THIS WEEK: Minot State makes the journey down US Hwy 83 to Bismarck, N.D., to take on rival University of Mary Saturday in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference opener for both teams.

RECORDS: The Beavers are 4-2 overall and 0-0 in NSIC North play. U-Mary comes into the weekend with a 1-4 record overall and is 0-0 in the NSIC North.

COACHES CORNER: Minot State's Matt Murken is in his fifth season as head coach of the Beavers. He's compiled a 51-67 record during his first five seasons with Minot State and is 97-83 throughout his six year head coaching career. Joe Kittell is in his second season with the Marauders and is 20-16 overall in his career.

FOLLOW THE BEAVERS: The game is broadcast locally on KCJB 910-AM with Scott Kittell calling the play-by-play. Live audio can be accessed online at kcjb.com. MSU provides live video – with Leif Bakken serving as the play-by-play announcer – and live stats as well as links to the live audio at msubeavers.com. Minot State Athletics also is active on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and You Tube with all feeds accessible at msubeavers.com/stayconnected.

RANKINGS: Neither Minot State or the University of Mary were ranked in the latest NABC Division II Top 25 poll or the D2SIDA Media Poll.

RECENT HISTORY: Minot State rolled to its fourth-straight home nonconference win in a 75-60 victory over Valley City State Tuesday at the MSU Dome. Junior Tyler Rudolph led the way with 29 points and nine rebounds, while Stevan Jovanovic added 12 points and eight rebounds. U-Mary also took on a former Dakota Athletic Conference foe, dropping a 77-63 decision at home to South Dakota Mines. Bryan Jefferson scored a team-high 22 points for the Marauders.

ALL-TIME AT A GLANCE: Minot State holds a slim lead in the all-time series dating back to its NAIA days as both teams were once members of the North Dakota Collegiate Athletic Conference, the DAC-10 and the Dakota Athletic Conference. The Beavers lead 35-32.

LAST TIME OUT: MSU made a furious late comeback, but couldn't finish it off as U-Mary escaped with a 72-71 win in Bismarck in December. After an earlier win at Minot, it marks the first two-game winning streak for U-Mary in the series with both team NCAA Division II teams. Tyler Rudolph paced the Beavers with 18 points and 14 rebounds, while Luis Ricci Maia added 14 points and three assists. Bryan Jefferson scored 29 points to pace U-Mary.

NOTING THE MARAUDERS: The University of Mary opened the season with three straight losses away from home including a 70-38 loss in front of 8,459 fans at the University of Nebraska, before topping Yellowstone Christian College 85-53 to start a three-game homestand that culminates with the MSU game… UM has struggled to generate offense, coming into the weekend with a 65.8 scoring average shooting just 35.6 percent on 3-pointers… Demonta Henry and Bryan Jefferson have provided the Marauders with a strong 1-2 scoring punch as Henry leads the team at 15.6 points per game, while Jefferson his scoring at 14.6 per game… Jefferson has a 5.2 rebounding average including 11 offensive boards… Pat Thomas has nearly as many assists (22) as points (25) early in the season.

RUDY WATCH: Minot State junior Tyler Rudolph continues to get better and better on offense as he scored in double figures in all by one game this season and is third in the conference with a 21.2 scoring average. Through 64 games he has 872 points and should reach 1,000 career points later this season. He would become the third individual in as many years to reach 1,000  career points joining Dominique McDonald last season and Thomas Korf two years ago.

DR. J: While the midrange jump shot isn't the weapon it once was, MSU junior Luis Ricci Maia has used it nearly to perfection to get to 13.2 points per game, second on the team. Maia is shooting 53.4 percent from the field and most of those are 15-footers. He is also second on the team in assists and third overall in field goal percentage.

EVOLUTION OF STEVAN: No one has gone through a bigger transformation from two seasons ago to now than junior Stevan Jovanovic. The 6-foot-8 forward has always been known for his athleticism, but has learned to become a post as opposed to a forward slowly but surely in his career. After scoring just 10 points in 16 games as a redshirt freshman, Jovanovic finished 2015-16 averaging 5.0 points and 2.8 rebounds in 29 games. This season, he is third on the team in points per game (12.8) and rebounds per game (4.3) and is second overall in shooting percentage (53.4).

DEEP THREAT: Russ Davis had the breakout game the coaching staff was waiting for in a MSU's 93-57 win over Mayville State. Davis, a junior transfer, hit seven 3-pointers and scored a game-high 24 points. On the season, Davis has hit a team-leading 16 3-pointers, hitting just over half at 16 for 31. He is tied for fourth on the team in scoring at 8.8 per game.

GETTING OFFENSIVE: Minot State has averaged 81.5 points per game through its first six. MSU lowest offensive output on the season was 74 against Southern Arkansas at a neutral site in Texas. In that game, MSU still hit 43.5 percent of its shots as the Beavers have been held under 50 percent shooting just twice all season, twice shooting better than 58 percent from the floor. In all, the Beavers are 191-365 overall for a 52.3 percent clip.

BY THE NUMBERS

6: Wins in nine tries against the University of Mary since joining NCAA Division II. Since topping their rivals in double overtime during the Beavers transition year, MSU has gone 6-3 overall against the Marauders, with five of those wins in Northern Sun play.

40: Assists combined by Luis Ricci Maia and Nathan Mertens. Mertens leads the team with 22, while Maia has 18.

41.6: Bolstered by three players hitting .500 or better from beyond the arc, MSU's shooting percentage on 3-pointers. The Beavers are led by Nathaniel Moore's 64 percent shooting, hitting 7 of 11.