The Bemidji State University men’s basketball team hosts No. 2 Augustana University and Wayne State College in its conference home opener this weekend in BSU Gymnasium. The Beavers (4-3, 1-2 NSIC) and Vikings (6-1, 3-0 NSIC) tipoff at 8 p.m. Friday while the Beavers and Wildcats (2-5, 1-2 NSIC) play at 6 p.m. Saturday.

The Bemidji State-Augustana series is tied, 8-8, with the Beavers taking two of the past five meetings. The Vikings won the most recent matchup, 97-79, Feb. 25, 2015 in the NSIC Tournament.
Wayne State leads the 47-game series against Bemidji State, 27-20, dating back to Dec. 30, 1973. The Beavers have won three of the last five meetings, including an 87-80 win Dec. 13, 2014 in Wayne, Neb.

Scouting Augustana

Augustana moved up to No. 2 in the NABC Division II Rankings with a 6-1 mark overall and 3-0 record in the NSIC after sweeping Minnesota State, 97-68, and Concordia-St. Paul, 104-66, Dec. 4-5 at home.

The Vikings cruised to a halftime lead of 46-27 in a win over the Mavericks, guided by Daniel Jansen with 28 points and Jordan Spencer with a career-high 22.

Augie scored 52 points in each half against the Golden Bears during its sixth straight victory, led by Alex Richter with 22 points, his third 20+ point outing this season. Spencer added a career-high 11 assists.

Augustana leads the NSIC netting 90.9 points per game while allowing 71.1. The Vikings are converting 48.5 percent (211-435) from the field, second in the NSIC, while allowing 41.9 percent (173-419), fifth in the conference.

Jansen ranks third in the NSIC with 19.0 points per game and eighth with 6.7 rebounds, after claiming his first double-double of the season against MSU.

Scouting Wayne State

Wayne State enters the weekend 2-5 overall and 1-2 in conference play after splitting a home series against Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota State. The Wildcats first topped the Golden Bears, 84-76, before falling to the Mavericks, 76-59.

After Concordia-St. Paul grabbed a lead with five minutes left to play, Wayne State went on a 6-0 run to come away with the win. Four Wildcats reached double-digit scoring totals, led by Matt Thomas with 27 points.

The Wildcats allowed 22 points off turnovers while scoring 10 in the loss to the Mavericks. Thomas again led the team in scoring with 12 points while Adam Moon recorded 10.

Wayne State scores 75.0 points per game, 11th in the NSIC, while allowing a conference-high 84.4. WSC is shooting 45.6 percent (188-412) from the field while allowing a conference-high 51.5 percent (201-390).

Thomas ranks sixth in the NSIC with 18.3 points per game, reaching 20+ points three times this season. He is converting 39.8 percent (41-103) from the field, which ranks 17th. Jordan Cornelius leads the team with 5.0 rebounds per game.