Northwestern at Dordt

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Game Time... The Red Raiders will begin another chapter in their long-standing rivalry against Dordt College this evening in Sioux Center. Tipoff for the GPAC opener is at 8:00 pm in the DeWitt Gymnasium. The game will be web cast and can be heard on the NWC web-site.

Scouting Report... Dordt College comes in with a 4-2 overall record and have won their last four games since an 0-2 start. In fact, the Defenders' closest game during their four-game win streak is a 13 point win over Graceland in their last game. They began the season with losses at Jamestown (N.D.) and Valley City State (N.D.). Head Coach Greg Van Soelen's squad then went on to defeat Grand View (91-53), York (82-57), Grace University (Neb.)(97-61) and Graceland (87-74).

Dordt lost one starter off last year's squad which finished fifth in the GPAC and had a 21-12 overall record. Headlining the cast of returners for Coach Van Soelen's squad is senior guard Eric Van Maanen who earned first team all-GPAC honors last season. Van Maanen ranks 10th in the league in points (16) and in three point field goals (12) and is shooting 46% from beyond the arc. His back-court mate, sophomore Michael Eekhoff, is averaging 9.5 points per game and leads the conference with 32 assists. Eekhoff earned honorable mention all-league honors  last season as a freshman. A talented front court is led by junior Scott Van Zanten, an honorable mention all-GPAC selection in 2006-07. Van Zanten is putting in 10.7 points per game and is sixth in the league with 12 offensive rebounds. Logan Kingma, a sophomore who also earned honorable mention all-league honors last year, is averaging 10.5 points per game and is shooting 54% from the floor. Brian Eekhoff patrols the paint for the Defenders and is averaging 10.3 points and four rebounds per game. Chad Huenink, a 6-6 center, comes off the bench and is averaging 6.2 points per game. Mark Rowenhorst (5.8ppg) and Russ Griese (4.8ppg) are a pair of perimeter threats off the bench who have combined for 12 three pointers this season.

Dordt is averaging 84.2 points per game and is giving up just 67.8 point per game. They are third in the GPAC with a +12 rebounding margin and are shooting 49% from the floor.

Last Time Out... Dordt recorded their fourth straight victory as they knocked off Graceland, 87-74, last Saturday night. The game was tied at the half, 38-38, but the Defenders outscored Graceland 28-16 over the first 11 minutes of the second half to earn the win. Dordt forced 22 turnovers and shot 52% in the second half. Five Defenders were in double figures, led by Scott Van Zanten with 15. Logan Kingma, Michael Eekhoff, Brian Eekhoff and Chad Huenink each added 13.

Northwestern defeated York College, 102-58, for their fifth straight win on Nov. 13. The Red Raiders led 46-26 after the first half and continued their excellent play in the second half as they outscored the Panthers, 56-32. Four players scored in double figures, led by Andrew Stimson with 13 points. The junior went 4/4 from the three point line and also dished out eight assists. Mark DeYounge and Curt Schilling added 12 points each and Ben Brown added 11 with a trio of three point baskets. Northwestern out-rebounded York, 45-32, and committed just eight turnovers.

Red Raider Notes... With a win tonight, Head Coach Kris Korver, in his eighth season with the Red Raiders, will earn his 198th win and overtake Todd Barry (1990-2000) as the winning-est men's basketball coach in NWC history. He already has the best winning percentage (82%) in the program's history.

Northwestern leads the GPAC averaging 92 points per game and is shooting 53% from the field. Defensively, they are giving up 74 points per game and holding their opponents to just 43% from the floor. Seniors Curt Schilling and Chad Schuiteman lead this year's squad averaging 21.8 and 16.6 points per game, respectively. Both players have scored over 1,500 points in their careers and were NAIA All-Americans last season. Schuiteman ranks in the top five in points (1,774), rebounds (1,052), assists (455) and steals in his career and Schilling is seventh all-time with 177 three point baskets. Another senior, Mark DeYounge, is averaging 11.2 points per game and is shooting 56% from the floor. He has 771 points in his three + years as a Red Raider. Junior guards Andrew Stimson and Kale Wiertzema average 9.2 and 9.8 points per game. Wiertzema is fifth in the GPAC with 22 assists and fourth in the league in steals with 11. Stimson is seventh with 18 assists and has made 44% of his three point attempts. Josh Van Es (6ppg) and Travis Van Regenmorter (5ppg, 2 rpg) come off the bench in the front court and Ben Brown (4ppg) and Wade Vander Maten (3ppg) in the back-court.

The Series... Northwestern leads the all-time series 65-17 since 1965-66 and hold a 13-4 advantage since 2000. The Red Raiders won two of the three match-ups last season, falling 85-80 in overtime at home, winning 76-59 in Sioux Center and then eliminated Dordt in the GPAC semi's, 85-70.

Next up... Northwestern hosts the Northwestern Classic this weekend, Nov. 23-24, as they play Grace University on Friday and defending champion MidAmerica Nazarene on Saturday.