Timberwolves to Wear Commemorative Patch in Honor of Flip Saunders

Minneapolis/St. Paul – The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced that the team will wear a commemorative patch on their jersey during the 2015-16 season in honor of recently passed President of Basketball Operations and Head Coach Flip Saunders.

The patch will be worn for the first time on Monday, November 2, as the Timberwolves open the home portion of the 2015-16 season against the Portland Trail Blazers at Target Center. The team will wear the patch for all home and road games for the balance of the season beginning on November 2.

In addition, the team announced it plans to wear a specially designed shooting shirt (warm-up shirt) during all games through the month of November. The shirt, which says “WE”, symbolizes the togetherness of the team and its commitment to unity over individualism. The shirt is gray with black lettering, with the name “Flip” across the heart side of the shirt. The shirt will be unveiled tomorrow night when the team takes the court for warm-ups.

On Monday, the NBA Coaches Association announced that all the league’s coaches will wear a “Flip” lapel pin during all games this season as a way to honor Saunders.

There will also be a pregame tribute to Saunders prior to the Timberwolves’ home opener on Monday, November 2. Details of the pregame tribute are being developed at this time.

T-Wolves Andrew Wiggins Named to NBA All-Rookie First Team

Zach LaVine Earns Second Team Honors sota Timberwolves forward Andrew Wiggins has been named to the 2014-15 NBA All-Rookie First Team while guard Zach LaVine has been named to the 2014-15 All-Rookie Second Team, the NBA announced earlier today. Wiggins was the lone unanimous choice, receiving 130 First Team votes.

Wiggins led all qualified rookies in scoring with 16.9 ppg, and was 4th in steals (1.05 spg) and 5th in rebounding (4.6 rpg). He was the only rookie, and one of just 11 players, to start all 82 games this season and finished with a Wolves rookie record 2969 minutes played, second-most in the NBA (James Harden, 2981). Wiggins finished the season strong by averaging 23.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in April. Wiggins was named the Western Conference Rookie of the Month four times this season, becoming the first player in Wolves history to earn the honor multiple times. He tallied a rookie-leading 31 20+ point games this season, the most such games by a rookie since Damian Lillard in 2012-13.

LaVine averaged 10.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 3.6 apg in 77 games (40 starts), shooting 42.2% from the field, 34.1% from three-point range and 84.2% from the line (good for 30th in the NBA). He finished 2nd among rookies in assists, 4th in scoring and 1st in FT accuracy. LaVine set the franchise rookie single-game scoring record when he tallied 37 points April 11 at Golden State, surpassing the 35 points scored by Christian Laettner vs. Boston on Dec. 15, 1992. LaVine scored a game-high 22 points in the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge as part of All-Star Weekend in New York, and then won the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest the following night.

The voting panel consisted of 130 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada who were asked to select five players for the first team and five players for the second team, regardless of position.  Two points were awarded for first team votes and one for second team votes.

Wiggins joins Pooh Richardson, Christian Laettner, Isaiah Rider, Stephon Marbury, Wally Szczerbiak, Randy Foye and Ricky Rubio as Wolves rookies to earn All-Rookie First Team honors.

LaVine joins Felton Spencer, Kevin Garnett, Craig Smith, Kevin Love, Jonny Flynn, Wes Johnson, Derrick Williams and Gorgui Dieng as Wolves rookies to earn All-Rookie Second Team honors.

Below are the 2014-15 NBA All-Rookie First and Second Teams:

2014-15 NBA ALL-ROOKIE FIRST TEAM

Player	Team	First (2 pt)	Second (1 Pt)	Total
Andrew Wiggins	Minnesota	130	-	260
Nikola Mirotic	Chicago	128	2	258
Nerlens Noel	Philadelphia	125	2	252
Elfrid Payton	Orlando	121	8	250
Jordan Clarkson	L.A. Lakers	74	52	200

2014-15 NBA ALL-ROOKIE SECOND TEAM

Player	Team	First (2 pt)	Second (1 Pt)	Total
Marcus Smart	Boston	28	86	142
Zach LaVine	Minnesota	22	91	135
Bojan Bogdanovic	Brooklyn	7	93	107
Jusuf Nurkic	Denver	3	91	97
Langston Galloway	New York	7	58	72

23 UMC Student-Athletes Earn NSIC Spring All-Academic

BURNSVILLE, Minn.-  The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference announced that 636 student-athletes have earned NSIC All-Academic honors for the 2015 spring athletic season. The University of Minnesota Crookston had 23 student-athletes earn placement on the team with eight from softball, six from baseball, four from men’s golf and women’s golf and one from women’s tennis.

To be eligible for this honor, the student-athlete must be a member of the varsity traveling team and have a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 or higher. Furthermore, the athlete must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at her/his institution (true freshmen, red-shirt freshmen and ineligible athletic transfers are not eligible) and must have completed at least one full academic year at that institution.

For the baseball team, Marcus Campbell (Jr., St. Croix Falls, Wis./Golf and Turf Management), Ryan Haggstrom (Jr., Apple Valley, Minn./Accounting), Colton Haight (Jr., Rogers, Minn./Sports and Rec Management), Richie Navratil (Sr., Blansko, Czech Republic/Management), Jesse Jennings (Sr., Robbinsdale, Minn./Criminal Justice) and Travis Magdzas (Sr., Duluth, Minn./Criminal Justice) earned placement on the team.

For the softball team, Kaylin Beatty (Jr., Andover, Minn./Animal Science), Bailey Braatz (So., Buffalo, Minn./Sports and Rec Management), Allison Foley (Jr., Lockport, Ill./Accounting), Shelby Hollinger (Sr., Neudorf, Saskatchewan), Josee Plante (Sr., Manitou, Manitoba/Health Science), Brooke Vatthauer (Sr., Crookston, Minn./Health Science), Ashley Hoyle (Jr., Blaine, Minn./Animal Science) and Alexis Khoshaba (Jr., Richmond, British Columbia/Sports and Rec Management) earned spots on the All-Academic team.

For the men’s golf team, Zach Cymbaluk (Sr., Crookston, Minn./Natural Resources), Michael Roedl (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn./Management), Jesse Roscoe (Sr., Big Stone City, S.D.) and Matt Bjorgo (Sr., Crookston, Minn./Information Technology Management) earned placement on the team.

For the women’s golf team, Baillee Hauser (So., Raymond, Minn./Health Management), Mary Mikutowski (Sr., Stillwater, Minn./Health Science), Rikki Roscoe (Jr., Big Stone City, S.D./Communications) and Katie Sheetz (Jr., Grand Rapids, Minn./Biology) were named to the All-Academic team.

And for the women’s tennis team Catherine Brown (Jr., Powell Butte, Ore./Animal Science) earned a spot on the team.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.

NDSU's Kading Earns Spot on Capital One Academic All-District Team

FARGO, N.D. – North Dakota State University junior Chris Kading was voted to the Capital One Academic All-District men’s basketball team announced Thursday, Feb. 5, by the College Sports Information Directors of America

Kading, a De Pere, Wis., native, advances to the national ballot for Capital One Academic All-America honors to be announced later this month.

To be eligible for Academic All-District and Academic All-America consideration, a student-athlete must be a starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade-point average of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution.

Kading owns a 3.80 cumulative GPA in exercise science. He is averaging 5.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game for the Bison this season. Kading scored a season-high 13 points at Montana State on Nov. 30 and pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds at IUPUI on Jan. 22.

Kading has played in 87 of 89 games in his career, ranking ninth in school history in blocked shots.

Capital One Academic All-District Team (District 6)

Division I

First Team

Name, School, Year, Hometown, GPA, Major

Brandon Bos, South Dakota, Sr., Markham, Ontario, 3.57, Kinesiology & sports science

Mike Gesell, Iowa, Jr., South Sioux City, Neb., 3.93, Finance

Chris Kading, North Dakota State, Jr., De Pere, Wis., 3.80, Exercise science

Tylor Ongwae, Louisiana-Monroe, Sr., Eldoret, Kenya, 3.45, Business management

Jarrod Uthoff, Iowa, Jr., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 3.34, Economics

Gophers to Retire Randy Breuer’s Jersey Saturday

​MINNEAPOLIS – Gopher great Randy Breuer will have his jersey retired at Saturday’s Minnesota-Illinois men’s basketball game, which begins at 1:15 p.m. at Williams Arena.

"We're extremely pleased to honor Randy in this way," said Minnesota athletic director Norwood Teague. "Gopher fans love Randy and are so grateful to him for the passion and dedication he brought to the Gophers and the way he represented the University while he was here. This will be a day for all Gopher fans to celebrate Randy and all of his accomplishments."

The 7’3” Breuer, a member of the Gophers from 1979-1983, led the Maroon and Gold to a Big Ten Championship title in 1982. The Lake City, Minn., native was voted the team MVP in 1983 after leading the Gophers in scoring, rebounds and blocked shots for the third consecutive season. A two-time All-Big Ten first team selection, Breuer's name still reads in the Minnesota record books as he sits third on the All-Time Leading Scorers list with 1,777 points and second with 229 career blocks. He is one of only five Gophers all-time to record more than 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, and 150 blocks.

"Randy ended his career with the Gophers in nearly every category of the record books," said former Minnesota head coach Jim Dutcher. "He had a great career here and for three consecutive years he led the team in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots; to do that is pretty impressive. He was an incredible player and is very deserving of the honor of having his jersey retired with the best of Minnesota basketball players."

Following his collegiate career, Breuer played in the NBA for eleven seasons, including a three-year stint with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He was selected 18th overall in the 1983 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, and in his career totaled 4,599 points, 2,986 rebounds and 750 blocks.

The jersey retirement ceremony, along with the unveiling of a banner in the Williams Arena rafters, will take place at halftime of the Gophers-Illini game. 

NDSU’s Emanuel, Heagle Named to Walter Camp FCS All-America Team

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - North Dakota State defensive end Kyle Emanuel and strong safety Colten Heagle were named to the Walter Camp FCS All-America Team on Tuesday, Dec. 16, by a vote of head coaches and sports information directors from FCS schools.

It's the second All-America honor for both players this season.  Emanuel and Heagle were named to the FCS Coaches' All-America team by the American Football Coaches Association on Monday.  Emanuel also was named the Buck Buchanan Award winner as the top defensive player in the FCS.

No. 2 seed North Dakota State (13-1) hosts Sam Houston State (11-4) in an NCAA semifinal game at 7:10 p.m. Friday, Dec. 19, at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome.  The game will be televised live on ESPN2.

2014 Walter Camp FCS All-America Team
Offense
WR - De'Andre Carter, Sr., Sacramento State
WR - RJ Harris, Jr., New Hampshire
TE - MyCole Pruitt, Sr., Southern Illinois
OL - Mike Coccia, RFr., New Hampshire
OL - Jack Rummels, Sr., Northern Iowa
OL - Colin Seibert, RJr., Eastern Illinois
OL - Jake Rodgers, Jr., Eastern Washington
C - Max Holcombe, Jr., Jacksonville State
QB - John Robertson, Jr., Villanova
RB - **Zach Zenner, Sr., South Dakota State
RB - Marshaun Coprich, Jr., Illinois State
PK - Michael Schmadeke, Jr., Northern Iowa

Defense
DL - Zack Wagenmann, Sr., Montana
DL - Kyle Emanuel, Jr., North Dakota State
DL - Javon Hargrave, Jr., South Carolina State
DL - James Cowser, Jr., Southern Utah
LB - Nick Dzubner, Sr., Cal Poly
LB - *Quinn Backus, Sr., Coastal Carolina
LB - Don Cherry, Jr., Villanova
DB - *Caleb Schaffitzel, Sr., Missouri State
DB - Colten Heagle, Sr., North Dakota State
DB - Jacob Hagen, Sr., Liberty
DB - Donald Payne, So., Stetson
P - *Kyle Loomis, Sr., Portland State
KR - Pokey Harris, Jr., Murray State

* Walter Camp FCS All-America in 2013
** Walter Camp FCS All-America in 2012 and 2013