SPEARFISH, S.D. – The Black Hills State University men's basketball team returns home to host Colorado Christian University and Regis University this weekend. The Yellow Jackets welcome CCU at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, before taking on Regis at 6 p.m. on Saturday.
THE GAME – Colorado Christian University Cougars
» The Yellow Jackets and Cougars split last season's meetings, with CCU winning in Lakewood, 85-80, before BHSU won in Spearfish, 84-74.
» Colorado Christian is 2-11 overall, and winless in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action. Most recently, the Cougars fell to New Mexico Highlands (86-80) and CSU-Pueblo (102-62).
» The team scores 71.1 points per game, allowing 81.6 ppg. Three Cougars score in double figures, led by Braxton Tucker who averages 13.6 points per game and also pulls down a team-high 6.6 rebounds per game. Jeremiah Hanson (13.5 ppg) and Justin Engesser (12.1 ppg) also average double figure scoring.
THE GAME – Regis University Rangers
» The Yellow Jackets and Rangers met three times in the 2017-18 season, including in the first round of the RMAC Tournament. BHSU won the first meeting, 75-74. Regis took the second two games, including a 78-66 win in the conference tournament, which ended the season for the Green and Gold.
» Regis is 8-5 overall this season, and is 5-2 in conference play. The Rangers enter the weekend in South Dakota on a two-game winning streak, taking down New Mexico Highlands (93-90) and CSU-Pueblo (84-53) to open 2019.
» The team scores 78.7 ppg, led by Jarrett Brodbeck, who scores 18.1 points per game. Christian Little also averages double figure scoring, putting up 15.8 ppg. Ryan Beisty leads the squad in rebounding, pulling down 7.5 boards per game.
THE COACHES
» Ryan Thompson enters his first year at the helm of the Yellow Jackets after spending the previous three years as the assistant coach. He recorded his first win as the head coach in a 65-62 victory over Augustana (Nov. 17, 2018).
» Jeff Hironaka is in his second year as the head coach of the Cougars. Prior to coming to CCU, he was the head assistant at Portland State for four years.
» Brady Bergeson is in his fourth year at the helm of Regis. He led the Regis to a program-high 27 wins in 2017-18.
Last Time Out
The Yellow Jackets took down Western State Colorado University on Friday, 77-69, before falling for the first time in RMAC play on Saturday. BHSU lost to Colorado Mesa, 78-74.
In the win over Western, Stefan Desnica led the way with 19 points and seven rebounds. Tyler Oliver added 13 points, Dez Stoudamire had 12, and Connor O'Hearn added 10 points in the victory.
Fraser Malcolm led the way with 20 points as the Yellow Jackets had their six-game winning streak snapped at CMU. Oliver recorded 15 points and five assists, and O'Hearn added 11 points.
Denied
The Yellow Jackets are averaging 3.1 blocks per game so far this season. That is good for sixth in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. Antonio Capley averages 1.2 blocks per game, which puts him tied for sixth in the RMAC.
Score on 'Em
Fraser Malcolm is currently averaging 15.4 points per game to lead BHSU, which is also good for 12th in the league.
Defense First
The Yellow Jackets are allowing just 69.5 points per game scored against them, which is second in the RMAC. Teams are making just 43.0 percent of their shots against BHSU, which is best in the conference.
Charity Stripe Work
BHSU currently leads the league in free throw percentage, making 76.4 percent from the line. Makaleb McInnis is tied for third in the RMAC, making 88 percent of his shots from the free throw line.
Downtown Living
The Green and Gold currently sit third in the conference in three-point field goals made per game, with 9.1. The team has made double-digit treys in six of 11 games so far. Individually, Dez Stoudamire's 2.5 three-pointers per game is sixth in the RMAC.
Dish It
Tyler Oliver averages 2.9 assists per game, which puts him 14th in the RMAC.
Crash the Glass
Tyler Oliver is averaging 6.5 rebounds per game to lead the Yellow Jackets, which sits 10th in the conference. His 5.5 defensive rebounds per game is fourth in the league, and 112th in Division II. Stefan Desnica is 19th in the RMAC in rebounding, pulling down 5.7 boards per game. Desnica and Fraser Malcolm are tied for 13th in the RMAC in offensive rebounds per game, with 1.8.
Player of the Week
Junior Tyler Oliver was named the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week on December 17 for his play against Adams State and Fort Lewis. The guard averaged 19.5 ppg, 10.5 rpg, and 4.0 apg in the two games, as the Yellow Jackets moved to 5-0 in conference play for the first time as a member of Division II.
Weekend Sweep
The Yellow Jackets men's and women's basketball teams went 4-0 against Adams State and Fort Lewis on the road December 16-17. This was the first time since BHSU joined the RMAC (2012-13) that the two teams swept a weekend on the road. The Green and Gold are a combined 11-3 in league play during the 2018-19 season.
Six in a Row
BHSU opened Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play with six consecutive victories. The streak was the first time since the 2010-11 season that the Yellow Jackets won at least six games in a row. The Green and Gold won the Dakota Athletic Conference that year, and made it to the second round of the NAIA Tournament.
Moving On Up
Fraser Malcolm makes a number of appearances in the BHSU career record lists. Malcolm currently sits fifth in free throws made (191), fifth in field goals made (382), fourth in rebounds (490), and fourth in blocks (52). With one season to play, Malcolm was sixth in career points per game (11.2), fifth in field goal percentage (.459), seventh in rebounding average (5.5), and third in free throw percentage (.790). Also making an appearance in the career record lists is Antonio Capley, who currently has 40 blocks, good for sixth all time, and Stefan Desnica, who has 26 blocks to put him 10th.
First of Many
Head coach Ryan Thompson earned his first career win as the head coach of Black Hills State University against Augustana University, Nov. 17, 2018. The Yellow Jackets got the win, 65-62, in a back-and-forth affair at the East-West Challenge.
Preseason Nod
Fraser Malcolm was selected to the Preseason All-RMAC Team. He was one of 10 players to make the team, and earned the accolade after leading the Yellow Jackets in scoring and rebounding last year, tallying 14.2 points per game and 7.3 rebounds per game.
BHSU Picked Eighth by RMAC Coaches
Black Hills State was tabbed eighth in the RMAC Coaches' Poll with 116 points. Regis was voted to finish first with eight first place votes (216 points), while Colorado School of Mines (four first place votes), Fort Lewis (two first place votes), and Dixie State (two first place votes) were selected to finished second, third, and fourth, respectively, after all receiving at least two first place votes.
Post Season Accolade
Fraser Malcolm, after leading BHSU in scoring and rebounding, was named to the All-RMAC Second Team following the 2017-18 season.
All-Academic
Two Yellow Jackets were named to the RMAC All-Academic Honor Roll for the 2017-18 season. Stefan Desnica and Wyatt Krogman each earned the honor.
New Faces
The Yellow Jackets will be playing under the eye of a new head coach this season. Ryan Thompson, who acted as the BHSU Assistant Coach for the previous four seasons, now moves to the helm of the program. Coach Thompson welcomes seven newcomers as the Green and Gold will have a lot of new faces. Five freshmen and two transfers join nine returners.
National Team Representation
Fraser Malcolm played for the Scottish National Team at the Commonwealth Games in April 2018. Malcolm has now represented his country on five different occasions, however, this was his first appearance with the Senior Team.
International Relations
The Yellow Jacket men's basketball team has five players from across the oceans. Patrick Mendes and Edin Hanusa made their way to the Black Hills from Sweden. Fraser Malcolm traveled across the pond from Scotland, while Stefan Desnica and Sava Dukic both came from Serbia with a pit stop at San Gabriel Academy in California.
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Black Hills State is located in the Northern Black Hills of South Dakota, sponsoring 13 NCAA sports with membership in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the NCAA emerging sport of women's triathlon and NIRA rodeo. For all information regarding Yellow Jacket Athletics, please visit BHSUAthletics.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @BHSUAthletics.
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