Men’s Basketball to face NSIC South foes Saturday, Sunday

The Bemidji State University men’s basketball program travels for the first time in conference play to face Wayne State College Dec. 15 and Augustana University Dec. 16. The Beavers open the weekend at 4:30 p.m. Saturday in Wayne, Neb., followed by a 2:30 tip-off Sunday in Sioux Falls, S.D.

The Series vs. Wayne State

Wayne State leads the all-time series against Bemidji State, 27-23. BSU has won four straight and nine of the last 11 games versus Wayne State. The Beavers won the most recent meeting, 91-70, Feb. 2, 2018 in Bemidji, Minn.

Junior forward Logan Bader scored 13 points in last season’s contest against the Wildcats while also totaling eight rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block. Sophomore forward Derek Thompson also reached double-digit scoring with 10 points while adding six rebounds.

The series began Dec. 30, 1973, a 71-58 win by Bemidji State at the Wayne State Invitational.

The Series vs. Augustana

Augustana leads the all-time series against Bemidji State, 15-6. The Vikings have won seven straight games against the Beavers while BSU took its last win in the series, 97-79, Jan. 10, 2014. The victory was on the back-end of back-to-back wins over AU. Augie won two games versus Bemidiji State last season, first a 92-66 decision Feb. 3, 2018 during the regular season followed by an 88-72 victory Feb. 21, 2018 to open the 2017-18 NSIC Tournament.

Bader averaged 10.5 points per game against the Vikings last season, shooting 38.1 percent from the field with 5.0 rebounds per game. Thompson scored 9.5 points per game on 43.8 percent shooting from the field with 5.5 rebounds per contest.

The series began Feb. 10, 1968, a 95-86 win by Bemidji State.