Northwestern at Hastings

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Game Time... Northwestern will play its final road game of the regular season this weekend as they take on 20th-ranked Hastings on Saturday, Feb. 13 at 4:00pm. The Red Raiders have won three straight games and are currently in sixth place in the GPAC with a 9-6 record. They are 14-11 overall. The Broncos have won six straight games and moved into the top 25 for the first time since January of 2008. They are in second place in the GPAC with a 12-3 record and trail first place Dakota Wesleyan by two games. They are 21-5 overall. Watch/listen live to the top 25 match-up via the Hastings webcast at the following link: Watch/Listen Now! \\

All-Time Records... The Red Raiders hold a 24-13 all-time advantage in the season series and are 8-2 over the last 10 match-ups. Last year, the two teams split their two games, each winning on the road. Northwestern defeated Hastings 85-81 in early January while the Broncos got their revenge in the GPAC quarterfinals and knocked off NWC 89-70 in Orange City, Iowa.

Scouting Hastings...Head Coach Lance Creech is in his seventh season with the Broncos and returns four starters and his top five scorers from a 2008-09 team that finished tied for fourth in the GPAC with an 11-7 record, 18-15 overall. They lost to USF in the GPAC semifinals. Two years ago, the Broncos finished in sixth place with a 9-9 record, 20-12 overall. Picked to finish sixth in the GPAC preseason coaches' poll, Hastings is enjoying one of its best seasons and is currently in second place in the GPAC (12-3) with three games left in the regular season. They moved into the top 25 for the first time since 2008, coming in at #20 in the Feb. 8 poll.

The Broncos have won six straight and have not lost since a 74-67 setback to Dordt College on Jan. 16. Most recently, they recorded wins over Nebraska Wesleyan, Midland Lutheran, Morningside, Concordia, Briar Cliff and Doane. Jeremiah Slough scored a game-high 26 points and made an impressive 6-of-8 three-pointers in leading Hastings to a big 99-71 win over Doane on Feb. 10. The Broncos shot 55% for the game and made 15 three-pointers, shooting 42% from beyond the arc. Derek Fletcher added 20 points and Brent McNurlin netted 17, going a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.

Hastings ranks third in the NAIA with 213 three-pointers, averaging nearly nine per game. The Broncos are second in the GPAC in both scoring (84ppg) and three-point percentage (37%). They also rank first in the conference in field goal percentage defense (42%) and are third in steals (251).

Senior guards Wade Vontz and Jeremiah Slough lead a balanced scoring attack that features three players scoring in double figures and three more players scoring better than seven point per game. One of the best perimeter threats in the NAIA, Vontz , a 6-1 guard, ranks 10th in the nation with 75 three-pointers and averages 18ppg, fifth best in the GPAC. Slough, the defensive player of the year and first team all-GPAC player in 2008-09, averages 17.5 points and 4.8 boards per game. Also a perimeter threat, Slough is shooting 42% from beyond the arc and has 55 three-pointers this season. Earlier this year, he set a GPAC record by scoring 61 points against Midland Lutheran, just three points shy of the NAIA record. Slough also leads the conference with 158 assists and ranks second in steals (70). Junior Derek Fletcher, a 6-7 forward, averages over 13 points and five rebounds per game to go with 65 three-pointers. Jake Marvin, a 6-8 freshman, averages 9.7 points per game and ranks ninth in blocked shots (26).  Kylor Dossett rounds out the starting line-up and averages eight points and a team-best 5.8 rebounds per game. Brent McNurlin comes off the bench to score 7.2 points per game.

Red Raider Notes...Northwestern has won three straight games and occupies the sixth spot in the GPAC regular season standings. They are 9-6 in conference play, 14-11 overall with three games left in the regular season. Last time out, the Red Raiders defeated Morningside at home, 73-71, on a go-ahead jumper by Ben Miller with three seconds left in regulation. Miller, Daniel Van Kalsbeek and Walker Seim all scored 16 points while Ryan Hoogeveen netted 11.

NWC continues to be the highest scoring team in the conference averaging nearly 85 points per game. The Red Raiders are shooting 47% from the field, 37% from beyond the arc and rank fourth in rebounding (+3).

Individually, Northwestern features both the second and third leading scorers in the GPAC in freshman Daniel Van Kalsbeek and sophomore Walker Seim. The inside/outside pair averages 19.4 and 18.7 points per game, respectively.Van Kalsbeek shoots a team-best 56% from the floor and also ranks among the GPAC's best in rebounds (7.1) and blocked shots (35). Seim ranks fourth in the NAIA with 90 three-point baskets, shooting 46% from beyond the arc, seventh best in the NAIA. Ben Miller is the other NWC player scoring in double figures at an even 12 points per game to go with 6.6 boards per contest. Ryan Hoogeveen and Mike Vorwald are the other two starters for Coach Korver's squad, averaging 8.3 and 3.0 points per game, respectively. Vorwald ranks fourth in the conference with 119 assists while Hoogeveen averages 5.4 rebounds to go with 67 assists. Sophomore Ryan Stock provides the scoring off the Raider bench, putting in 7.2 points per game. He has 30 three-pointers this season.

Up Next...The Raiders return home to play their final two regular season games in the Bultman Center, beginning with Wednesday night, Feb. 17, against the GPAC leaders, Dakota Wesleyan. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 pm.