Feb. 18, 2003


UPCOMING GAMES
Friday, Feb. 21 Northern State* 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 22 Minnesota-Morris* 7:30 p.m.
*NSIC contest played at BSU Gymnasium

THE SKINNY
Bemidji State (12-11, 8-6 NSIC) still maintains a slim hope of hosting a first-round NSIC playoff game as it has a hold of sixth-place. It leads MSU-Moorhead by one game and has the tie-breaker after sweeping both contests this season. Overall, the third through seven seeds are up for grabs with the Beavers fighting Wayne State (NE), which has a one-half game lead, and Minnesota-Duluth and Winona State holding down the third spot, one game ahead of the green and white.

Northern State (16-7, 13-2 NSIC), winners of seven straight with its last loss coming at the hands of BSU in mid-January, stands first and is looking to repeat as NSIC regular season champions. It holds a two-game cushion over Southwest State in the standings and needs just one win to secure a share of the crown. Meanwhile, Minnesota-Morris (2-22, 0-15 NSIC) are the league’s cellar dwellers, three and one half games behind UM-Crookston and Concordia-St. Paul for eighth-place.

LOOKING BACK
**Bemidji State 90, Minnesota-Duluth 67 - Saturday, Feb. 15 - Bemidji, Minn.
Behind the season-high 27 points and 11 boards by junior forward Charles Hanks, (Chicago, Ill.) Bemidji State maintained its slim hope of hosting a playoff game by defeating Minnesota-Duluth (13-10, 9-5) handily, 90-67 at the BSU Gymnasium. The Beavers never trailed in a game that featured them connecting on 11 three-pointers as they entered the contest tops in the nation in long-range bombs per game (10.8). The long-range display put BSU into the school record books as well. It broke last seasons mark of 245 three-pointers and 694 attempts - it stands at 248 threes and 700 attempts. The Beavers went for their highest field goal percentage since they hit 60 percent of their shots in the 91-84 loss to St. Cloud State, Dec. 5, 2002. UM-Duluth shot only 44 percent (27 of 61) and an icy 27 percent (seven of 26) from long-range. Bemidji State held a 19-6 advantage from the charity stripe and went 11 of 24 (.458) from three-point land. Behind Hanks season-high for points and ninth career double-double was senior guard Jeff Lorenson (Cannon Falls, Minn.) with 16 and senior guards Royce Bryan (Haviland, Kan.) and Stan Johnson (Salt Lake City, Utah) with 12 apiece. The other BSU starter in junior guard Adam Daley (Des Moines, Iowa) chipped in nine points. Johnson tied a career-high with eight assists as he led the Beavers to 22 for the game, the eighth game in 2002-03 with 20 or more assists.

PROBABLE STARTERS (based on previous game’s lineup)
Bemidji State (12-11, 8-6 NSIC) Northern State (16-7, 13-2 NSIC)
G #1 Stan Johnson 6-2 Sr. G #4 Jared Obering 5-10 So.
G #11 Royce Bryan 6-0 Sr. G #5 Steve Smiley 6-1 Jr.
G #10 Adam Daley 6-6 Jr. C #50 Aaron Busack 6-7 Fr.
F #21 Charles Hanks 6-7 Jr. F #41 Sundance Wicks 6-5 Sr.
F #00 Jeff Lorenson 6-2 Sr. F #24 Nick Schroeder 6-5 Sr.

Minnesota-Morris (2-22, 0-15 NSIC)
G #15 Adam Girtman 6-0 So.
G #21 Paul Proshek 6-0 Fr.
G #35 Kyle Thompson 6-1 So.
F #24 Jon Lang 6-4 Jr.
F #45 Davil Holler 6-5 So.

BEAVER NOTES
The Beavers improved to 11-2 this season when leading at the half and are 12-4 at home in regular season NSIC games under coach Guiot after Saturday’s win.....Adam Daley is just two three-point field goals shy of the school season record of 57 and five attempts away from the attempts mark of 129...Jeff Lorenson is a mere four three-point field goal attempts shy of the school record as he sits at 125...With 11 three’s on the night, BSU has hit for at least 10 in 14 games this season...Charles Hanks now averages 19.6 points per game in NSIC action - +2.5 above his season average - as he poured in a game-high 27 against the Bulldogs...With the 23-point win, BSU pads its scoring margin when playing at home as it enjoys a +14.7 point margin and nets 90.8 points at the BSU Gymnasium compared to 79.2 on the road...After going through a stretch of 14 games being whistled for more fouls than their opponents in 11 of those contests, the Beavers have had fewer fouls in six of the last nine games...The last five games has seen BSU hit for a better percentage (.759) from the foul stripe than its opponents (.676)...The Beavers have been out-scored from behind the arc in only five games this season...As a team, BSU is just 21 assists shy of the all-time school record set in 1993-94 as it currently stands with 426 and also the 159 three-pointers in NSIC play is four short of the league mark set by Southwest State last season.

BEMIDJI STATE HEAD COACH JEFF GUIOT
(2nd Season at BSU - 29-22 (.569); 9th Season Overall - 183-92 (.665))
One season is all head coach Jeff Guiot needed to put a successful product on the basketball court. In his inaugural year at BSU last season, Guiot guided the Beavers to their most conference wins in school history (13). In addition, the 17 overall wins is the most since the 1972-73 season (19) and the .607 winning percentage is the best mark since the 1973-74 season (.667) - a streak of 28 seasons. The campaign ended with BSU seeded third in the conference tournament and an appearance in the second round.

In his second season at Bemidji State, Guiot has compiled a .563 winning percentage. He is on pace to have the second best mark among his colleagues in his first two seasons since 1950. From 1958-60, Jack Vinje went 28-16 (.636) as the BSU head coach. Also, the Beavers are 12-4 at home in regular season conference games under Guiot.

The Chanute, Kan., product was previously the assistant coach at Southern Utah University in 2000-01. Prior to joining the Southern Utah coaching staff in the fall of 2000, Guiot had served as the head coach at Neosho County Community College in Chanute, KS. In his seven years at Neosho, his teams compiled a 164-60 record, won four conference championships and made seven consecutive playoff appearances.

His records at NCCC include highest winning percentage (73 percent), most consecutive 20-win seasons (five), most wins at the school, and most post-season wins. Twice named Jayhawk Conference Coach of the Year, Guiot coached three All-Americans and six Academic All-Americans at the school, which was the 2000 NJCAA National Academic Team of the Year.

Guiot received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Pittsburg (KS) State University, where he was an All-American and all-conference player as he led the nation in free throw percentage in 1986.

Helping Guiot on the bench is seventh-year assistant Doug Peters, first-year graduate assistant John Szwaja and first-year student assistant Fred Swanson.

INJURY UPDATE
Senior center Ben Caron (Bemidji, Minn.) will not be able to play for the remainder of the season. He tore his ACL in practice prior to the UM-Duluth (1/11/03) contest. Caron was the team’s leading field goal shooter and shot-blocker, second leading-rebounder and third-leading scorer prior to his injury.

THE BEMIDJI BOMBERS
Bemidji State has averaged 30.4 three-point field attempts per game this season and has already smashed the school record of 694 set last season with 700 current attempts - if it stays on pace, it will total 822. The Beavers went for a school and league-record 46 attempts in the 116-71 win over UM-Morris (1/17/03). With those 46 attempts, BSU has now gone four games this season with 40 or more three-pointers launched - BSU hit for 43 vs. UM-Duluth (1/11/03), 42 vs. South Dakota State (11/30/02) and 40 vs. UM-Crookston (1/3/03) this season. Northern State shot up 39 tri-fectas a year ago, which was the old conference record.

In conference games only, BSU has broken its league record of 433 attempts last season as it stands at 455. The Beavers are on pace to hit for 585 attempts in conference contests this year. With shooting as many as they do, the Beavers have made some impressions for connecting on the long-range bomb. Against UM-Morris (1/17/03), BSU hit on 19 three’s, which tied the league mark and set a new school record. Against UM-Crookston (2/7/03), the Beavers connected on 17 trifectas, second-most on the season. In the conference, Bemidji State is on pace to connect on 204 three’s against NSIC opponents, which would break Southwest State’s mark of 163 set last season. BSU currently sits at 159 trifectas.

Displaying their marksmanship from three-point range, the Beavers have gone 168 straight games with at least one three-point basket. The last time BSU went without a trifecta was against Wayne State (NE), Feb. 1, 1997. BSU has hit on four three-pointers or more in the last 54 contests, including five+ in all 23 games in 2002-03. Individually, junior guard Adam Daley has hit from long-range in the last 12 games.

RECORDS BROKEN THIS SEASON
There have been a total of 10 records broken by the Beavers, which include school and Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference marks. The following lists the new record in the left column with the old in the right column:
Individual (BSU):
Season Adam Daley - 3-Point FG’s, 55& Tony Brown, 57 (1989-90)
Adam Daley - 3-Point FG Atts., 124& Sean O’Hare, 129 (2001-02)
Jeff Lorenson - 3-Point FG Atts., 125& Sean O’Hare, 129 (2001-02)
Team (BSU):
Game 3-Point FG’s, 19 vs. UM-Morris (1/17/03) 14 vs. Northern St. (2/15/02)
3-Point FG Atts., 46 vs. UM-M (1/17/03) 33, done twice
Assists, 29 vs. UM-Morris (1/17/03) 27 vs. Jamestown (2/17/92)
Steals, 25 vs. St. Schol. (12/11/02) 20 vs. Northland (12/13/91)
Fouls, 33 vs. Wayne State (NE) (12/28/02) 29, done 3 times
Season 3-Point FG’s, 248 245 (2001-02)
3-Point FG Atts., 700 694 (2001-02)
Assists, 426& 447 (1993-94)
Team (NSIC):
Game 3-Point FG’s, 19 vs. UM-Morris (1/17/03)* 19, SSU vs. UMM (2001-02)
3-Point FG Atts., 46 vs. UMM (1/17/03) 39, NSU vs. UMM (2001-02)
Season 3-Point FG’s, 159 163, SSU (2001-02)
3-Point FG Atts., 455 433, BSU (2001-02)
& Records yet to be broken; *Tied the NSIC record
Note: NSIC records are only stats from regular-season conference games.

On the season, the Beavers have averaged 18.5 assists a contest. They have notched 20 or more assists eight times this season including a school-record 29 vs. Minnesota-Morris (1/17/03). The old school record for a single-game tally was 27 against Jamestown (2/17/92). If the Beavers stay on their assists pace through the end of the campaign, they will total 500. The school record is 447 assists set in the 1993-94 season as it stands at 426 currently.

IN THE COUNTRY
In the NCAA Division II statistical rankings through Feb. 9th, BSU leads the country in three-pointers per contest with 10.8. This is the first week that it has been at that ranking. Also, it is second for a single-game high with 19 three-pointers and 12th with 116 points scored vs. Minnesota-Morris (1/17/03). Most recently against UM-Crookston (2/8/03), BSU hit on 17 trifectas, which is tied for eighth for a single-game high. BSU displayed its long-range accuracy against UW-Superior (12/2/02) as it went 65 percent (13 of 20), good for sixth in the Division II. With topping the century mark four times this season - the most since the 1993-94 campaign when it went for five - BSU is 20th in the country with 84.1 points per game.

Also, senior guard Royce Bryan is tied for ninth in the nation with an average of 2.8 steals per contest.

IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME
Last season, the Beavers may have opened a few eyes with their success on the basketball court. Bemidji State tallied the most conference wins in school history (13). In addition, the 17 overall wins was the most since the 1972-73 season (19) and the .607 winning percentage was the best mark since the 1973-74 season (.667) - a streak of 28 seasons. The campaign ended with BSU seeded third in the conference tournament and an appearance in the second round. The 2002-03 preseason polls showed BSU finishing second in the league, the highest pick in school history.

RECORD IN THE LEAGUE
BSU is currently in its 11th season in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play. The Northern Sun Conference (women’s league) merged with the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (men’s league) before the start of the 1992-93 season. Overall in the NSIC, Bemidji State is 56-97 (.366) and sports a 33-44 (.429) mark at home and a 23-53 (.303) record on the road. Since the start of the 1998-99 season, Bemidji State is 24-18 (.571) at the BSU Gymnasium as it tallied its best record ever in league play at 7-2 last season on its home court.

CHARLES HANKS NOTES:
Junior forward Charles Hanks (Chicago, Ill.) is back to improve on a break-out season from 2001-02. The South Plains (Texas) C.C. transfer was an All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference first-team pick and was selected as the 2001-02 NSIC Newcomer of the Year. League coaches have selected Hanks a “Player to Watch” in 2002-03.

This season in the South Dakota State Tournament (11/29-11/30/03), Hanks was named to the all-tournament team for garnering 24 points and 13 rebounds in the two games. Hanks has led the squad 12 times in rebounding, including the last five ball games, and nine times in scoring. He is tops on the team in scoring (17.1), rebounding (7.3), field goal percentage (.527 - 164/311), blocks (16) and made field goals (164), fourth in total steals (23) and fifth in total assists (41) and three-point percentage (.333). The Beavers are 14-6 when Hanks notches 20+ points in his career.

Recently in the wins over WSU (1/24/03) and Concordia-St. Paul (1/25/03), Hanks scored 51 points on 23 of 37 (.622) shooting, grabbed 12 rebounds and dished out five assists to earn his third career league player of the week honors. In conference games, he has stepped up his offensive output scoring 19.6 per game, which is third-best in the NSIC, and shooting 55.0 percent (111/202) from the field. When Hanks is playing well so are the Beavers - he averages 18.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, shoots 61 percent overall and 71 percent from the foul line. In the 11 Beaver losses, Hanks averages 15.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, maintains a 45 percent clip from the field and a 55 percent mark from the free throw line. In his last seven games, he has averaged 22.6 points and 9.1 rebounds per game and has gone for at least 25 points and 10 rebounds in four of those contests. He went for his ninth career double-double with 27 points and 11 caroms against UM-Duluth (2/15/03) to cap a five-game stint in which he went for four in that stretch. The Chicago, Ill., native currently is riding a 14-game double-digit scoring streak and has gone over the 20-point barrier nine times this season.

ROYCE BRYAN NOTES:
It is safe to say that when the Beaver squad is running on all cylinders, senior guard Royce Bryan (Haviland, Kan.) is on the court. The 2002-03 team captain holds the school’s single game record with 11 assists against UM-Crookston (2/2/02) and the best mark for season assists (145) established a year ago. Currently, he sits fourth with 221 career assists as he is 12 away from the third-spot.

In 2002-03, Bryan is first on the squad in assists per game (4.0) and had a career-high seven rebounds and two blocks in the game against Jamestown (11/23/02). Bryan is also adept at troubling the opposing guard as shown in his team-leading 52 total steals, as he is tops in the league with 2.74 per game. That steals mark puts him tied for ninth in the nation as well. Against Southwest State (1/31/03), Bryan set a personal-best with six steals as he has gone 12 games with the team steals lead or tying for it. At one point, Bryan went five games in leading the team in steals. Also, the 6-1 guard is second on the squad in rebounding (3.4), third in minutes per game (28.2) and three-point percentage (.361 - 35/97); fourth in scoring (9.8) and three-pointers (35). In conference games, he has hit for an 11.1 points per game average. The rim seems to be unkind to Bryan on the road as he shoots 47 percent (8/17) from the charity stripe and 41 percent (30/74) from the floor compared to 83 percent (24/29) from the foul line and 47 percent (29/62) from the field at home. Earlier this season, Bryan hit on at least one three-pointer in a 13-game stretch.

In just his second and third games back from a hand injury that kept him out of four games, Bryan went for 35 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and four steals in the weekend sweep of UM-Morris and Northern State (1/17-1/18/03). His efforts gave him his first career player of the week honors in the league.

STAN JOHNSON NOTES:
Senior guard Stan Johnson (Salt Lake City, Utah) came out on fire in his season-opening weekend as a Beaver. The Southern Utah University transfer scorched the Vikings from Valley City State (11/22/02) for a game-high 23 points. Johnson connected on four three-pointers and was five-of-six at the charity stripe. He added five assists and two steals in the winning effort. The next night, Johnson came away with 15 points, five rebounds, four assists and a steal against Jamestown (11/23/02). In his third game as a Beaver, Johnson set a career-best with 25 points on 8 of 16 shooting. Currently, Johnson is first on the club in minutes per game (30.9) and total assists (86), second in total steals (37), three-point percentage (.378 - 37/98) and scoring (13.7), third in three-pointers (37) and rebounding (3.2). Johnson is tied with Hanks for the team lead with 19 games of double-digit scoring efforts, including three performances of 20+ points. Johnson tallied his first double-double as a Beaver with 15 points-10 rebounds against Concordia-St. Paul (1/25/03) as he narrowly missed a triple-double with a career-high eight assists. The 6-1 guard has shot the ball well from the charity stripe (.788 - 82/104), which is good for third in the NSIC and maintains a 81 percent clip (50/62) in conference action.

ADAM DALEY NOTES:
In his debut in the green and white, junior guard Adam Daley (Des Moines, Iowa) was on top of his game. In the 73-64 BSU win against Valley City State (11/22/02), Daley connected on 6 of 15 field goals including three tri-fectas to net 17 points. He added five rebounds, two steals and one assist. Daley then went for a team-high 14 points vs. Michigan Tech (12/14/02) as he hit on four three-pointers. The 6-7 guard netted a career-high 23 points along with six three-pointers in the game against UM-Crookston (2/8/03). On the season, Daley is first on the club in three-point field goal percentage (.444 - 55/124) as that mark is fifth in the league, and three-pointers (55). His 47 percent (83/175) mark from the floor is second on the team, 10.2 points per game is third and has tallied 10+ points in 13 games and gone for at least three boards in four of the last five games. In the 14 conference games this season, Daley has averaged 2.6 three-point field goals a game and has increased his scoring slightly (11.0). Daley has hit at least one three-point basket in 12 straight games. Daley is two three-point field goals shy of tying the school season record (57) and five attempts away from the mark (129).

In leading the Beavers to wins over UM-Crookston and MSU-Moorhead the first weekend of January, Daley was named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Men’s Basketball Co-Player of the Week. On the weekend, Daley was 10 of 15 (66.7 percent) from the field, including nine of 12 (75.0 percent) in three-pointers, two of two (100.0 percent) from the free throw line, grabbed six rebounds, totaled 31 points for an average of 15.5 points in the two NSIC wins. His five three-pointers on Saturday tied for the eight highest output this season in the conference while his percentage (.833) from long-range is tied for first.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
vs. Northern State (16-7, 13-2 NSIC)
Don Meyer continues his legacy as a collegiate head coach as he enters his fourth season at NSU and 28th overall. Meyer is 11th on the all-time wins list for men’s collegiate head coaches. He owns a career record of 765-262 (.745) and is 63-42 (.600) in his three-plus years as a Wolf. Currently, he has his Wolves atop the league standings.

Since a loss to the Beavers in Aberdeen, S.D., Jan. 18, 2003, Northern State has reeled off seven straight conference wins. Two of those include a 77-56 affair against UM-Crookston on Friday and a 91-71 contest on Seniors Night vs. MSU Moorhead.

Sundance Wicks tops four players in double-figure scoring with 14.0 points per contest, which is tied for 10th-best in the conference. He also is second-best in the NSIC with his 8.0 rebounding average and leads the team and is second in three-point percentage (.410), steals (32) and third in field goal (.504). Aaron Busack, who is third-best in the league with his 58 percent mark from the field, averages 11.7 points per game and Jarod Obering chips in 11.2 points per game. Dustin Hjelmeland is the second-best three-point man in the league (.465) while Steve Smiley dishes out 4.87 assists per game, tops in the league.

NSU ranks in the top-five in every major statistical category in the NSIC including second in scoring offense (79.0),scoring defense (71.0) and rebounding margin (+8.0). It connects on 9.5 three-pointers per contest, good for ninth in the nation.

vs. Minnesota-Morris (2-22, 0-15 NSIC)
Head coach Paul Grove enters his first season at UM-Morris with a 105-64 (.621) overall record in prior to his arrival in Morris. Last season, the Cougars ended with a 4-23 record and placed tenth in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.

The Cougars are looking to halt a 16-game skid with their last win coming against Northwestern (MN), 79-75, Dec. 14, 2002. They dropped on pair on the weekend to MSU Moorhead and UM-Crookston.
David Holler leads the team in scoring (16.8), blocks (22), free throw percentage (.800), field goal percentage (.469) and rebounding (5.7). He also ranks in the top-ten in the conference in three categories: second in free throw percentage, third in blocks per game (0.92) and sixth in scoring. Adam Girtman (10.2) and Eric Rohy (9.6) and Jon Lang (8.3) round out the other Cougar scoring threats. Rohy is the squad’s leading three-point shooter (49 3’s) while Girtman gathers 4.46 assists per contest, which is good for third in the league.

Overall, UM-M ranks near the bottom of the conference in several statistical categories, including scoring margin (-24.0) and rebounding margin (-7.1) but have the fifth-best percentage from the charity stripe (.699).

ALL-TIME SERIES: vs. Northern State 15-37 // vs. Minnesota-Morris 27-39**
BSU has been victorious in three of the last four contests after a 82-77 win in Aberdeen, S.D., Jan. 18, 2003. There were a combined 24 three-point field goals in the contest as BSU was able to shoot 47 percent from the floor. Meanwhile, NSU shot just 40 percent in the second half en route to a 44 percent clip for the game. The Beaver win snapped a five-game NSU winning streak. BSU is 9-15 in Bemidji, Minn., since the 1976 season. Head coach Jeff Guiot is 3-2 all-time against NSU.
In All-Time Series...
BSU Largest Margin of Victory: 19 (95-76, 2/9/01)
NSU Largest Margin of Victory: 52 (107-55, 1/4/95)
BSU Highest Scoring Output: 92 (W, 92-85, 2/2/94)
NSU Highest Scoring Output: 108 (W, 108-87, 1/29/93)
BSU Lowest Scoring Output: 51 (L, 80-51, 1/25/97)
NSU Lowest Scoring Output: 63 (L, 64-63, 2/5/82)
After the Cougars took 19 of 22 at one stretch, BSU has swiped nine of the last ten after a 116-71 victory in mid-January. The Beavers set five school and conference records in the contest including most three-point field goals (19) and three-point field goal attempts (46). BSU won the battle of the boards (48-36) and shot 53 percent (39 of 74) from the floor. Royce Bryan paced the offensive attack with 19 points to lead six Beavers in double-figures. At home all-time, BSU is 15-18 and coach Guiot is 4-1 against the Cougars. The last seven BSU victories have been by an average margin of 21.7 points.
In All-Time Series...
BSU Largest Margin of Victory: 45 (116-71, 1/17/03)
UM-M Largest Margin of Victory: 45 (101-56, 12/28/87)
BSU Highest Scoring Output: 116 (W, 116-71, 1/17/03)
UM-M Highest Scoring Output: 101 (W, 101-56, 12/28/87)
BSU Lowest Scoring Output: 46 (L, 62-46, 1/4/79)
UM-M Lowest Scoring Output: 54 (L, 84-54, 1/11/02)
**Series records since the 1971-72 season

KEEP AN EYE OUT
Senior point guard Royce Bryan (Haviland, Kan.) is currently involved in the assists career record at BSU. He is 12 dimes shy of sliding into the third spot as he is looking up at Teaser Sweetney (1989-93) with 233. So far this season, Bryan has averaged 4.00 assists per game and if he keeps on that pace will total 92 on the season and 237 for his career, which would be good enough for third on the school charts.
Top Career Assist Totals (1976-Present)
1. 314 David Lee 1984-88
2. 247 Tony Brown 1987-91
3. 233 Teaser Sweeney 1989-93
4. 221 Royce Bryan 2001-SA

BEAVERS IN THE CONFERENCE
Seven players are recognized thus far among the league leaders in stats through all games played (through Feb. 16): Stan Johnson is third in free throw percentage (.788 - 81/104), sixth in steals/game (1.68) and assists/game (3.91), 11th in points/game (13.7) and three-point field goal percentage (.378 - 37/98) and 18th in field goal percentage (.453 - 91/201); Charles Hanks is third in rebounds/game (7.3), fourth in blocks/game (0.70), fifth in points/game (17.1), sixth in field goal percentage (.52 - 164/311) and tied for 25th in steals/game (1.00); Royce Bryan is first in steals/game (2.74), fifth in assists/game (4.00), 15th in three-point field goal percentage (.361 - 35/97) and 27th in points/game (9.8); Jeff Lorenson is tied for 11th in steals/game (1.39); 12th in assists/game (3.35), and 16th in three-point field goal percentage (.360 - 45/125); Adam Daley is fifth in three-point field goal percentage (.444 - 55/124), 14th in field goal percentage (.474 (83/175) and 23rd in points/game (10.2); Jason Bonde is tied for 25th in steals/game (1.00); and Aaron Kallhoff is 28th in assists/game (2.04).

BSU IN THE CONFERENCE
Through Feb. 16th in all games played, BSU stands in the upper half of the 10-team conference in seven out of the 10 statistical categories: first in scoring offense (84.3), three-pointers made per game (10.8) and scoring margin (+8.1); third in field goal percentage (.468 - 687/1468), field goal percentage defense (.444 - 576/1296) and free throw percentage (.718 - 318/443) and fifth in win/loss percentage (.522).

DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Through 23 games in 2002-03, there have been three BSU players to record double-doubles: Ben Caron and Stan Johnson with one apiece and Charles Hanks with six. Below is a listing of their career double-doubles (italics indicating 2002-03):
Ben Caron (18 points-12 rebounds) vs. Augustana, 11-29-02
Ben Caron (18 points-10 rebounds) vs. Southwest State, 2-28-97
Stan Johnson (15 points-10 rebounds) vs. Concordia-St. Paul, 1-25-03
Charles Hanks (27 points-11 rebounds) vs. UM-Duluth, 2-14-03
Charles Hanks (20 points-12 rebounds) vs. MSU Moorhead, 2-7-03
Charles Hanks (16 points-11 rebounds) vs. Southwest State, 1-31-03
Charles Hanks (25 points-10 rebounds) vs. Wayne State (NE), 2-1-03
Charles Hanks (21 points-15 rebounds) vs. St. Scholastica, 12-11-02
Charles Hanks (19 points-11 rebounds) vs. Bethel, 11-26-02
Charles Hanks (16 points-12 rebounds) vs. MSU Moorhead, 2-1-02
Charles Hanks (25 points-10 rebounds) vs. Wayne State (NE), 12-7-01
Charles Hanks (16 points-11 rebounds) vs. Mayville State, 11-16-01

BEAVERS GET RESPECT IN PRESEASON POLLS
According to the 2002-03 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll, the BSU men’s basketball squad is picked to finish second (74) in the league, 16 points behind Minnesota-Duluth. UMD will look to repeat as it tied with Northern State for last year’s regular season crown. NSU is close behind Bemidji State with 73 points with MSU Moorhead (66) and Southwest State (61) rounding out the top-five. SSU received one first-place vote behind the nine slots that UMD received.

In 2001-02, the Bulldogs managed to win the NSIC tournament and advance to the NCAA Men’s Basketball North Central Regional Tournament, losing to eventual national champion Metro State (CO). NSU gained a berth to the NSIC tournament semifinals after tying for the top spot in the NSIC. MSU Moorhead finished fifth and had its first winning season (17-10, 11-7) in seven seasons. The Mustangs from SSU finished tied for second last season and participated in the 2001 NCAA Elite 8.

The Beavers face the daunting challenge of traveling to the top-three league teams from a season ago (UM-Duluth, Northern State, Southwest State) in the first half of the conference schedule. Last season, BSU lost by three points (84-81) at SSU, Jan. 25. From that juncture, the Beavers reeled off seven NSIC wins including road victories over UM-Duluth (61-57), Feb. 9 and Northern State (79-76), Feb. 15.

HOME TICKETS
All tickets for BSU home events can be purchased at the gate or by calling 218-755-2045. Ticket prices are as follows: $5 general admission, $2 senior citizens/non-BSU students, $1 under-12 and BSU students with valid ID are free.

NSIC TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
The top eight squads in the 10-team conference will move on to the post-season and play in the 2003 NSIC Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament. The tournmanet champion gets an automatic bid to the NCCA Division II tournament. NSIC Quarterfinal action will take place Wednesday, March 5th on various campuses as the higher seed hosts. The format will be as follows: #5 at #4, #6 at #3, #7 at #2 and #8 at #1 with the game-times to be determined by the host school. The semifinals will be held on the campus of Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday, March 8th. The winner of the #3/#6 game will play against the winner of the #2/#7 game at 12:00 p.m. while the winner of the #4/#5 game will face the winner of the #1/#8 game at 4:00 p.m. The tournament champion will be crowned the following afternoon at 2:00 p.m at the same site. More information can be obtained by visiting the conference website at www.northernsun.org.