TAHLEQUAH – Northeastern State wraps up their home schedule with games against Newman and Central Oklahoma this week.

The RiverHawks claimed a road win against Missouri Western (62-61) on Thursday of the previous week before dropping a test in Maryville to Northwest Missouri (73-56).

For both games Thursday night against Newman (5:30/7:30 p.m.), all teachers, school support staff, and high school students will receive free admission to the games as part of Education Appreciation Night, partnered with Tommy Nix Auto Group and NSU Student Affairs Office.

All fans 18 and older in attendance on Thursday will also have a chance to win a new truck thanks to sponsor Tommy Nix Auto Group. Free raffle tickets will be handed out from admission gate open (4:30 PM) until the end of the 3^rd quarter of the women's game. Three (3) participants will be randomly selected to have a chance to toss a nerf ball 35 yards into the driver side window of a truck. The participants will only have one chance at the toss and there can only be a maximum of one (1) winner. The contest will take place at the conclusion of the women's game and before the men's game.

Stick around in between games as we introduce the incoming football staff. A Meet & Greet for the football coaches will take place in the Event Center beginning at 6 PM.

The Setup
- Ja Havens is in his fourth season as the head men's basketball coach at Northeastern State and his eleventh season overall as a head coach. 
- The RiverHawks are in their 12th season as members of the MIAA and 27th season as an NCAA Division II program.  
- This week's games place a bow on a 17-game home slate on the season.

Storylines
- A Caison Hartloff layup with less than two seconds left gave NSU a 62-61 victory over Missouri Western, their second straight win among meetings in St. Joseph, Mo. vs. the Griffons. It was part of an 11-point performance for Hartloff, who has made it into double figures in every appearance since returning from injury at the beginning of the month.
- The recent offensive sparks from Ethan Blackmon were on display last week, with two 14-point efforts. The freshman has reached double figures in seven of his last eight, ranking third among NSU talents with 10.3 PPG and holding the crown among producers on the glass with 5.6 RPG.
- The RiverHawks will look for a stout week on defense against two of the conference's top ten scorers in UCO's Jaden Wells (first, 20.1 PPG) and NU's Stevie Strong (eighth, 15.0 PPG). 
- Rebounding continued to be a weakness for the RiverHawks in the road trip a week ago, with only 46 rebounds combined against the Griffons and Bearcats, including a season-low 18 boards when clashing with NWMSU. 
- A regular season sweep is on the table for the RiverHawks when facing NU Thursday. It is their first and only opportunity to have a multi-game regular season sweep for the campaign. 
- Central Oklahoma will present another big-time clash between Jaxon Jones (5.2 APG) and Danquez Dawsey (5.2 APG), two of the conference's best at generating assists. 
- Struggles at the free throw line made the team's offensive efforts more adverse, with a 19-of-31 (61.3%) clip.
- UCO marks the team's final in-state opponent of the 2023-24 campaign. Against Oklahoma schools, NSU holds a 2-3 record for the year.

Northeastern State vs. Newman // February 22 at 7:30 p.m. // Live Coverage

About Newman (8-16, 4-14 MIAA)
- Newman has claimed two of their last three, including a conference matchup with Nebraska-Kearney (90-85) away from the NU campus in Wichita.
- R.J. Allen is in his eighth season as the head men's basketball coach at Newman University and is in his 13th season on the staff. Allen led the program during their transition to the MIAA and was on the staff for the team's first NCAA tournament appearance during the 2012-13 season. Prior to Newman, Allen was an assistant coach for five years at Concordia University. 
- The Jets have the eighth-ranked offense in the league (72.4 PPG), but have been one of the MIAA's most generous defenses with a 13th-ranked group (79.5 PAPG).
- A scoring trio of Stevie Strong (15.0 PPG), Stevie Smith (12.9 PPG) and Latik Murphy (11.1 PPG) all provide NU with weapons to build on.

Last Time They Met
Northeastern State 74, Newman 68 | Jan. 13, 2024 | Wichita, Kan.
- Northeastern State had a +6 first half (36-30), but an early scoring push from the hosts allowed Newman to the lead (41-38) less than five minutes into the second. The RiverHawks responded with a 22-10 run to follow, never looking back en route to a road triumph.
- The RiverHawks found scoring across the roster, with four players scoring at least ten. 
- Anthony Allen led with a team-high 17 points.

Series Notes
- Northeastern State possesses a 11-4 advantage in the series. 
- NSU is 8-0 in Tahlequah against NU.
- Last season's 79-point offensive output against NSU last season marked the most for NU in a single game against the RiverHawks since 1987. 

Northeastern State vs. Central Oklahoma // February 24 at 3:30 p.m. // Live Coverage

About Central Oklahoma (18-8, 10-8 MIAA)
- A team once ranked in the top 25 nationally has slipped near the middle of the MIAA ladder with five losses over their most recent nine contests.
- Visiting Rogers State Thursday, the Bronchos will look for a victory over a Hillcats team that's already clinched a position in the postseason before matching up against the RiverHawks Saturday.
- Bob Hoffmann is in his fifth season leading the program and is one of the winningest coaches in college basketball history, claiming his 694th win as a head coach last week against Emporia State (94-86). Hoffmann previously spent time leading men's basketball programs at Mercer (2008-19), Texas Pan-Am (1999-2004) and Oklahoma Baptist (1990-99), while he also went 88-16 across three seasons as head women's basketball coach at Southern Nazarene (1987-90). Notably, Hoffman led Mercer to its first NCAA tournament in 2014 and scored a major upset over the Mike Krzyzewski-led Duke Blue Devils in the opening round. 
- After a season full of big-time showings on offense, Jaden Wells (20.1 PPG) is primed to claim the MIAA's scoring title. 

Last Time They Met
Central Oklahoma 72, Northeastern State 67 | Jan. 10, 2024 | Edmond, Okla.
- With a 65-65 tie with two minutes left, Jaden Wells finished with five points the rest of the contest, while the RiverHawks were held without a field goal in that span of time to stave off an upset at Hamilton Field House. 
- Three players reached double figures, led by Jaxon Jones with 16 points.
- Seth Pratt nearly had a double-double with nine points and ten rebounds. 

Series Notes
- Central Oklahoma leads the series 102-62.
- The Bronchos have taken six straight, including the two most recent Tahlequah encounters.
- The series will hit the century mark next year, with the first meeting taking place in 1925. The two schools have met on a near-annual basis outside of a hiatus in the series from 1984-1998. 

Coming Up
Northeastern State ends the regular season with Lincoln (Feb. 29) and Central Missouri (Mar. 2) in road meetings.