesota State defeated the Dragons 101-74 in the quarterfinal round of the tournament.
 
About the Huskies
St. Cloud State has won three of its first four games of 2025. The Huskies opened up the calendar year with two wins against Augustana and Wayne State before falling to Concordia-St. Paul last Wednesday. The team bounced back and won its matchup last Saturday against Minnesota Duluth, 79-66.
 
The team is averaging 67 points per game on 41.5% field goal shooting and 34.4% shooting from beyond the arc. SCSU is averaging 37.6 rebounds, 16.3 assists and 15.5 turnovers per game. The Huskies also grab 8.1 steals and block 3.6 shots per game.
 
The Huskies are led by guards Jada Eggebrecht and Alana Zarneke. Eggebrecht leads the team with a points-per-game average of 13.5 while shooting 40.4% from the field. Zarneke is averaging 11.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game this season.
 
Lori Fish is the 17^th-year head coach of the Huskies women's basketball team. She holds a 324-226 record in her 32 years as a collegiate coach, and a 262-173 record at SCSU. She has led the Huskies to five NCAA Tournament appearances and has earned both NSIC Coach of the Year and WBCA Central Region Coach of the Year honors.
 
Despite trailing in the all-time series record against the Huskies 45-65, the Mavericks have bested St. Cloud State in each of the last two matchups against the team. Minnesota State outscored the Huskies 29-4 in the third quarter of the last meeting between the two teams to help secure a 71-47 victory last January.