Game 3: Northeastern State (1-1) vs. Rogers State (1-1) at 7:30 p.m. | November 15, 2017
Tahlequah, Okla. | NSU Event Center
The Series
Northeastern State trails the overall series 4-0 to Rogers State which started in 2008 with a home-and-home meeting. The two nearby programs have traded home contests in the last two seasons. In Rogers State's only stop at the NSU Event Center they edged out a 70-65 win during the 2015 season.
The Coaches
Mark Downey was introduced as NSU's tenth men's basketball coach on April 11, 2017 and carries a 205-104 overall head coaching record, with four NCAA Division II Tournament Appearances, and has been named Coach of the Year six times. Downey comes to NSU after two seasons at Fort Wayne (NCAA DI) as the program's top assistant on the bench, and has helped the Mastodons to appearances in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT) and the NIT, while going 44-23. Prior to Fort Wayne, Downey spent the 2014-15 season at Bowling Green where they went 20-12, and he helped direct them into the second round of the CIT.
Justin Barkley (126-58) is in his eighth season as head coach at Rogers State and has led the Hillcats to at least 16 wins each season, reaching the 20-win plateau five times, including two of the last three seasons. RSU has been dominant on its home floor at the Claremore Expo Center posting an 87-16 record during Barkley's tenure for a .845 winning percentage, including a 40-5 mark over the past three seasons. Barkley is a Northeastern State graduate and was a member of the 2003 NCAA Division II National Championship team; he also served as a graduate assistant under now retired NSU head coach
Larry Gipson.
The Glass
Just two games into the season in the
Mark Downey era, the RiverHawks did something that they were only able to do four times last year, which was out-rebound their opponent. On Saturday against Southeastern Oklahoma they pulled six more boards, and finished the evening with 40; it was also the second time in the last 33 contests they had 40 plus rebounds. Junior college transfer
Josh Bougher had 13-rebounds against the Savage Storm which was the highest individual total since Keon Littleton had 14 against Washburn on Jan. 24, 2015.
New Faces
Northeastern State will start the year with 13 newcomers to its squad to complement six returners from last season. Of the group of fresh faces, four NSU players have NCAA Division I experience (
Lucas Antunez,
Jamir Andrews,
Josh Bougher, and
Zach Lee) and three who transferred from NCAA Division II programs (
Marquise Harris,
Tighe Oberg, and
Pete Okonkwo).
The Kennedy Connection
First year NSU assistant coach
Nathan Kennedy and HC Downey were on-staff together at West Alabama during the 2012-13 season. In only one season at UWA, Downey and Kennedy were able to lead the Tigers to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1982. They also won a school record 14 games in Gulf South Conference and were Co-Champs of the Battle for Atlantis Mainland Classic defeating NCAA Division I opponents Abilene Christian and The Citadel.
Kennedy comes to NSU from the University of Montevallo and brought along senior transfer
Tighe Oberg.
With Honors
NSU senior returner
Montre' Williams this last summer was one of five in the MIAA to be named to the NABC Honors Court. In order to be named to the Honors Court, a student-athlete must meet a high standard of academic criteria. They must academically be a junior or senior and a varsity player, and must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.2 or higher at the conclusion of the 2016-17 academic year.
Williams is the lone NSU player who has seen action in the past three seasons for the RiverHawks and was an All-MIAA selection last year. The senior from Copperas Cove, Texas led the RiverHawks in scoring with 12.3 points per game and will enter his senior season with 808 career points.
The Chip on Your Shoulder
Despite a nearly overhauled roster and a coaching change, Northeastern State was voted in the MIAA Preseason Men's Basketball Coaches Poll to finish 12th.
The RiverHawks finished the 2016-17 season in the same spot and qualified for the MIAA Tournament with a 5-23 record, and 4-15 mark in the MIAA.
A NSU win would…
- Put the RiverHawks above .500 for the first time since the 2013-14 season.
- Be their first program win over Rogers State.
- First home win for head coach Mark Downey.
A RSU win would…
- Move Rogers State to 5-0 All-Time against the RiverHawks.
- Consecutive wins and a winning record in 2017-18.
- Fourth straight road wins against Oklahoma NCAA Division II programs.
Up next
Northeastern State will be at home this Saturday to host Ecclesia College for the first time since 2013, tip-off is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
