Game Time...Ranked teams meet up Wednesday night as No.9 Northwestern plays at No.10 Dakota Wesleyan for a conference showdown in Mitchell, S.D. Tip-off at the Corn Palace is scheduled for 6pm. Both teams are 15-3 and tied for second in the current GPAC standings, two games in back of first place Concordia and two games up on Hastings with a pair of games remaining in the regular season. Northwestern is 20-6 overall and DWU is 24-4 overall. 

Follow the game live, via the DWU webcast, at this link: Watch Now!

All-Time...Northwestern leads the all-time series 38-16 (since 1982-83) but is an even 5-5 over the last 10 match-ups against DWU. The Red Raiders snapped a four-game losing skid to the Tigers with a 69-56 home win on Jan. 10. Northwestern has not defeated DWU in Mitchell since 2014-15. 

Last Time vs DWU...Darbi Gustafson and Renee Maneman both scored 16 points in leading then-No.14 Northwestern to a 69-56 win over then-No.8 Dakota Wesleyan on Jan. 10. 

Gustafson picked up her fifth double-double of the season, scoring 16 points to go with 10 rebounds, making 7-of-11 field goal attempts. Maneman also scored 16 points and finished one assist shy of her fifth double-double of the season, closing the game with nine. Breana Schuiteman added 14 points, 12 in the first half, going 4-for-5 from beyond the arc. 

After the teams traded baskets for the first five minutes, Schuiteman knocked down her first three-pointer and began an 8-1 Northwestern run that led to a 22-17 lead by the end of the first quarter. Following a basket by DWU senior Ashley Bray to start the second quarter, Northwestern scored the next six points on baskets by Maneman, Anna Kiel and Kassidy De Jong to extend its lead to nine (28-19). A five-point game with 4:57 left in the quarter, Northwestern scored 13 straight points and outscored DWU 13-3 over the final five minutes to take a 45-30 halftime lead. The Red Raiders limited the Tigers to one field goal, a three-pointer by Bray with under a minute left, during the surge. 

A basket by Gustafson put NWC up 17 at the start of the second half but Dakota Wesleyan outscored the hosts 16-9 over the rest of the period to make it a 10-point game, 56-46, at the end of the third. Bray scored the first points of the final quarter, cutting the Red Raider lead to eight (56-48) at the eight-minute mark. Haley Birks knocked down a three-pointer on the next possession, however, to start a 9-2 Northwestern run to put the game away. 

Northwestern shot 49% for the game, 41% (7/17) from beyond the arc, compared to 46% by DWU. The Red Raiders dominated the boards against one of the top rebounding teams in the NAIA, holding a 37-22 edge on the glass. 

Dakota Wesleyan was led by Ashley Bray with 18 points, followed by Amber Bray with 11. 

Scouting Reports...

    No.10 Dakota Wesleyan Tigers: 15-3 (T2nd), 24-4 overall    Head Coach: Jason Christensen (8th year)

DWU has won nine straight games since its loss to Northwestern on Jan.10 and is tied with the Red Raiders for second place in the GPAC with a showdown against No.2 Concordia looming this weekend. The Tigers' other three losses are to the Bulldogs, Hastings and Taylor (Ind.) in a non-conference game played on Dec. 30. During its current win streak, DWU has wins over three ranked teams, Jamestown, Morningside and Hastings.

Now in his eighth season as the DWU head coach, Christensen is already the program's winningest and longest tenured head coach. He came to DWU after a successful stint (9 years) as the head coach at Mount Vernon High School. Christensen returns four starters and eight players from a 2016-17 team that finished second in the GPAC at 15-5, 27-7 overall, tied for the third most wins in a single season. They lost to Eastern Oregon in the second round of the NAIA D-II Championship. 

By the Numbers: (GPAC rank / NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 82.3ppg (2nd / 7th)
    Scoring Defense: 58.3ppg (2nd)
    Field Goal Percentage: 49% (1st / 2nd)
    3pt Percentage: 36% (3rd), 205 3pters (5th) 
    Free Throw Percentage: 78% (1st / 4th)
    Rebound Margin: +13 (1st / 3rd)

Top Players:  (GPAC rank / NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Ashley Bray (All-American;3x All-Conference)  15ppg (6th), 57% FG (3rd), 48% 3pt (1st /8th), 5.6rpg
    Amber Bray (2x All-Conf)  14.3ppg (8th), 56% FG, 51% 3pt 
    Kynedi Cheeseman 14.1ppg (9th), 53 3pters (9th), 3.9 rpg, 83 assists
    Riley Osthus  (All-Conference)  9.6ppg, 51% FG, 139 assists (2nd / 9th)

No.9 Northwestern College: 14-3 (T2nd), 19-6    Head Coach: Chris Yaw (7th year)

Since losing to Concordia on Feb. 3, Northwestern defeated Mount Marty and Midland at home last week. The Red Raiders have won 12 of their last 13 games and is tied with DWU for second with a match-up against Doane awaiting this weekend. Northwestern improved to 20-6 overall with its win over Midland on Saturday, reaching 20 wins back-to-back seasons and for the 16th time overall. 

By the Numbers: (GPAC rank / NAIA rank-if top 10)
    Scoring Offense: 79.5ppg (4th)
    Scoring Defense: 64.6ppg (3rd)
    Field Goal Percentage: 49% (2nd /3rd)
    3pt Percentage: 35% (7th), 171 3pters (8th)
    Free Throw Percentage: 75% (4th)
    Rebound Margin: +8 (2nd)

Top Players: (GPAC rank / NAIA rank-if top 10) *returning starter
    *Kassidy De Jong (All-American) 17.5ppg (2nd), 7.6rpg (T2nd), 42 assists
     *Darbi Gustafson (All-Conference)  14.4ppg (7th), 7.6rpg (T2nd), 59% (2nd / 10th)
     Anna Kiel (All-Conference)  13.6ppg, 65% FG, 5.8rpg
    *Renee Maneman  (All-Conference) 10.1ppg, 3.9rpg, 230 assists (1st /1st)
     *Haley Birks (All-Conference) 8.3ppg, 4.3rpg, 32 blocks (3rd)    
     *Paige Danner  7.2ppg, 38 3pters, 35% 3pt FG 

Northwestern has outrebounded its opponent in 21 of 26 games

Red Raiders have shot better than its opponent in 23 of 26 games

Gustafson leads the GPAC with eight double-doubles this season

Maneman and De Jong are tied for fourth in the GPAC with six double-doubles