Men's Basketball | 01/09/25 | 11:33 AM

HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College Basketball teams will continue the early stages of Frontier Conference play with a road trip to Dillon for a Thursday evening doubleheader at Montana Western. The Women will tip-off at 5 p.m. with the Men following at 7 p.m.

On the Women's side of the action the No. 21-ranked Fighting Saints (9-5, 1-0) started the conference slate out with a bang last Saturday, knocking off No. 5 Providence as they begin their pursuit of a third-straight Frontier Conference Championship.

Addi Ekstrom (Bozeman, Mont. / SR) enters the week as the reigning Frontier Conference Offensive Player of the Week for the first time in her career following an impressive pair of games against the Argos and Keyano College. Ekstrom averaged 20.0 points per game, while shooting 60 percent from the floor and 62.5 percent from three-point range to help lead Carroll to the two victories.

Carroll enters the game as one of the better defensive teams in the NAIA, allowing only 55.1 points per game (No. 15). Slowing down opponents and shortening the game is a hallmark of the program, and Carroll will look to do the same against a Western team that averages 67.8 points per game. The Bulldogs have only been held to fewer than 60 points four times on the season, and all four have been losses.

The Saints have dominated the series between the schools in recent years, entering the game on a 15-game win streak dating back to the 2019-20 season.

The Carroll Men enter the evening looking to pick up their first Frontier win of the year following an 83-78 loss to Providence in the opener last weekend.

It's been an up-and-down season for the Saints under first year Head Coach Dan Pearson, but the young group has shown plenty of reasons to be optimistic.

Isaiah Crane (Portland, Ore. / R-FR) has emerged as one of the top scoring threats in the league, entering the week at No. 2 in points per game in the conference (16.7 ppg), while Derek Kramer (Bellevue, Wash. / JR) is No. 2 in the Frontier in rebounds per game (9.6 rpg).

All five of Carroll's starters are averaging at least 10 points per game, and the team as a whole is averaging their most points per game (83.0) since the 2018-19 season. The Saints will have to tighten up on the defensive end of the court in order to win in a competitive Frontier however, as they're allowing 82.7 points per game midway through the season.

Carroll has won 18 of the last 20 games played in the series, including all three of last season's conference matchups.

Both games will be streamed live HERE.

Catch Voice of the Saints, Nick Dietzen, and Carroll Hall of Famer, Gary Turcott, call the action live on Rewind 94.9 FM or online HERE.

Live stats for the Women can be found HERE, and live stats for the Men HERE.

Visit www.carrollathletics.com this evening for a full recap of the night's action, and to stay up to date on everything going on in Carroll Athletics.

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