ST. PAUL, Minn. - The No. 19 Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball team (18-2, 12-2 NSIC) has a pivotal week ahead as they face NSIC-leading No. 14 Minnesota State (17-3, 13-1 NSIC). Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in the Gangelhoff Center on Thursday, Jan. 30 as the Golden Bears aim to remain undefeated at home this season. 

The Golden Bears will then travel to face Minnesota Duluth (7-12, 5-9 NSIC) on Saturday, Feb. 1. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. in Duluth at the Romano Gymnasium. 

LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Bears went 2-0 this weekend with wins over Minot State (N.D.) (6-15, 5-9 NSIC) and UMary (N.D.) (10-8, 7-7 NSIC). Concordia-St. Paul held both opponents to a combined 28-111 (25.2%) from the field. 

CSP defeated Minot State 93-40, marking the most points scored in a game and the largest margin of victory for the Golden Bears this season. Lydia Haack, Ashley Schuelke, Mikayla Kanenwisher, Lauren Wilson, Emma Mommsen and Megan Gamble each scored in the double digits.

The Golden Bears made a season-high 34 field goals shooting 34-70 (48.6%) from the field. Concordia only turned the ball over nine times, marking the team's fourth game with less than 10 turnovers.

Haack led the team with 13 points and eight assists, marking her ninth game with five or more assists this season. CSP scored 21 points on her eight assists. Mommsen recorded her first career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. 

Schuelke and Kanenwisher each scored 12 points. Wilson added 11 points and Gamble scored 10 points. Lindsey Becher finished with eight points shooting 4-4 from the field. 

The Golden Bears held UMary to 14-59 (23.7%) from the field in the 73-48 win, the lowest field goal percentage CSP has allowed this season. CSP outscored the Marauders 38-20 in the second half and 19-5 in the third quarter. 

Haack once again led the team with 21 points, marking her fifth 20+ point game this season. Gamble grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds with nine points and five assists. Schuelke added 12 points off the bench making four 3-pointers. 

WBCA RANKINGS
The Golden Bears jumped up three spots to No. 19 in this week's WBCA Coaches Poll. CSP jumped three spots after losses by Belmont Abbey (N.C.) and Nova Southeastern (Fla.). Montana State Billings stayed at No. 20 and was jumped by the Golden Bears. Concordia received 160 votes in the poll. 

After a loss to Northern State this past weekend, Minnesota State fell eight spots to No. 14, receiving 287 votes. Southwest Minnesota State jumped up one spot to No. 22 and is receiving 131 votes. 

In the region, Pittsburg State (Kan.) is ranked No. 6 with a 17-2 record. Fort Hays State (Kan.) is two spots behind at No. 8 with a 16-2 record. The Gorillas received 425 points in the poll and the Tigers received 397 points. Harding (Ark.) is the top team receiving votes that is unranked with a 15-3 record. 

SEASON LEADERS
Haack leads CSP averaging 16.1 points, 4.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game. She ranks sixth in the NSIC in points per game and 38th in the nation in total points. Haack is second in the conference in assists per game and 29th in the nation. 

Becher is averaging 12.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game. In the NSIC, she's 15th in points per game, fifth in rebounds per game and second in blocks per game. Becher is sixth nationally in blocks per game. 

Leah Dengerud is averaging 10.2 points, 2.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game. Her points per game average this season is the highest of her three-year career. 

Julia Bengtson is averaging 8.6 points per game and Schuelke is adding 6.9 points per game. Gamble is averaging 5.7 points per game while grabbing 7.8 rebounds per game. That average ranks sixth in the NSIC. 

As a team, CSP ranks third in the NSIC in scoring offense averaging 75.3 points per game. The Golden Bears lead the conference in defensive scoring, only giving up 59.1 points per game. This 16.2 ppg margin ranks second in the conference behind Southwest Minnesota State. 

The Golden Bears are fifth in the conference in field goal percentage shooting 42.6%. CSP is allowing opposing teams to shoot 35.3% against them, an NSIC-leading percentage. Concordia is shooting 34.8% from behind the arc while opponents are shooting 28.8%. 

Concordia ranks second in turnover margin at 3.75. The Golden Bears dropped one spot in assist/turnover ratio behind Northern State. CSP leads the league in blocked shot average at 5.6 per game. Their 10.05 steals per game and 16.9 assists per game are both second in the NSIC. 

MILESTONES
Haack surpassed 300 points this season with the Golden Bears as she is now up to 321 total on the year. The junior guard now has 1,321 points in her career. 

Dengerud surpassed 200 points as she now has 204 on the year. She is one point away from 600 points in her career. 

Gamble hit the 100-point mark on the season, now at 114. Wilson also hit the 100-point milestone on the season, now at 109. 

RECORD WATCH
Becher is now up to 1,309 career points, which is tied for 14th in program history. The senior is 94 points away from being a top-10 all-time scorer for CSP. 

The Golden Bears are 10-0 at home this season and have won 11 straight in the Gangelhoff Center dating back to last season. With a win on Thursday, CSP will tie the second-best home record to start a season and tie the sixth-longest home winning streak in program history. 

IN THE NSIC STANDINGS
Minnesota State leads the NSIC with a 13-1 conference record after losing to Northern State this past weekend. Concordia-St. Paul and Southwest Minnesota State are each 12-2 in conference play. With a CSP win on Thursday, all three teams will be tied for the NSIC lead. 

Northern State is in fourth place with a 10-4 conference record. Sioux Falls is in fifth place at 8-6. UMary, St. Cloud State and MSU Moorhead are each tied for sixth at 7-7. Wayne State is in ninth at 6-8. Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota Crookston and Minot State are tied for 10th at 5-9. 

MINNESOTA STATE SERIES HISTORY
Series Record: CSP 23, MSU 26

The Golden Bears have lost four straight games to Minnesota State and are 3-7 in the last 10 games. CSP's longest winning streak in the series is eight games from 2000-07. Minnesota State won the first six games of the series from 1975-99 for its longest winning streak. 

Concordia is 12-7 all-time at home vs. Minnesota State, but has lost the last two in the Gangelhoff Center vs. the Mavericks. CSP's last win vs. Minnesota State in the Gangelhoff Center was an 82-79 win in 2019. Concordia is 13-19 all-time in conference play. 

LAST MEETING WITH THE MAVERICKS
The Golden Bears fell to the Mavericks 85-66 in Mankato earlier this season on Dec. 19, 2024. After trailing by one point at halftime, CSP was outscored 23-9 in the third quarter and 42-24 in the second half. 

Concordia shot a season-low 24-74 (32.4%) from the field. The Golden Bears also turned the ball over a season-high 25 times. It was a very physical game that featured six jump balls and a total of 33 fouls. CSP grabbed a season-high 24 offensive rebounds in the contest. 

Haack led CSP with 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Becher tallied a double-double scoring 12 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Gamble finished with 10 points and eight rebounds, six of which came off the offensive glass.

Junior guard Natalie Bremer led Minnesota State with 23 points shooting 10-19 (52.6%) from the field. Senior Destinee Bursch scored 17 points on 8-11 (72.7%) shooting. Ava Stier scored 10 points and grabbed six rebounds. Freshman Elisabeth Gadient tallied eight rebounds and eight assists while scoring four points. 

ABOUT THE MAVERICKS
The Mavericks entered this season as the reigning NCAA Division II National Champions and the reigning NSIC Champions. Minnesota State was on a 13-game winning streak before losing 93-82 to Northern State on Friday.  

Bremer is averaging 20.5 points per game, which is second in the NSIC. She's averaging a conference-leading 2.9 steals per game. She's shooting 49.8% from the field and 34.1% from behind the arc. Her field goal percentage is the third-best in the NSIC. 

Bursch is scoring 17.4 points per game while shooting 54.7% from the field. She ranks fourth in scoring in the NSIC and second in field goal percentage. Bursch also averages a team-high 3.9 assists per game, tying for fourth in the NSIC. 

Gadient is averaging 9.5 points per game and 2.4 assists per game. Junior forward Ava Stier is averaging 8.1 points per game and a team-high 6.3 rebounds per game. Junior guard Mackenzie Schweim is averaging 7.9 points per game. 

Minnesota State leads the conference in points per game averaging 89.1. They rank 14th defensively in the NSIC giving up 74.3 points per game. The Maverick's 14.8 points per game differential ranks third in the conference. 

The Mavericks are shooting 46.8% from the field this season, ranking second in the conference. Opponents shoot 42.8% against them, which ranks 14th. Minnesota State averages 42.2 rebounds per game which ranks second in the NSIC. 

Minnesota State utilizes a press defense which helps them get an NSIC-leading 15.7 steals per game. They have an 8.75 turnover margin which leads the conference as well. Minnesota State's 15.95 assists per game ranks fourth in the conference. 

Emily Thiesse is the head coach for Minnesota State. She earned NSIC Coach of the Year last season during the national championship run. Thiesse has a 245-119 record and is in her 13th season with the Mavericks. 

MINNESOTA DULUTH SERIES HISTORY
Series Record: CSP 24, UMD 27

CSP is 4-6 in the last 10 matchups with the Bulldogs, which includes a four-game winning streak 2020-23. 

The Golden Bears won three of the first four matchups before Duluth won 11 straight games from 1978-2001. Concordia's longest win streak is four games from 2013-15. 

Concordia is 5-9 all-time on the road in Duluth and 16-12 in conference play. CSP's largest margin of victory was the latest matchup by 44 points. The Bulldogs' largest win was by 44 points in 2022.

LAST MEETING WITH THE BULLDOGS
Concordia-St. Paul defeated Minnesota Duluth 82-38 in the final game before Christmas break on Dec. 21, 2024. The 44-point margin was CSP's largest this season before the win over Minot State this past weekend. Concordia outscored Duluth 73-27 in the opening three quarters. 

Five different Golden Bears reached double digits in scoring with Schuelke leading the team scoring 18 points. Haack nearly tallied a triple-double with 11 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. She accounted for 35 of CSP's 82 points via scoring and assists. 

Dengerud scored 13 points, Becher added 12 points and Wilson scored 11 points. The Golden Bears went 12-21 (57.1%) from behind the arc, the most 3-pointers the team has made in a game this season. 

Lexi Karge scored 10 points for Minnesota Duluth with six rebounds. Grace Counts added 10 points off the bench. Johanna Miller scored six points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. 

ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
The Bulldogs went 0-2 this past weekend with a 12-point loss to UMary and a 10-point loss to Minot State. Duluth went 2-0 the weekend before against Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston. 

Junior guard Myra Moorjani leads the Bulldogs in points per game averaging 12.3. She's also added 3.9 assists per game and 4.9 rebounds. She ranks fourth in the NSIC in assists per game and is 17th in points per game. 

Miller is adding 10.8 points per game and a team-high 6.6 rebounds per game. She's tied for ninth in the NSIC in rebounds per game. Karge is averaging 9.9 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game. She's tied for 14th in the NSIC in rebounds per game. 

Freshman guard Claire Bjorge has emerged this season averaging 9.7 points per game. Maria Counts is averaging 7.4 points per game only playing in nine games so far this season. Lexi Karlen is adding 6.3 points per game. 

The Bulldogs are 11th in the NSIC in scoring averaging 64 points per game. They are 10th defensively averaging 69.8 points per game. The -5.8 points per game margin is 11th in the conference. 

Many Pearson is the head coach of Minnesota Duluth. She's won four NSIC Tournament Championships with the Bulldogs and led them to a national runner-up finish in 2022-23. Pearson has a 182-90 overall record in 10 seasons with Minnesota Duluth.