Northeastern State vs Nebraska-Kearney Monday, Jan. 3 | 4 p.m. | NSU Event Center
Records	Northeastern State (7-5, 2-4 MIAA) • Nebraska-Kearney (5-7, 1-5 MIAA)
Listen	Bill Huddleston (play-by-play) NSU Digital Network
Watch	The MIAA Network
Live Stats	NSU Live Stats
Tickets	NSU Ticketing
Social Media	@RiverHawksMBB  | @RiverHawksMBB  | Facebook

The Setup

• The RiverHawks and Lopers will meet for the 20th time in a rare early Monday afternoon contest inside the NSU Event Center. 
• Due to COVID-19 protocols with the NSU women's basketball program, the men's game against Nebraska-Kearney was moved up two hours with a 4 p.m. tip-off.

Last Time Out

Fort Hays State 59, Northeastern State 53 | Jan. 1, 2022 | Tahlequah, Okla.

• The Tigers snapped a six-game win home streak for the RiverHawks that dated back to the end of the previous season. 
• Emeka Obukwelu paced the RiverHawks in scoring for the fifth time this season with 13 points; Christian Cook added 12.
• The RiverHawks took a slim 24-23 lead at the half, but Fort Hays State came out of the locker room with the momentum scoring 11 unanswered points.  Northeastern State went nearly seven minutes without scoring as they shot 9-29  in the second half.
• Neither team shot the ball above 39-percent, with both squads shooting a combined 4-29 from the arc.

Storylines

• Emeka Obukwelu has scored at least ten points in the last nine games, heading into this weekend; he is ranked in the top-100 nationally in eight statistical categories.  The graduate student is ranked third in the MIAA with 7.3 defensive rebounds per game and sixth with 17.5 points per game.
• Rashad Perkins has turned into one of the top-scoring threats in the MIAA off the bench this season, averaging 12.8 points per game.  At Missouri Western, his 40 points were the most for an NSU men's basketball player since 2014 and tied for the most in the game this season in the MIAA.  Perkins is shooting 60.2-percent from the field and 44.8-percent from the arc, averaging 26.9 minutes per game this year.
• Christian Cook has ten games this with at least ten points and has scored in double-figures in the last eight games for NSU.  He has scored at least ten in 16 of the previous 17 contests, going back to last season. 
• Tylor Arnold has two double-double games this season for NSU and is fourth in points (8.1), second in rebounding (6.0), and leads the team in overall assists (34).  Arnold played for head coach Ja Havens for three seasons at East Central (Okla.) and was on the top-10 list for career minutes played, career steals, and career throw percentage.  
• Northeastern State men's basketball set an attendance record during Thanksgiving break, with 2,231 fans attending their game against Haskell.  The number is good for the ninth-most in NCAA Division II basketball this season. 
• The RiverHawks have made a three-pointer in 108 consecutive games.  Feb. 2, 2017 against Southwest Baptist is the last time NSU did not make a three going 0-16.
• In October, Northeastern State was picked to finish in 13th place in the MIAA Coaches and Media Polls.
• The 2021-22 season is the 93rd for men's basketball at Northeastern State.
• The RiverHawks are entering their tenth season as members of the MIAA and 25th season as an NCAA Division II program.

About Nebraska-Kearney

• The Lopers fell 74-60 to Rogers State on Friday evening, dropping their sixth road game on the season.  UNK was the lone road team to fall in MIAA play on Friday.
• From the field, the Lopers are third-best in the MIAA, making 48-percent of their shots and third in three-point shooting at 36.8-percent.
• UNK has four players entering Monday's contest averaging over ten points per game. 
• Heading into the weekend, David Simental held the nation's seventh-best free-throw percent in the nation (93.8).  He leads the Lopers in scoring with 15 points per game and is third in the MIAA with over 34 minutes played a game.  Simental is a D2 transfer from Colorado State-Pueblo and was a Second Team All-Conference selection last season.

Last Time They Met

Nebraska-Kearney 76, Northeastern State 72 (OT) | Feb. 11, 2021 | Tahlequah, Okla.

• Obi Agu recorded his second double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds.  Rashad Perkins came off the bench and scored 15 points.
• Assistant Coach Lucas Hunter led the team without a coaching staff due to COVID-19 protocols.
• The RiverHawks shot 68.0 percent in the second half, making 17-of-25 attempts, and were 5-of-8 from long range.

Series Notes

Northeastern State trails series 14-5 (2-8 in Tahlequah)

• The RiverHawks furthest away MIAA foe has figured out things in Tahlequah and won the last six meetings on the NSU home floor.  Northeastern State is 2-8 overall at home while facing UNK, with the previous win coming on Jan 16, 2014 (90-85).
• Neither team has blown the other out in the last 13 meetings, with each contest being decided within single digits.
• The Lopers met NSU in the 2003 Elite Eight, with Northeastern State winning that contest 94-75.