Game Notes: DIXIE STATE - PDF | SDM | BHSU
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OPENING TIP: Dixie State (2-2/0-1 RMAC) continues its RMAC season-opening road swing this weekend as the Trailblazers play their first games ever in the "Mount Rushmore State." DSU will head to Rapid City to square off against South Dakota Mines (2-6/0-1 RMAC) Friday night at 7:30 p.m. (MT), followed by a date at Black Hills State in Spearfish on Saturday night at 6 p.m. (MT).

THE SERIES: Both games this weekend at SDM and BHSU will be the first time the Trailblazers will have faced either the Hardrockers or Yellow Jackets on the basketball court.

DIXIE STATE ON THE AIR: All Dixie State's home games are 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 live-streaming audio and video, and live statistics, for all home and away games are available on the internet HERE.

WEEK IN REVIEW: Dixie State began the road portion of the 2018-19 slate and its first season of Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play on a sour note as the Trailblazers came up on the short end of a 68-64 decision at in-state rival Westminster College this past Saturday night in Salt Lake City. DSU led 30-27 at the half and held a slim 48-45 lead with 10:45 to play, but a decisive 15-3 Griffin run doomed the Blazers as they went more than seven minutes without a field goal. Despite a late rally in the closing moments, the deficit proved to be to great as DSU were turned away in its RMAC debut.

COACHING STAFF: Six-time PacWest Conference Coach of the Year Jon Judkins (Utah State, 1988; 530-247 career record) is in his 14th season on the Dixie State bench, where he has compiled a 246-119 overall record, including a 226-107 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).

530 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 tied for 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. In addition, current Salt Lake CC head women's basketball coach Betsy Specketer is tied with Judkins with 530 wins (528-192).

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. 

AGAINST NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS: Dixie State is 71-64 (.525) all-time against non-conference opponents in its 12-plus seasons of four-year competition, which includes a 2-1 mark this year and an 11-14 record in the program's first year of NCAA play (2006-07). Additionally, DSU owns 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). The Blazers have one more non-conference regular season contest on the 2018-19 slate, which will come at GNAC foe Saint Martin's on Tuesday, Dec. 18.

AGAINST THE RMAC: Prior to last Saturday's RMAC debut at Westminster, Dixie State has squared off against nine of the 15 member schools in non-conference action and has played to a 13-14 (.481) overall non-conference record in 27 combined games. Out of those nine schools, the Trailblazers have faced Colorado Mesa (eight times) the most of any other RMAC school and have posted a 4-4 mark against the Mavericks overall.

HOME SWEET HOME: Since becoming an NCAA Division II program in 2006-07, Dixie State has played to a 114-24 (.826) 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.
    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.
    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.
    Including last Saturday's loss at Westminster, Dixie State is 113-84 (.573) 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).

RELEASE...ROTATION...SPLASH: Dating back to late in the 2016-17 season, Dixie State has hit at least one 3-pointer in 38-straight games, including seven treys against both Cal Poly Pomona (7-of-17, .412; 11/17) and Academy of Art (7-of-19, .368; 11/23).
    In all, Dixie State has hit at least one three pointer in 237 of its last 239 games overall, and in 331 of the program's 335 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.

FROM WAY DOWNTOWN....BANG: Also of note, the Trailblazers attempted 19 3-point shots at Westminster College last Saturday, while the Griffins took 18 shots from beyond the arc. That slim stat "victory" for the Trailblazers broke a string of 101-straight games that saw DSU opponents attempt more 3-points shots in a game. In fact, Dixie State opponents have taken more 3-point shots all but four games since the 2012-13 season (170 games) and in 296 of DSU's 335 games in the program's Division II era.

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 has recorded the lone opponent dunk through four games this season.

TEAM NOTES:
* - Junior forward Matt Conway had quite the Trailblazer debut as he has scored 20 or more points in three of his first four starts in a Trailblazer uniform, including a 23-point night on 7-of-11 from the floor and 9-of-12 at the line with seven rebounds last Saturday at Westminster.
* - Conway, who was named RMAC Defensive POW Nov. 26, also poured in a career-high 25 points with nine boards in the win over Western Oregon (11/24) and tallied 12 points with nine caroms in the Academy of Art win (11/23).
* - Conway, who his fourth in the RMAC in scoring (20.5 ppg) and eighth in rebounding (7.3 rpg), also went for 22 points in the season opener vs. CPP (11/17), with 13 of those 22 points coming 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).
* - Conway has already gone to the foul line 47 times (with 37 makes) and is shooting 78.7 at the stripe.
* - Senior G/F Wade Miller continued his solid play off the bench as he hit a pair of 3-pointers for six points to go with four rebounds in 18 minutes at Westminster ... Miller also struck for a season-high 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting with a pair of 3-pointers in the AAU win (11/23), which came on the heels of a 13-point night vs. CPP (11/17) on 5-of-7 from the floor with three 3-pointers in 14 reserve minutes ... Miller's 14 points vs. AAU were the second-most of his career and marked the fourth time in two-plus seasons in a DSU uniform that he reached double figures in points.
* - Senior forward Austin Montgomery, who did not play against either WOU or Westminster, had a "perfect" 2018-19 debut as he tallied 10 points on 2-of-2 from the floor and 6-of-6 at the line in just nine minutes vs. AAU (11/23) ... Montgomery also pulled down two rebounds and collected one block and one steal.
* - Not to be outdone, freshman forward Josh Newbold hit his first two collegiate shots, with his first came from beyond the arc, to net five points in his Trailblazer debut vs. AAU (11/23).
* - In all, the Trailblazer reserves poured in 41 bench points against the Urban Knights, including seven points from junior forward Cameron Chatwin and five points from junior guard Andre Wilson.
* - The 41 bench points marked just the fourth time since January of 2015 that DSU tallied 40-plus reserve points ... the Blazers scored 43 bench points in a win over Fresno Pacific last season (1/26/18), and had 46 points in an overtime loss to Central Washington (11/18/16) ... DSU also poured in 51 bench points in a road win at Dominican (1/29/15).
* - Junior guard Jack Pagenkopf filled the stat sheet for career-highs of 16 points and five assists vs. WOU (11/28) ... Pagenkopf hit a pair of 3-pointers and went 8-for-8 at the charity stripe, and collected two rebounds and two steals for good measure ... Pagenkopf then followed that up with nine points on 3-of-6 shooting with a pair of treys to go with three boards, one dime and a career-high four steals at Westminster.
* - Senior forward Dub Price tallied a season-high nine points and picked off a career-high three steals with three assists vs. AAU (11/23) ... Price then logged a career-high 30 minutes and had eight points, five boards and three more dimes vs. WOU (11/24).
*- Redshirt sophomore guard Zach Frampton had a breakout start vs. WOU (11/24), against which he went for a career-best eight points (with two 3-pointers), five rebounds, three assists and one steal ... Frampton also dished out four assists with three boards and two steals in 15 minutes at Westminster last Saturday.
* - Senior forward Julien Ducree enjoyed his best outing of the young season at Westminster as he tallied season-highs of eight points and six rebounds in 12 minutes before fouling out ... Ducree connected on three of his six shots and scored five-straight points in the first half to help propel DSU to a halftime lead ... Ducree has also recorded one blocked shot in each of his three outings this season.   
* - Dating back to the 2016-17 season, Dixie State has had 37 of its last 61 games decided by nine points or less, including 14 of 30 games last year, and last Saturday's four-point loss at Westminster.
* - Also dating back to 2016-17, Dixie State has shot 50 percent or better in 20 of its last 56 games overall, which includes a season-high .500 clip (22-of-44) in the WOU win (11/24).
* - DSU shot 50 percent or better eight times last season, with seven of those occasions coming on the road.
* - DSU was held to 32.8 percent (19-of-58) vs. CPP (11-17), 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.
* - Dixie State hit on a combined 51-of-64 (.797) from the line in both games of the Blazers' Thanksgiving Classic, including a season-best 86.1 percent (31-of-36) vs. WOU (11/24) ... the 86.1 percent clip at the line was DSU's highest FT% in more than two seasons (71 games), and was the best since DSU connected on 87.1 percent (27-of-31) in a road win at Chaminade (1/23/16) during the 2015-16 campaign.
* - DSU has won the "Battle of the Boards" in two of their first four games this season and in 26 of their last 34 games dating back to last year.
* - Dixie State tied a season-low with 12 turnovers at Westminster, while DSU's defense forced 17 Griffin turnovers resulting in a season-high nine Blazer steals ... DSU also had only 12 miscues vs. WOU (11/25).

ABOUT THE SOUTH DAKOTA MINES "HARDROCKERS": South Dakota Mines enters Friday night's game looking to stop a six-game losing skid after the Hardrockers opened the 2018-19 campaign with consecutive wins over Texas A&M-Kingsville (80-71) and TAMU-International (68-42). SDM also came out on the wrong end of its RMAC opener at home vs. BHSU on Saturday night, 57-56.  
    Freshman forward Mitchell Sueker is the Rockers' leading scorer (11.8 ppg) and rebounder (5.0 rpg), while junior guard Allec Williams is averaging 10.3 points and nearly four assists a game.

ABOUT THE BLACK HILLS STATE "YELLOW JACKETS": Black Hills State has won two of its first five games of the season, the first of which came on the road at in-state foe Augustana (65-62; 11/17). The Yellow Jackets then halted a brief two-game slide with their one-point win over SDM last Saturday night.
    Senior forward Fraser Malcom is the lone Yellow Jacket averaging double figures at 17.0 ppg, while junior guard Tyler Oliver is BHSU's leading rebounder at 7.2 rpg to with a 7.2 ppg average.

UP NEXT: Dixie State returns to the Burns Arena for the final time in the 2018 calendar year as the Trailblazers begin the home portion of their RMAC schedule next weekend. DSU will play host to regionally-ranked New Mexico Highlands on Friday, Dec. 14, followed by a match-up against Colorado State-Pueblo on Saturday, Dec. 15. Tip-off for both games is set for 7:30 p.m.