Game Notes: DIXIE STATE - PDF | AAU | WOU
Live Audio: 91.3-FM KXDS
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Twitter: @DixieAthletics | @DIXIESTATEBBALL | #DixieBlazers | #RMACmbb

OPENING TIP: Dixie State (0-1/0-0 RMAC) continues its season-opening homestand this weekend as the Trailblazers host the 2018 Dixie State/Red Lion Hotels Thanksgiving Classic in the Burns Arena. DSU will open the tourney against former PacWest rival Academy of Art (0-3) on Friday at 7:30 p.m., followed by a match-up vs. Western Oregon (2-0) on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
    In addition to the DSU games, Western Oregon will play Westminster College in the first game of the Classic on Friday at 5 p.m., while Academy of Art and Westminster will square off in game three on Saturday at 5 p.m.
    Live stats and streaming audio/video information for all four games can be found HERE.

THE SERIES: Dixie State enters Friday night's game looking to remain perfect against former Pacific West Conference foe Academy of Art as the Trailblazers have won all 16 previous meetings between the two teams, including a 74-62 triumph the last time the two sides met in the Burns Arena last season (12/2/17).
    Dixie State is 2-3 all-time vs. Western Oregon, which includes a 97-86 WOU win in Monmouth last season (11/18/17). Prior to that meeting, both sides claimed alternating wins on the other's home court, with DSU and WOU splitting the first two meetings in Monmouth to open the series (79-71 WOU win in 2008/78-74 DSU win in 2013). The two teams have also claimed victory in St. George, with WOU winning in 2014 (67-52) before the Trailblazers came back with an 82-76 home result during the 2016-17 campaign (11/26/16).

DIXIE STATE ON THE AIR: All Dixie State's home games will be broadcast live on DSU's campus radio station, 91.3 KXDS-FM, with DSU Assistant Media Relations Coordinator Keric Seegmiller calling the play-by-play action and former DSU assistant Mike Olson coach providing color commentary. Along with the radio coverage, all DSU home games are simulcast on KCEC-TV (TDS Cable Channel 22), with tape-delay rebroadcasts throughout the following week. In addition, links for live-streaming audio and video, and live statistics, for all home and away games are available HERE.

WEEK IN REVIEW: Dixie State opened the 2018-19 season on a sour note as the Trailblazers dropped a 72-66 home decision to Cal Poly Pomona last Saturday night in the Burns Arena. DSU trailed by as many as 19 points in the second half before mounting a furious rally over the final eight minutes, eventually cutting the deficit down to two on a couple of occasions, including at 66-64 with 49 second left. However the Blazers could not complete the comeback as the Broncos scored six of the final eight points of the night to escape with the win.

COACHING STAFF: Six-time PacWest Conference Coach of the Year Jon Judkins (Utah State, 1988; 528-246 career record) is in his 14th season on the Dixie State bench, where he has compiled a 244-118 overall record, including a 224-106 mark during DSU's NCAA Division II era.
    Judkins has led the Trailblazers to 10-straight winning seasons with seven 20-win campaigns, which includes a school-record 23 victories last season, and 22 wins during both the 2010-11 and 2012-13 seasons. He also guided DSU to six PacWest championships, including four-straight titles from 2009-13 and two more crowns last season and in 2014-15, along with PacWest Tournament titles in 2013 and 2018. In addition, Judkins has led Dixie State to eight trips to the NCAA Tournament in the last nine seasons overall from 2010-18, advancing all the way to the "Sweet 16" in the 2011 West Regional final.
    Prior to his arrival at Dixie State, Judkins served as head coach at Snow College for 12 full seasons and posted a 284-128 overall record. He led the Badgers to a pair of Scenic West Athletic Conference titles in 1999 and 2000, which earned him SWAC Coach of the Year honors. Judkins played for one season at Dixie State before transferring to Utah State, where he became the first (and only) Aggie to post a triple-double. During the 1987-88 season, he helped lead the Aggies to the PCAA title and an NCAA Tournament bid.
    Judkins is joined on the bench again this season by former DSU player and sixth-year assistant coach Kasey Winters (Dixie State, 2008), along with former DSU standout guard Jeremiah Barnes (Dixie State, 2011), who is in his second season on the DSU sideline, and second-year volunteer assistant coach David Foster (Utah, 2013).

528 AND COUNTING: Head Coach Jon Judkins became the first men's basketball coach in Utah collegiate basketball history to reach the 500-win plateau when Dixie State defeated Hawai'i Hilo (81-72) back on January 28, 2017.
    Coach Judkins is currently ranked second all-time in coaching victories in Utah college basketball history behind legendary University of Utah head women's coach Elaine Elliott, who amassed 582 career wins (582-234) in 27 seasons on the Utes' sideline.

TRAILBLAZERS PICKED FOURTH IN THE RMAC: Dixie State was voted to finish fourth in the 2018-19 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference men's basketball preseason coaches' poll released on Oct. 23. The Trailblazers, who will make their RMAC debut this season, received two first place votes and 185 points in the poll.  
    Defending RMAC tournament champion Regis received eight out of a possible 16 first-place votes to claim the top spot in the poll with 216 points, while Colorado School of Mines collected four first-place nods and 203 points to finish second in the poll. Fort Lewis, which won the 2017-18 RMAC regular season crown, picked up two first-place votes to finish third with 199 points, followed by DSU in fourth, MSU Denver (156 pts) in fifth, Westminster College (141 pts) in sixth, Colorado-Colorado Springs (147 pts) in seventh, and Black Hills State (116 pts) in eighth to round out the top-half of the 16-team poll.

"WE'RE GOING STREAKING!": Dixie State saw its 15-game regular season winning streak come to an end in last Saturday's season-opening loss to Cal Poly Pomona. Prior to that result, the last time DSU tasted defeat in a regular season game came at home in a 74-72 PacWest loss to Point Loma back on Dec. 30, 2017.  
    DSU closed the 2017-18 regular season with that 15-game winning streak, and when you figure in the Trailblazers' PacWest tourney run, DSU pushed it to 17-straight games before its NCAA West Regional first round loss to Azusa Pacific (65-69; 3/9/18). The 17-game streak was the longest streak in the program's NCAA era, eclipsing the previous record streak of 13 games set during the 2011-12 season.

AGAINST NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS: DSU is 69-64 (.518) all-time against non-conference opponents in its 12-plus seasons of four-year competition, which includes an 11-14 record in the program's first year of NCAA play (2006-07), and a combined 6-12 postseason record (4-4 PacWest, 2-8 NCAA).
    DSU (5-4 in 2017-18) has posted six overall season-winning records in non-conference games over that span, including a program-best nine wins in 2010-11 (9-4), eight wins in 2008-09 (8-7), and seven victories in 2012-13 (7-4). Following this weekend's Thanksgiving Classic, the Blazers will have one more non-conference regular season contest, which will come at GNAC foe Saint Martin's on Tuesday, Dec. 18.

AGAINST THE CCAA/GNAC: After the loss to CPP, Dixie State moved to 8-16 (.333) all-time vs. CCAA-member programs, including a 2-6 mark in its last eight games against that league overall. On the flip side, the Trailblazers are 34-15 (.694) all-time against current members of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, which includes their 2-3 mark vs. WOU and a 2-0 record against Saint Martins (12/18). 

IT'S NOT HOW YOU START....: Dixie State dropped its third-straight season opener in last Saturday's loss to CPP to fall to 6-7 all-time in season-opening games during the program's Division II era. Despite the streak, DSU has won four of its last seven, and six of its previous 11 openers overall. Last Saturday's opener also marked the eighth time in 10 seasons that DSU opened the season at home.

HOME SWEET HOME: The loss to CPP moved Dixie State to 9-4 all-time in 13 Burns Arena debuts as a four-year program and stopped a streak of six-straight home-opening wins overall, which included a 74-62 win over Academy of Art in last season's home opener (12/2/17).  
    Dixie State posted a 9-1 home record last season - all of which came in PacWest play, and in the process, recorded its 11th-straight home winning season record in the program's four-year era.
    Since becoming an NCAA Division II program in 2006-07, Dixie State has played to a 112-24 (.823) overall record inside the Burns Arena under Head Coach Jon Judkins, and has posted seven 10-plus win seasons over that span, including a perfect 12-0 record in 2009-10, and 11-1 records in the 2015-16 and 2016-17 campaigns.
    The Trailblazers also closed out their PacWest membership with a dominant 87-12 (.878) record at home in 99 home conference games played over 11 seasons.

HOME SWEET HOME, PART 2: For the ninth-straight year, Dixie State's men's basketball program finished ranked in the top-10 nationally at the NCAA Division II level in attendance for the 2017-18 season.
    The Trailblazers posted the ninth-highest total attendance number in the country at 26,309 fans in just 10 home dates, which was also second in the Pacific West Conference and the NCAA West Region. In addition, DSU finished second-nationally in season attendance average at 2,630 fans per game, behind only Northern (SD) State, which led the nation in both total attendance (55,980/15 games) and attendance average (3,732).
    Since the 2008-09 season, Dixie State has been annually ranked in the top-15 in Division II in attendance, including second-overall in 2012-13 and 2013-14, and third in the country in 2010-11 and 2011-12 campaigns. DSU was also ranked fourth-overall last year, fifth in 2014-15, sixth in 2015-16, ninth in 2009-10, and 14th in 2008-09.
    Dixie State also finished sixth among Utah's eight NCAA member institutions in average attendance in 2017-18, behind Brigham Young (227,692/14,230 per game), Utah (199,077/11,710), Utah State (104,159/6,943), Weber State (101,683/6,778) and Utah Valley (58,027/3,413). However, DSU did finish well ahead of Southern Utah (33,518/2,394) and Westminster College (4,345/289).

HOW ABOUT WHEN THE BAGS ARE PACKED?: The Trailblazers were a combined 14-6 as road warriors last season, including a 10-4 road mark to go with a 4-2 record in neutral-site games.
    Dixie State is 113-83 (.576) away from home in its Division II era under Head Coach Jon Judkins, including an 8-8 record in 2016-17 (8-5 road/0-3 neutral), and a 9-6 mark in 2015-16. Overall, the Trailblazers have played to a 89-62 record (.589) in true road games, and a 24-21 mark (.533) in neutral site games during Judkins' tenure.
    In addition, DSU has won eight or more games away from home in nine-straight seasons, and in 10 of its 12 D-II campaigns overall, including a program-best 15-5 record (10-2 in road contests) in 2010-11.
    Dixie State also finished with a 69-30 (.697) road record in its 11 seasons of PacWest league membership (9-1 this season/7-3 in 2016-17). Overall, the Trailblazers have posted a winning conference road mark in nine-straight seasons and have reached the seven-win plateau in seven of their last eight league campaigns.

FAREWELL TO THE PACWEST: The Trailblazers ended their 11 years of PacWest membership as the conference's all-time winningest program with 156 conference wins (156-42) and a .788 league winning percentage. In addition, DSU's 18 wins in PacWest play this year were not only the most in program history, the win total also tied the conference all-time season record for wins (Hawai'i Pacific in 2017; CBU in 2014).

FROM WAY DOWNTOWN....BANG: Dating back to late in the 2016-17 season, Dixie State has hit at least one 3-pointer in 35-straight games, including seven treys (7-of-17, .412) last Saturday vs. Cal Poly Pomona.
    In all, Dixie State has hit at least one three pointer in 234 of its last 236 games overall, and in 328 of the program's 332 games NCAA-era games since the beginning of the 2006-07 season.
    Dixie State has reached double-figures in made 3-pointers 13 times overall, and prior to the HNU win last month, the last occasion happened at Chaminade (10 3FGM, 1/23/16), while the single-game 3FGM school record is 13 set at Carroll College on Nov. 11, 2008.

DUNK YOU VERY MUCH: Dixie State combined to throw down 51 dunks in 30 games last season, this after finishing with 30 dunks in 28 games in 2016-17, and 32 total throw-downs in the 2015-16 campaign.
    In all, seven Trailblazers "rocked the rim" last year, led by DSU All-American and PacWest Player/Defender of the Year Trevor Hill with 23 dunks, including "highlight reel" steal and breakaway dunk in the Holy Names win (2/19), which was ranked No. 8 on ESPN SportsCenter's "Top-10 Plays of the Day."
    DSU started the 2018-19 season without a dunk, while CPP recorded one dunk out of its 23 made field goals on the night.

TEAM NOTES:
* - Junior F Matt Conway had quite the Trailblazer debut as he tallied a team-high 22 points with four rebounds vs. CPP ... 13 of Conway's 22 points came at the foul line as he attempted a game-high 17 free throws ... Conway's 13 FTM are tied for the third-most in a single game in program history, while his 17 FTA are t-fourth on DSU's single-game list, and are the most since former guard Brandon Simister went 18-for-18 (single game school record for makes) on the road at Concordia-Irvine last season (12/18/18).
* - Senior G/F Wade Miller scored all 13 of his points over the final eight minutes vs. CPP to help the Trailblazers almost erase a 19-point second-half deficit ... Miller connected on 5-of-7 from the floor with three 3-pointers and pulled down three rebounds in 14 reserve minutes ... Miller's 13 points were the second-most of his career and marked the third time in two-plus seasons in a DSU uniform that he reached double figures in points.
* - Dixie State outrebounded CPP 41-35, including a 16-9 clip on the offensive glass as DSU doubled up the Broncos in second-chance points, 12-6 ... DSU's very early 16.0 offensive rpg average is tops in the RMAC and ninth-best in the NCAA D-II ranks.
* - Senior forward Quincy Mathews accounted for four of DSU's 16 offensive caroms as part of a five-point, five-rebound night.
* - DSU picked up right where it left off from last season as the Trailblazers won the "Battle of the Boards" in 24 of 30 games and finished with a +6.1 rebounding margin.
* - Junior guards Jack Pagenkopf and Andre Wilson each poured in seven points in their Trailblazer debuts ... Pagenkopf was in the starting line-up and finished with six boards and two assists, while Wilson collected two boards and two dimes in 21 reserve minutes before fouling out.
* - Senior forward Dub Price got the start for the second time in his Trailblazer career (70 games) and responded with seven points, seven rebounds and three assists in 28 minutes.
*- Redshirt sophomore guard Zach Frampton also made his first collegiate start vs. CPP, during which he hit a 3-pointer and dished out a career-high four assists.
* - Dating back to the 2016-17 season, Dixie State has had 35 of its last 58 games decided by nine points or less, including 14 of 30 games last year, and Saturday's opener vs. CPP.
* - Also dating back to 2016-17, Dixie State has shot 50 percent or better in 19 of its last 53 games overall.
* - However DSU was held to 32.8 percent (19-of-58) vs. CPP, which included a paltry 5-of-25 (.200) in the first half ... DSU's 32.8 clip was the second-lowest shooting percentage in a season-opening game in the program's NCAA era, second only to a "cool" 27.6 night in a loss at UC San Diego to open the 2016-17 campaign (11/11/16) ... DSU's best season-opening FG% night came against Colorado Mesa (.552) on 11/8/2013.
* - In all, DSU shot 50 percent or better eight times last season, with seven of those occasions coming on the road.
* - Dixie State committed 14 turnovers in the opener vs. CPP, though only two of those miscues came after halftime ... DSU's defense forced 13 Bronco turnovers, which led to 14 DSU points to just 10 CPP points on DSU mistakes. 

ABOUT THE ACADEMY OF ART "URBAN KNIGHTS": Academy of Art enters Friday night's game looking for its first win of the year after an 0-3 start against three Bay Area CCAA opponents. The Urban Knights opened the year with losses on consecutive nights to intra-city rival San Francisco State (41-78; 11/9) and to Sonoma State (66-68/OT; 11/10), followed by a home setback vs. Cal State East Bay (74-79; 11/14).
    Sophomore guard Stefan Milivojevic is the Knights' leading scorer at 12.7 ppg, while junior forward Victor Ruiz de Carranza is the team's leading rebounder at 9.3 rpg.

ABOUT THE WESTERN OREGON "WOLVES": Western Oregon comes to St. George with an unblemished 2-0 record after posting a pair of lopsided home victories to open the season. The Wolves kicked off their year with an 80-65 win over Warner Pacific (11/15) before routing RMAC member Colorado Christian, 64-35, last Saturday.
    Four players are averaging double figures in points, led by sophomore guard Darius Lubom (22.0 ppg/4.5 rpg), while junior guard Jaylyn Richardson is the team's leading rebounder (6.5 rpg/10.0 ppg).

UP NEXT: Dixie State will begin its first season of RMAC play next Saturday night, Dec. 1, as the Trailblazers travel north on Interstate-15 to Salt Lake City to face in-state rival Westminster College at Behnken Field House. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m.