ST. BONIFACIUS, Minn. --- After a Wild Card Monday win over UM-Morris on Monday night, Crown College (16-9, 10-6, 1-0) heads to the University of Northwestern (19-6, 15-1, 0-0) for the second round of the UMAC Playoffs at the Erickson Center in Roseville. The Eagles may have been hoping for a different result in Monday's action, as the Storm are the only team to beat them in conference play this season. Thursday's UMAC tilt will tip at 7 p.m. and can be streamed for free at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/unw/.

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How Crown Got Here:

The #4-seeded Crown Storm started out hot in conference play, winning their first four UMAC games including and had an early signature win over their current opponents, the future #1-seed Northwestern Eagles. However, the Storm then dropped three straight conference games. They split for a while, before embarking on a four-game winning streak to solidify their place in the UMAC Playoffs. The Storm ended the season with a game against St. Scholastica where the winner would take the #3-seed in the Playoffs, but the Storm fell to the Saints by a single point and ended up with a matchup with the Cougars on Wild Card Monday. In the matchup against Morris, it was a back and forth game at first, and the Storm went into halftime with only a six point lead. However, they pulled away late and led for the last 12 minutes to defeat the Cougars and advance. Junior forward had a 34 points, 12 rebound double-double and senior guard Josh Volness had 21 points in the opening round. 

How Northwestern Got Here:

It took the Eagles a while to find their footing this season, as they started out 2-4 and suffered an early defeats from Macalester, Gustavus, and UW-River Falls. From there, they won two straight UMAC contests before the Storm blew their streak in St. Bonifacius. After a couple more non-conference losses to Pacific and Buena Vista, the Eagles have knocked off 13-straight wins, all in league play. The Eagles come in to the game far and away the hottest team in the UMAC and haven't had a team within single digits on their home court since January 23 (the Storm once again). 
 

Keys to Win for Both Teams:

Northwestern: It likely will come down to how they defend Tim Wendel. In their early-season loss to the Storm, Wendel tied an NCAA-school record with 40 points on 13/21 from the field and added 13 rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block. However, in the second game against the Storm, they held Wendel to only 13 points on 4/11 (with 17 rebounds) and were able to find a victory. Additionally, they need to keep the Storm from making their three-point attempts. The Storm are 12-3 in games which they shot the three 36% or above. 

Crown: Northwestern has a deep team and will lean into the bench, with every single person having the ability to go off and change the game. In Crown's early season win, it was first-year guard Michael Moore who scored 30 points. Later this season, sophomore guard Noah Alm scored 41 points at Bethany Lutheran off the bench. Another key for the Storm will be rebounding the basketball, having an up and down year from a rebounding perspective, the Storm will have their work cut out for them with junior guard Tanner Youngberg on the glass, he currently leads the conference in rebounds per game.     
 

Crown College Projected Starting Five:

Junior Forward Timothy Wendel: 22.4 ppg / 9.5 rpg / 2.4 apg
Junior Forward Gunnar Ledin: 13.8 ppg / 2.8 rpg / 1.3 apg
Senior Guard Josh Volness: 13.2 ppg / 3.6 rpg / 2.9 apg
Senior Guard Keegan Oyugi: 11.9 ppg / 3.8 rpg / 4.3 apg
Junior Forward Kole Jusczak: 5.4 ppg / 5.9 rpg / 0.7 apg  

Crown College Potential Impact Bench Players: 

Sophomore Forward/Guard Christian Moore: 10.6 ppg / 5.3 rpg / 1.5 apg
Junior Forward Torry Ledin: 7.1 ppg / 1.0 rpg / 0.5 apg
Senior Forward Logan Strand: 3.5 ppg / 3.5 rpg / 0.4 apg
Senior Guard D'Andre Caster: 2.6 ppg / 2.3 rpg / 1.2 apg  

Northwestern Projected Starting Five:

Junior Forward Tanner Youngberg: 13.7 ppg / 10.0 rpg / 2.9 apg
Senior Guard Anderson Bazile Jr.: 13.4 ppg / 3.0 rpg / 2.2 apg
Senior Guard Caleb Hageman: 12.8 ppg / 5.3 rpg / 2.6 apg
First-year Guard Michael Moore: 10.9 ppg / 4.3 rpg / 4.2 apg
Senior Forward Brady Bellefeuille: 9.8 ppg / 4.7 rpg / 0.8 apg  

Northwestern Potential Impact Bench Players: 

Sophomore Guard Noah Alm: 11.7 ppg / 3.0 rpg / 1.2 apg
Junior Guard Brady Peterson: 7.6 ppg / 3.9 rpg / 1.7 apg
Sophomore Guard Johnny Erickson: 7.4 ppg / 2.6 rpg / 2.4 apg
 

Last Five Matchups:

Jan. 23, 2019 at Northwestern: Crown 87, Northwestern 95. 
Dec. 11, 2018 at Crown: Northwestern 82, Crown 96
Jan. 24, 2018 at Crown: Northwestern 76, Crown 83
Dec.. 13, 2017 at Northwestern: Crown 79, Northwestern 75
Feb. 11, 2017 at Northwestern: Crown 60, Northwestern 85
Crown is 3-2 in the past five contests. 


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