Dordt at Northwestern

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Game Time...Northwestern and Dordt College will renew their rivalry on Wednesday night as the Red Raiders host the Defenders at 8:00 pm. This is the second meeting between the county and GPAC rivals and features of pair of teams currently ranked in the top 25. Dordt comes in with a 14-7 overall mark, 8-3 in the GPAC while NWC is ranked 12th with a 17-3 record, 8-2 in the league.

Scouting Report... Dordt College has won six of their past seven games to move up to 24th in last week's NAIA rankings. Their lone setback during that stretch was a 78-67 home loss to top-ranked Morningside on Jan. 23. They have defeated the likes of S.D. Tech, Mount Marty, Nebraska Wesleyan, Dakota Wesleyan, USF and Midland Lutheran during that time.

Head Coach Greg Van Soelen, in his 13th season with the Defenders, has accumulated 210 wins and close to a .600 win percentage during his tenure. Last season, the Defenders placed fifth in the GPAC with an 11-7 record, 21-12 overall. Coach Van Soelen's squad returns all but one player from their regular rotation from last year, including first team all-conference guard, Eric Van Maanen. Van Maanen leads the team in scoring for the second consecutive year, averaging 15.2 points per game which is eighth best in the league. He leads the Defenders with 37 three pointers and is shooting 48% from beyond the arc. Van Maanen is joined in the back-court by sophomore Michael Eekhoff, who averages 11.5 points per game and ranks fifth in the league with 81 assists. On the wing, the Defenders boast a pair of honorable mention players from last year, Logan Kingma and Scott Van Zanten. Kingma, the GPAC Freshman of the Year in 2006-07, is 6-6 sophomore and averages 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Van Zanten, who also earned Freshman of the Year honors, is 6-7 and averages 10.4 points and six rebounds per game. Van Zanten ranks sixth in the GPAC with 44 offensive rebounds and he and Kingma have combined for 45 three point baskets. Rounding out the starting lineup is 6-6 post Brian Eekhoff. The senior is the fifth Defender player averaging in double figures at 10.7 points per game and is second in the GPAC with 50 offensive rebounds. Off the bench, Dordt will bring in junior guard Mark Rowenhorst and seniors Chad Huenink and Russ Griese. Huenink averages 5.9 points per game in the post while Rowenhorst and Griese provide the perimeter punch with 27 three pointers combined.

Dordt as a team ranks fourth in the league averaging just under 80 points per game and sixth in field goal percentage at 47%. Defensively, they are giving up 71ppg and teams are shooting 46% from the floor. Dordt is third in the league in rebounding (+7) and averaged just 14 turnovers per game.

Last Time Out... The Defenders earned a road win last Saturday as they knocked off Midland Lutheran, 75-58. Dordt led by six at halftime (40-34) and used a early second half run to put the game away. Michael Eekhoff led three DC players in double figures with 21 points. He also dished out eight assists. Eric Van Maanen and Scott Van Zanten scored 19 and 14 points, respectively.

The Red Raiders defeated Dana College 88-59 in a GPAC men's basketball contest played in Blair, Neb. Coach Korver's squad began the game with a 13-0 run and led by at least 10 points almost the entire way. NWC led 39-25 at halftime and went on runs of 12-1 and 15-1 in the second half en route to the 29 point victory.  For the second straight game, Mark DeYounge led the Red Raiders in scoring with 15 points. Andrew Stimson added 13 points while Curt Schilling and Ben Brown netted 12 and 10 points, respectively. The Red Raiders dominated the glass, 43-31, including 16 offensive rebounds.

Red Raider Notes...NWC leads the GPAC in scoring offense (88.4ppg) and field goal percentage (52%). They rank fourth in the league in rebounding (+6) and lead the GPAC in assists (18/gm). Defensively, the Red Raiders give up 76ppg and teams are shooting 45% from the field but just 33% from beyond the arc.

Four players average in double figures for Coach Korver's squad, led by Curt Schilling at a league-best 19.5ppg. Schilling, who has scored 1,811 points in his career at NWC, leads the GPAC with 60 three pointers and is fourth all-time in school history with 223. He is shooting 55% from the field and 90% from the free throw line. Chad Schuiteman averages a double-double per game with 15 points and a league-best 11.5 rebounds. Schuiteman needs just eight more points to reach 2,000 points in his career, fourth best in school history. He also leads the GPAC with 46 steals and second with 89 assists. Kale Wiertzema averages 12.8ppg and shoots 44% from beyond the arc, 10th best in the league. He is fourth in the GPAC with 79 assists. Mark DeYounge is the final Red Raider in double figures with 10.1ppg. DeYounge, who has scored over 900 points in his career, is shooting 53% from the field. Andrew Stimson runs the point and rounds out the starting lineup. Stimson is averaging 8.3ppg and has dished out 54 assists this season. Ryan Hoogeveen (5.4ppg), Ben Brown (5.2ppg), Travis Van Regenmorter (4.5ppg) and Josh Van Es (3.7ppg) are the top reserves for NWC.

Last Meeting... Dordt upset the then second-ranked Red Raiders back on Nov. 20, 104-89, in Sioux Center. The Defenders jumped out to a big first half lead before NWC came back and held a brief lead, 37-36, on a Curt Schilling three pointer. The score was tied at 40 at halftime. Dordt, however, began the second half on a 15-5 run and never trailed after that. Northwestern cut the lead down to three with 11 minutes left but could not retake the lead. Kale Wiertzema scored a game-high26 points to lead four NWC players in double figures. Dordt had six players in double figures, led by Logan Kingma with 23. Dordt made 28 of 41 free throws compared to just 14/21 by the Red Raiders.

Next up...NWC will host Nebraska Wesleyan on Saturday, Feb. 2.