UMC Men's Basketball Releases 2018-19 Schedule

CROOKSTON, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston men’s basketball team officially announced their 2018-19 schedule Wed., Aug. 22. The Golden Eagles will play a 31-game regular-season schedule, as well as one exhibition game. Minnesota Crookston will play nine non-conference tilts and 22 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference games. 15 of the 31 games will be played at the friendly confines of Lysaker Gymnasium. In addition, a big change to the conference schedule is moving the standard game times to 7:30 p.m. on Friday and 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.

“We are very excited about our 2018-19 schedule,” said Head Coach Dan Weisse. “The non-conference slate will be very challenging and we are confident that it will help us prepare for an always tough NSIC slate. We are also excited about the NSIC schedule we have this year. Our fans will be able to see some great games at Lysaker Gymnasium.”

Minnesota Crookston opens the 2018-19 season with an exhibition game Sat., Nov. 3 at 6 p.m. against University of Northwestern St. Paul. The Eagles went 14-13 last season, including an 11-5 record in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC). The game will be played at Lysaker Gymnasium in Crookston, Minn.

The Golden Eagles will commence their non-conference schedule with two tough games against Great American Conference (GAC) foes. Minnesota Crookston will play Arkansas Tech University Sat., Nov. 10 at 12 p.m. at the Gangelhoff Center in St. Paul, Minn. Arkansas Tech went 18-11 on the 2017-18 season. Minnesota Crookston wraps up the weekend Sat., Nov. 11 at 12 p.m. versus the University of Arkansas-Monticello. The game will also be played in St. Paul, Minn. Arkansas-Monticello finished the season with a 19-12 record. The Boll Weevils lost in the Championship Game of the GAC Tournament.

The Golden Eagles will open their regular-season home slate Wed., Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. against Oak Hills Christian College out of Bemidji, Minn. The Wolfpack went 10-19 last season.

Minnesota Crookston will then open up their first home tournament of the Dan Weisse era as they host the Golden Eagle Basketball Classic which will also include Oak Hills Christian, Valley City State University, and Concordia College (Minn.). The Golden Eagles will play Valley City State Sat., Nov. 17 at 6 p.m. at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Vikings went 14-16 last season under former Bemidji State University assistant coach Ryan Montgomery.

Minnesota Crookston will continue play at the Golden Eagle Basketball Classic Sun., Nov. 18 at 4 p.m. versus Concordia College (Minn.). The Cobbers posted a 6-19 mark on the 2017-18 season.

The following week Minnesota Crookston will embark for the Caribbean as they head to Puerto Rico for the Puerto Rico Basketball Classic. The Golden Eagles will play three games over three days during Thanksgiving week. Minnesota Crookston will open up the tournament against Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico, who is a NCAA Division II affiliate. The game will take place in San Juan, Puerto Rico Wed., Nov. 21 at 1 p.m. C.S.T./3 p.m. A.S.T.

Minnesota Crookston continues play at the Puerto Rico Basketball Classic Thurs., Nov. 22 at 11 a.m. C.S.T. /1 p.m. A.S.T. as they take on Missouri Southern State University in a Thanksgiving excursion. The Lions went 20-10 on the 2017-18 season, including a berth in the NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament.

The Golden Eagles will conclude their trip to Puerto Rico Fri., Nov. 23 against University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras at 9 a.m. C.S.T./11 a.m. A.S.T. The Jerezanas are also a NCAA Division II affiliate.

Minnesota Crookston opens up NSIC play Sat., Dec. 1 at 3:30 p.m. at Bemidji State University in Bemidji, Minn. The Beavers went 12-16 on the 2018 season. The Golden Eagles went 2-0 against Bemidji State during the 2017-18 campaign.

The Golden Eagles will make their NSIC home debut Fri., Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. against Minnesota State University Moorhead. MSU Moorhead is coming off a 7-22 mark last season. Minnesota Crookston split with the Dragons in 2017-18.

Minnesota Crookston will continue their home weekend Sat., Dec. 8 at 5:30 p.m. versus defending NCAA Division II runner-up Northern State University. The Wolves went 36-4 last season. They swept the two meeting with the Golden Eagles on the 2017-18 season.

The Golden Eagles will hit the highway the following weekend as they face Augustana University (S.D.) Fri., Dec. 15 at 4 p.m. in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Vikings went 16-14 last season, but are only three seasons removed from a NCAA Division II title following the 2015-16 season. The Golden Eagles picked up a victory over Vikings last season in their one tilt with their conference foe.

Minnesota Crookston wraps up their weekend excursion Sat., Dec. 16 at 2 p.m. versus Wayne State College (Neb.) in Wayne, Neb. The Wildcats posted a 14-17 record on the 2017-18 season. The Golden Eagles fell to Wayne State in their one meeting last season.

Minnesota Crookston will play their second game of the season against Bemidji State Sun., Dec. 30 at 4 p.m. at Lysaker Gymnasium as they wrap up the 2018 calendar year.

The Golden Eagles will open up 2019 at home against St. Cloud State University Fri., Jan. 4 at 7:30 p.m. at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Huskies went 24-9 last season, advancing to the second round of the NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament. St. Cloud State swept the season series during the 2017-18 slate.

Minnesota Crookston will remain at home Sat., Jan. 5 as they take on University of Minnesota Duluth at 5:30 p.m. at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Bulldogs posted a 12-18 mark last season. They are in their first season under Head Coach Justin Wieck, who was most recently an assistant coach at MSU Moorhead. Minnesota Crookston split with Minnesota Duluth during the 2017-18 season.

The Golden Eagles will hit the road Fri., Jan. 11 for a 7:30 p.m. meeting with Northern State, for the second meeting of the season between the two schools. Minnesota Crookston will then head over to MSU Moorhead Sat., Jan. 12 for a 5:30 p.m. tip against the Dragons.

The Golden Eagles will play their final non-conference game of the season Tues., Jan. 15 at 7 p.m. against University of Jamestown. The Jimmies went 20-10 on the 2017-18 season.

Minnesota Crookston returns to conference play Fri., Jan. 18 at 7:30 p.m. against Winona State University at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Warriors went 19-10 last season. Winona State won the lone game with the Golden Eagles during the 2017-18 season.

The Golden Eagles will then host Upper Iowa University Sat., Jan. 19 for a 5:30 p.m. meeting at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Peacocks finished with a 17-15 mark. Minnesota Crookston won the lone game with Upper Iowa during the 2017-18 season.

Minnesota Crookston will then embark on a four-game NSIC excursion. The Golden Eagles will head to Bismarck, N.D. to face University of Mary Fri., Jan. 25 at 7:30 p.m. The Marauders went 6-21 last season. U-Mary swept the season series with Minnesota Crookston.

The Golden Eagles will continue their road trip Sat., Jan. 26 at 5:30 p.m. against Minot State University in Minot, N.D. The Beavers finished with a 20-10 record during the 2017-18 slate. Minot State picked up the season sweep of Minnesota Crookston.

Minnesota Crookston will remain on their road excursion as they travel to Marshall, Minn., to face Southwest Minnesota State University Fri., Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m. The Mustangs finished last season with a 25-9 mark. The Mustangs won the lone meeting between the two institutions last season.

The Golden Eagles will conclude their road trip Sat., Feb. 2 at University of Sioux Falls in Sioux Falls, S.D. at 5:30 p.m. The Cougars went 20-10 during the 2017-18 season. The Cougars and Minnesota Crookston met three times on the season with Sioux Falls winning the series 2-1.

Minnesota Crookston will then return home for a four-game home stand beginning Fri., Feb. 8 with Minnesota State University, Mankato. The Golden Eagles will take on the Mavericks at 7:30 p.m. at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Mavericks went 24-10 during the 2017-18 season. Minnesota State won the lone meeting with the Golden Eagles. Minnesota Crookston junior guard Harrison Cleary (Oak Creek, Wis.) has averaged 44.0 points per game in two games with the Mavericks in his career.

The Golden Eagles will remain at home Sat., Feb. 9 as they host Concordia University-St. Paul. The Golden Bears went 5-24 during the 2017-18 season. Concordia-St. Paul won the only game the two teams played in 2017-18. Saturday’s game will also be the Alumni Game for Minnesota Crookston men’s basketball. 

Minnesota Crookston will continue their home slate Fri., Feb. 15 as they take on Minot State at home at 7:30 p.m. The Golden Eagles will play their final regular-season home game Sat., Feb. 16 against U-Mary at 5:30 p.m. at Lysaker Gymnasium. The game against U-Mary will also serve as Senior Night for the Golden Eagles.

The Golden Eagles will finish out their season on the road Fri., Feb. 22 and Sat., Feb. 23. Minnesota Crookston will face Minnesota Duluth Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Duluth, Minn. Their final regular-season game will pit them against St. Cloud State Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

The conference playoffs will open up at home sites Wed., Feb. 27. The final three rounds of the tournament will then take place at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. March 2-5.

Minnesota Crookston is coming off their best season in program history with a 10-19 (7-15 NSIC) record in 2017-18. The Golden Eagles enter their fifth season under Head Coach Dan Weisse in 2018-19. Minnesota Crookston returns four starters and seven of their top contributors from the 2017-18 season. The Golden Eagles welcome back 10 letter winners from the 2018-19 roster. Cleary leads the way for Minnesota Crookston as the All-NSIC First Team pick and D2CCA Academic All-America Honorable Mention picks returns for his junior year. Cleary averaged 24.2 points per game on his sophomore season.

In addition, Gable Smith, last year’s NSIC Defensive Player of the Year, returns after leading NCAA Division II in blocked shots for the majority of the season. Ben Juhl (So., G, Clive, Iowa) and Chase Knickerbocker (Sr., G/F, Annandale, Minn.) also return as starters. The Golden Eagles also added three newcomers, and have three players who redshirted last season who will look to contribute this season.

2018-19 Men's Basketball Schedule
Non-Conference
11.3 - Northwestern (Exh.) - 6 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
11.10 - vs. Arkansas Tech - 12 p.m. - St. Paul, Minn.
11.11 - vs. Arkansas-Monticello - 12 p.m. - St. Paul, Minn.
11.14 - Oak Hills Christian - 7 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
Golden Eagle Basketball Classic
11.17 - Valley City State - 6 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
11.18 - Concordia (Minn.) - 4 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
Puerto Rico Basketball Classic
11.21 - vs. Pontifical Catholic (Puerto Rico) - 1 p.m. C.T. - San Juan, Puerto Rico
11.22 - vs. Missouri Southern State - 11 a.m. C.T. - San Juan, Puerto Rico
11.23 - vs. Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras - 9 a.m. C.T. - San Juan, Puerto Rico
NSIC Schedule
12.1 - at Bemidji State - 3:30 p.m. - Bemidji, Minn.
12.7 - MSU Moorhead - 7:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
12.8 - Northern State - 5:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
12.15 - at Augustana - 4 p.m. - Sioux Falls, S.D.
12.16 - at Wayne State - 2 p.m. - Wayne, Neb.
12.30 - Bemidji State - 4 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
1.4 - St. Cloud State - 7:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
1.5 - Minnesota Duluth - 5:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
1.11 - at Northern State - 7:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
1.12 - at MSU Moorhead - 5:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
Non-Conference
1.15 - Jamestown - 7 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
NSIC Schedule
1.18 - Winona State - 7:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
1.19 - Upper Iowa - 5:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
1.25 - at U-Mary - 7:30 p.m. - Bismarck, N.D.
1.26 - at Minot State - 5:30 p.m. - Minot, N.D.
2.1 - at Southwest Minnesota State - 7:30 p.m. - Marshall, Minn.
2.2 - at Sioux Falls - 5:30 p.m. - Sioux Falls, S.D.
2.8 - Minnesota State - 7:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
2.9 - Concordia-St. Paul - 5:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
2.15 - Minot State - 7:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
2.16 - U-Mary - 5:30 p.m. - Crookston, Minn.
2.22 - at Minnesota Duluth - 7:30 p.m. - Duluth, Minn.
2.23 - at St. Cloud State - 5:30 p.m. - St. Cloud, Minn.
2.27 - 3.5 - NSIC Basketball Tournament (First round - home sites, last three rounds - Sanford Pentagon, Sioux Falls, S.D.)