ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia-St. Paul men's basketball program gets the 2019-20 season underway this weekend as they travel to the Parkside Invitational on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside.
 
PARKSIDE INVITATIONAL INFORMATION
The Golden Bears open up the season with a familiar foe as they take on Minnesota Crookston in Friday's opener in Kenosha, Wis. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m.
 
The meeting between CSP and UMC will be the 30^th in the all-time series and the first non-conference contest between the two schools. The Golden Bears have registered a 23-6 record in the previous meetings, including winning 15 of 16 from 2005-16. Over the past three meetings, the Golden Eagles have won two of three.
 
CSP will then play either Parkside or Hillsdale, who also play on Friday night, in either the consolation round at 1 p.m. on Saturday or the championship at 3 p.m. Concordia has never met either school on the hardwood heading into the weekend.
 
"All three of the other teams in the tournament will provide a great challenge early and will allow us to see where we are at," said head coach Joey James of the competition in the season's opening weekend. He added, "If we can take care of the basketball, defend and rebound at a high level, we will give ourselves an opportunity to be successful this weekend."
 
Live stats will be available for both contests on the weekend.
 
PRESEASON UPDATE
With a couple weeks of practice and a pair of exhibition games under their belt, the Golden Bears are starting to get a picture of where the team is at and where they can grow as the season progresses.
 
While the early returns have been positive, there has been a bit of a learning curve with 10 newcomers joining the squad. Coach James pointed out about the group, "With 10 new guys, four of which are freshman, it has taken us a little bit to mesh. Offensively, I think we're fine with where we are at, but from a defensive standpoint we are a long way from where we want to be."
 
One area that has impressed the coaching staff is team culture. While players continue to bond as a unit on the court, the chemistry off the court has been a major positive early on. "So far it has been a fun group to be around. Our attitude and team morale have been a positive which has made it fun for the staff and the players to come to the gym every day," said James of the team.
 
NON-CONFERENCE SLATE
Following this weekend's trek across the border, the Golden Bears return home for their home opener next Thursday night against North Central at 6 p.m. CSP will also play host to Northland on Tuesday, Nov. 26^th to wrap up non-conference play.
 
When asked about what he hopes to see in the non-conference slate, James said, "Our goal is to go 1-0 every time we step on the court. We are not looking long-term, we are focused on taking care of business one day at a time."
 
While CSP has faced the Rams 63 previous times and the Lumberjacks 45 previous times, very few of those meetings have come in the past decade. The Golden Bears grabbed wins against North Central in 2014 and 2017 in the only two meetings since 2007 while also picking up a win over Northland in 2014 in their only meeting since 1999.
 
A LOOK AT THE NSIC
With less than a month away from the opening weekend of conference play at home against Sioux Falls on Friday, Dec. 6^th and Southwest Minnesota State on Saturday,Dec. 7^th, Concordia will once again look forward to a schedule loaded with tough competition in the competitive Northern Sun.
 
"Every year it is a fantastic league with a lot of really good players and coaches. There are a lot of teams that have lost key players from last year's squad, but there are also quite a few that return almost everybody which makes this one of the most interesting years in terms of balance in the league," said James. He added, "You have to do everything you can to take care of your home court, and then you have to go on the road and at least pick up a split. If you can do that, you will give yourself a chance at the end of the year."
 
With no clear front-runners in the league heading into the season, three different teams received at least three first-place votes in the NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll, with Minnesota State slightly edging Augustana for the top spot. The depth of the league is further showcased in the poll as very little separated the teams from top to bottom, highlighted by just an 18 point gap between Minnesota Crookston in seventh and SMSU in 12^th.
 
MEET THE GOLDEN BEARS
When the team trots out on the court for the first time this season on Friday, it will be a new-look group from the one fans saw in 2018-19. The roster features a diverse group with six transfers and four freshmen to go along with the five returners.
 
Concordia's group of six transfers gives the team an interesting mix of experience and youth as Perrion Little joins the squad as a senior while Jordan Coblin, Jacob Shields and Carlos Barela all join as juniors and Seth Coatta As well as Manny Jingco join as sophomores.
 
As the elder statesmen of the squad, senior guard Perrion Little joins the Golden Bears after spending last season at Division I Western Illinois. The Kenosha, Wis. native appeared in nine games for the Leathernecks after starring for Miles Community College the previous two seasons. "Perrion is working on getting acclimated with our program and is a guy that shoots it, is athletic, and can be a big-time defender for us," said James of Little.
 
Another newcomer with NCAA Division I experience is junior guard Jordan Coblin. A native of Boca Raton, Fla., Coblin spent his first two years at Purdue-Fort Wayne before returning home to Florida last season to put together a solid season at Daytona State College. James said, "Jordan is a great leader that does a lot of things for us. He has to get better defensively, but he is a guy that we will lean on this year."
 
Another junior college making the trip north to Concordia is junior guard Carlos Barela. Barela, originally from Albuquerque, N.M., has spent the last two seasons as a key player for Scottsdale Community College, starting 55 of 60 games during that span. "Carlos is a great kid that is a competitor and a winner. He's in the gym all the time that is solid in many different areas with room to improve," said James of Barela.
 
With a roster full of guards, junior transfer forward Jacob Shields give the Golden Bears some much-needed size and versatility in the lineup. The Houston, Texas native was a First Team All-Defense selection in his lone season at Cloud County Community College after opening his collegiate career at Navarro College. Talking about Shields, James said, "He is a tough, strong kid that has a chance to be a good player for us. He can play inside and out and brings a toughness to this team that we need."
 
While he is just a sophomore eligibility-wise, guard Seth Coatta after putting up a very impressive season in 2018-19 for the Hawks of Northeast Community College. A big-time high school recruit coming out of Minnetonka High School, Coatta came into his own last season and will look to carry that momentum to CSP. "Seth can really stretch the floor and has a great feel for the game. He's a hard worker and a guy that has a chance to be a very good player for us."
 
Rounding out the transfers is sophomore Manny Jingco. Jingco will redshirt this year after starring for Bryant & Stratton College last year. "Manny is a tough kid who can stretch the floor for us. Over the next few years he's going to get better and better for us," said James.
 
To go along with the six transfers, the Golden Bears also add four prep recruits to the mix as George Scharlau, Keenan Jones, Jacob Everson and Mac Wiezorek will all get their collegiate careers underway this season.
 
Forward George Scharlau will look to make an immediate impact on the court after a standout high school career at Colfax High School in Wisconsin. When speaking about Scharlau, James said, "George has the potential to be an All-Conference player as he continues to develop and work on his game. He has a high motor and competes every day."
 
While Scharlau comes to Concordia from a smaller town in Wisconsin, forward Keenan Jones played his high school basketball with one of the elite programs in the country at Whitney Young Magnet School in Chicago. Jones helped lead the Dolphins to three consecutive state championship games in his three years as a varsity player. James said, "Keenan is very versatile and can impact the game on the defensive end with his length and agility.
 
Guard Jacob Everson is one of five Wisconsin natives on the squad as he joins from Menasha High School after a strong prep career. "Jacob is a hard worker and a good kid with a solid mid-range game. He needs some time to develop, but we're excited about having him in the program.
 
Guard Mac Wieczorek joins the team as a first-year college athlete after finishing off his high school career at Anoka High School last year while also taking classes at CSP. James said, "Mac is an incredible kid that is going to graduate in the spring with his bachelor's degree as a freshman. He's a solid leader with a team-first mentality that we are excited to see grow here."
 
While newcomers make up two-thirds of the CSP roster, Concordia will still rely heavily on their five returners to play important roles this season.
 
The veteran of the group is senior forward Max Keefe. Keefe has been a regular in the CSP rotation in each of the past three seasons as he has appeared in 85 games and started 41. The Germantown, Wis. native enters his fourth campaign with 490 career points and 233 career rebounds in navy and gold. James said of the senior, "Max has been in the league for four years and understands what is expected of him. He is a team player that all the guys love to be around and we are counting on him to play a big role at the five spot."
 
Also expected to play a huge role at the five spot is junior big man Cody Carlson. Carlson took a step forward in his second season as he more than doubled his scoring average to 8.2 points per game while also pulling down 4.6 boards per night. "We need Cody to take another step forward this season. As he gets more consistent as a player, it will help our team get more consistent as well," said James of Carlson.
 
Junior Lee Higgins is another player that Concordia will count on playing a bigger role this season. Last year in his first year on campus, Higgins gave the Golden Bears a defensive presence in his 29 games while also chipping in 5.4 points per game. James said, "Lee has works hard on his game and needs to continue to work on being smart on the defensive end. He has the potential to really impact the game on that end of the court."
 
Sophomore guard Noah Kannegiesser also enters his second year on campus after making 25 appearances in his debut season as a freshman. The Hancock High School grad was a prolific scorer as a prep and tallied 3.7 points per contest last year. Speaking about Kannegiesser, James said, "We need Noah to continue to develop as a consistent scorer for us this year while also working to get his teammates involved as well. As he continues to grow in that role, he's going to be an important player for us."
 
Fellow sophomore Kenny Holz rounds out the roster. Holz, another Wisconsin native, made his collegiate debut last year as he made three appearances and scored two points. "Kenny works his butt off and is a team-first guy that does so many things the right way. We hope to get him some more opportunities this season," said James.
 
Make sure to check back to cspbears.com throughout the season for game previews, recaps, statistics and more.