OPENING TIPOFF: The Snow College men's basketball team will head out onto the road for the first time this season and participate in the Gila Monster Shootout. They will take on a trio of opponents beginning with Seward County Community College Thursday at 11:30 a.m. followed by Frank Phillips College Friday at 9:30 a.m. They will wrap up the tournament Saturday against Cochise College Saturday at 5:00 p.m.
The Badgers are coming off a 116-50 victory against Utah Prep Academy last Wednesday in Ephraim. They outscored Utah Prep 69-28 in the second half to claim their first victory of the season.
Six Badger scored in double figures in the victory over Utah Prep led by Max Triplett who poured in a career-high 27 points on 12-14 shooting from the field. Dylan Jones, Isaac Garrett, and Mark Brown, Jr each scored 13 points in the win.
HISTORY WITH SEWARD COUNTY: The Badgers have had just one meeting with the Saints historically. The Badgers suffered a 76-71 loss to the Saints in a neutral site game at the Fiesta Bowl Junior College Shootout in Mesa, Arizona Dec. 27, 2018.
HISTORY WITH FRANK PHILLIPS COLLEGE: The Badgers have not had a game against Frank Phillips College since 2011. FPC is located in Borger, Texas. They finished the 2022-23 season with a 14-15 overall record and a 7-5 mark within Region 5 play.
HISTORY WITH COCHISE COLLEGE: The Badgers own a 2-1 all time record against Cochise College. Their last game against the Apaches came in a 88-70 victory in Douglas, Arizona Jan. 22, 2021. The Apaches were receiving votes in the NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Preseason Poll and own a 2-0 record with victories over Community Christian College (125-43) and Arizona Sol (111-64).
BADGERS IN THE PRESEASON POLL: Snow College has been ranked 17th in the NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Preseason Poll which was announced last week.
The Badgers return two starters from a year ago led by Colin Christensen who played in all 32 games last season. Christensen averaged 23.6 minutes per game last season in 27 starts for the team. Christensen averaged 7.5 points per game last season and scored in double figures in 13 games last season including eight of the last 10 games of the season.
Max Triplett entered the starting lineup towards the end of last season. Triplett played in 30 of the Badgers' 32 games from the 2022-23 campaign while averaging 14.9 minutes per game. Triplett averaged 5.9 points per game as a freshman and scored in double figures in six games including an 18-point performance in the Badgers 84-83 victory against No. 5 SLCC Feb. 9.
The Badgers will also return three other players from last season including Gaige Savage and Dylan Jones, both of whom played in all 32 games. Savage averaged 6.3 points per game last season and was second on the team in 3-pointers made as he shot 36 percent from beyond the arc.
Jones leads the five returning players in scoring as he averaged 10.6 points per game from a season ago. He also led the team in 3-pointers made with 85. Jones shot nearly 37 percent from 3-point range last season.
Noah Lemke will also return for the Badgers after appearing in 13 games for the team last season. Lemke averaged 2.8 points per game in just under seven minutes per game played during the regular season.
BREAKING DOWN THE SCHEDULE: Snow College will play a full schedule during the 2023-24 season and play a total of 30 games throughout the winter. Following the matchup with Utah Prep Academy, they will head to Thatcher, Arizona and play three games at the Gila Monster Shootout.
The Badgers will return home and play seven straight home games between three separate tournaments starting with Central Wyoming College Nov. 14. They will host the Snow Classic Nov. 27, the Snow College Thanksgiving Classic Nov. 17, and the Region 1/Region 18 Challenge Nov. 30.
The Badgers won't play a home game during December and will conclude the calendar at the Aztec Classic in Tucson, Arizona. Their last non-conference matchup will be against Jump Start Academy Jan. 4 before beginning SWAC play against North Idaho College Jan. 10.
Snow College will have a stretch of five straight home contests between Jan. 18 and Feb. 1. They will culminate the home stand against SLCC, who stand at fifth in the preseason poll. They will wrap up their home schedule of games against preseason No. 10 College of Southern Idaho, who finished ninth in the 2022-23 NJCAA National Tournament, Feb. 17.
They will conclude the regular season by playing three games on the road with the final game of the year coming against SLCC Feb. 29.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN: Along with the five sophomores that are returning from last season's team, the 2023-24 Badgers will consist of six total sophomores. Jake Howe is a sophomore from Woods Cross High School and last played with Everett College in 2021 where he averaged 16.2 points per game on 37.6 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from beyond the arc.
The sophomores will be joined by 10 incoming freshman. Isaac Finlinson, who transferred to Snow following a redshirt season at Utah Tech University, was high school teammates with Lemke at Dixie High School in St. George where the pair helped the Flyers win the 4A State Championship in 2020.
Isaac Garrett, Josh Thalman, Jace Chatman, and Coleman Ford come to Snow College from Utah high schools while Mark Brown Jr., Donaven Davis, Gabriel Almeida, Ben Thornbrue, and Gaius Mewourou represent those joining the Badgers from outside the state.
UP NEXT: The Badgers will return home for a stretch of seven consecutive games throughout the month of November beginning with Central Wyoming College Tuesday, November 14. The Rustlers are 1-2 overall to begin the season. Their lone win came in a 75-70 victory against Utah State University Eastern Nov. 3. Tuesday's game is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. inside the Horne Activity Center beginning at 7:00 p.m. For video streaming and live stat information, visit snowbadgers.com.
