It may be summer but college basketball programs never truly hit an offseason. There's almost always some kind of action for each of the 24 D2 men’s basketball conferences, and something to discuss, including a 2015-16 review, BennettRank and how each program performed versus the preseason polls. In some cases, there have been coaching changes plus some key losses, not to mention returning players to watch.
We conclude our look at the Central Region with our recap of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
2015-2016 NSIC Standings | BennettRank (BR) Recap
|
COLLEGE |
PRESEASON BR |
POLL |
OVERALL RECORD |
CONF. RECORD |
FINISH |
FINAL BR |
|
NORTH DIVISION |
||||||
|
4 |
1 |
30-6 |
19-3 |
1 |
20 |
|
|
48 |
2 |
18-12 |
13-9 |
2 |
118 |
|
|
178 |
6 |
19-12 |
12-10 |
3 |
154 |
|
|
111 |
4 |
15-14 |
11-11 |
4 |
147 |
|
|
63 |
3 |
13-16 |
10-12 |
5 |
184 |
|
|
173 |
5 |
15-14 |
10-12 |
6 |
175 |
|
|
207 |
7 |
10-17 |
7-15 |
7 |
247 |
|
|
262 |
8 |
3-24 |
1-21 |
8 |
301 |
|
|
SOUTH DIVISION |
||||||
|
2 |
1 |
34-2 |
21-1 |
1 |
1 |
|
|
13 |
2 |
22-10 |
15-7 |
2 |
98 |
|
|
102 |
3 |
16-13 |
13-9 |
3 |
110 |
|
|
91 |
6 |
16-17 |
11-11 |
4 |
117 |
|
|
185 |
7 |
17-13 |
11-11 |
5 |
125 |
|
|
95 |
5 |
13-15 |
10-12 |
6 |
216 |
|
|
133 |
4 |
13-15 |
9-13 |
7 |
145 |
|
|
227 |
8 |
5-24 |
3-19 |
8 |
283 |
|
[divider]
NCAA Tournament Recap
CENTRAL REGIONAL QUARTERFINALS (First Round)
Augustana 100, Harding 85
Minnesota State 85, Minnesota State-Moorhead 81
CENTRAL REGIONAL SEMIFINALS (Second Round)
Augustana 77, Nebraska-Kearney 67
NW Missouri State 82, Minnesota State-Mankato 60
CENTRAL REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP (Third Round)
Augustana 80, NW Missouri State 78
NATIONAL QUARTERFINALS (Elite Eight)
Augustana 86, Tarleton State 79
NATIONAL SEMIFINALS (Final Four)
Augustana 74, Western Oregon 55
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Augustana 90, Lincoln Memorial 81
[divider]
Coaching Changes
Wayne State (Neb.): Valley City State (NAIA) head coach Jeff Kaminsky will be the new head coach at Wayne State. Kaminsky, who also was the head coach at Wisconsin-Superior (D3), replaces Brian Dolan, who was fired after three seasons and a 20-65 record.
“Jeff has numerous years of head coaching experience at various levels and brings a track record of successfully re-building programs in challenging situations. Jeff showed he has a vision for the future of Wildcat men's basketball and a clear plan for how to get there. I am confident he is ready for the challenge of turning Wildcat men's basketball into a contender.” — Wayne State AD Mike Powicki
[divider]
All-NSIC Performers
Key Losses
Dan Jansen, C, Augustana: 20.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg (First Team)
Alex Richter, F, Augustana: 14.5 ppg (First Team)
Casey Schilling, F, Augustana: 19.6 ppg, 9.7 rpg (First Team)
Pierre Newton, G, Minnesota Duluth: 20.5 ppg, 6.9 rpg (First Team)
Jalen Pendleton, G, Minnesota State Mankato: 18.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg (First Team)
Isaac Sevlie, C, Minnesota State Moorhead: 22.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg (First Team)
Cole Olstad, G, Concordia-St. Paul: 15.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg (Second Team)
Taylor Lavery, G, Minnesota Duluth: 17.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg (Second Team)
Tyler Vaughan, G, Minnesota State Moorhead: 12.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg (Second Team)
Skye Warwick, G, Northern State: 14.6 ppg (Second Team)
Key Returnees
Jordan Spencer, Jr. G, Augustana: 9.1 ppg, 6.8 apg (Second Team)
Bryan Jefferson, Sr. F, Mary: 15.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg (First Team)
Jon Fuqua, Sr. F, Minnesota State Mankato: 15.7 ppg, 7.7 rpg (Second Team)
Tanner Kretchman, Jr. G, Minnesota State Moorhead: 14.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg (First Team)
Gage Davis, Soph. G/F, St. Cloud State: 19.7 ppg, 8.0 rpg (First Team)
Mack Johnson, Sr. G, Sioux Falls: 17.5 ppg (First Team)
Tyler Rudolph, Jr. F, Minot State: 17.5 ppg, 8.7 rpg (Second Team)
Darin Peterka, Sr. G, Northern State: 14.1 ppg, 4.4 apg (Second Team)
Scottie Stone, Sr. G, St. Cloud State: 19.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg (Second Team)
Kyle Bauman, Sr. F, Winona State: 14.6 ppg, 6.3 rpg (Second Team)
[divider]
Circle the Date
Dec. 3, Minnesota State-Mankato at Augustana: Mankato travels to Sioux Falls for their first of two meetings against the defending national champions in an early season NSIC South showdown.
