SCOTTY'S STROLL: Dragons Scoring Whiz Leaves Pro Career Behind for New Challenges

by Larry Scott

The amazing basketball odyssey of Brett Beeson is over, at least chapter one.

The most decorated player in Dragon basketball history, Beeson recently retired after a 12-year run in professional basketball that transported him from Minnesota State University Moorhead to the backcourts of Spain, Israel, France and Switzerland.

“I came to a tough realization that I will never be able to compete again at the professional level,” said Beeson. “My leg just won't get any better and I have abandoned all hope of making a comeback. It is certainly not the way I wanted to go out, but I made it happen for 12 years and I am very grateful for that.”
Beeson’s post-collegiate basketball portfolio included four six league scoring titles, four Most Valuable Player awards, two European championships during stops in France and Spain and a single game high of 56 points. It was a reward, of sorts, for all the sweat and toil that helped build his own special basketball wonderland.

The 6-5 Eden Prairie native logged a season for the ages as a senior at Moorhead State in 1995-96 and became the first Dragon to lead the nation in scoring, winning the NCAA Division II national crown with an average of 33.3 points a game.

It was a memorable crusade that elevated Beeson to the national stage and triggered a landslide of post-season awards. A magna cum laude graduate with a double major in Marketing and Management, he was decorated with first team GTE Academic All-America laurels, honored as GTE Academic Player of the Year and awarded a $5,000 post-graduate scholarship by the NCAA, the lone honoree from Division II. Beeson was named first team All-America by the College Sports Information Director of America and knighted as the CoSIDA Division II Player of the Year.

Beeson’s litany of awards also included Most Valuable Player plaques from both Moorhead State and the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, first team All-NSIC and All-NSIC Academic certificates, and second team All-America recognition by Division II Bulletin. He appeared in the Faces in the Crowd section of Sports Illustrated and received the Midwest Sports Channel Division II Athlete of the Year award.

Fueled by Beeson, the Dragons built a 19-8 overall record, attracted serious post-season playoff consideration and made a spirited bid for the NSIC title. MSU finished 8-4 in the NSIC with a share of second place.

Beeson scored in double figures in all 27 games and reached the 40-point plateau eight times. He scored 30 or more points 28 times as a junior and senior, including 48 points in the 96-95 victory over North Dakota State, and torched University of Minnesota-Morris for 54 points, a Dragon single game high. (“There was nothing we could do,” UMM coach Jim Severson confessed. “I told my team after the game, ‘I have never been beaten by one player.’ Tonight I was.”)

While Beeson’s scoring was all the rage, he also led the Dragons in rebounding, 8.4, steals, 2.7, and field goal shooting, .513, and could apply suffocating defensive pressure when needed.

Although Beeson started for just two years, he still ranks third on the Dragon all-time scoring ledger with 1,825 lifetime points, and his 900-point harvest as a senior remains the MSUM seasonal highwater mark.

A graduate of Eden Prairie High School with a distinct MSU pedigree, Beeson was largely ignored by college basketball recruiters, but a family connection clearly left the door ajar for the Dragons.

“I ended up at MSU because of coach (Dave) Schellhase,” Beeson said. “Although he didn't offer me a scholarship, he was very persistent to make me a Dragon. The fact is that I received no scholarship offers despite my solid senior season. I scored 49 points against arch rival Minnetonka and at the urging of my father sent a video tape of that performance to nearly all of the (area) NCAA Division II and NAIA colleges.

“I heard back from very few schools, but Schellhase picked up the phone to let me know of his interest. He scheduled a meeting and patiently answered all of my questions. Over the next few months he stayed in constant contact with me and really did an excellent job of making me feel wanted.”

“I was very limited as to what I could do in high school because we walked the ball up the court and played a lot of zone defense,” said Beeson. “Schellhase, on the other hand, gave his players a lot of freedom and believed in a high-tempo style of play. I knew his coaching philosophy would play to my strengths and it was a big reason why I wanted to play for him. . . . .This drove me to spend hours in the gym, work on my game, and ultimately make myself the best player I could be. There is no doubt he’s a big reason I went on to play professional basketball.”

While his first season foreshadowed little of the magic to come, Beeson became something of a four-year, overnight sensation. He made 16 varsity appearances as a freshman and averaged 6.4 ppg in a backup role as a sophomore, but following a redshirt season, Beeson blossomed as a junior. His scoring average took a quantum leap to 26.5 ppg, and he was saluted as All-NAIA Midwest Region Player of the Year. All-region and all-conference honors followed as well.

“That happened because I knew it was my time to seize the opportunity presented to me,” Beeson explained. “There were no guarantees, but I had a good idea I was going to be the starting two guard going into my junior year. During that summer, I was at (Alex) Nemzek Hall every day for three to four hours lifting weights, shooting jump shots and doing everything I could to make myself a better ball player.”
“My skills improved dramatically because of the time and effort I put in and I approached the game with an entirely different mentality once the season started. Instead of being just another guy on the court, I was determined to show myself and everybody I was the best player out there every single night we played.”

His playing career may be over, but his memory bank is full.

“I have many great memories from my time at MSU. I remember most vividly beating North Dakota State 96-95 my senior year. I had a very special night, going 19 of 27 from the floor on my way to 48 points. This will always be my favorite individual basketball memory simply because I wanted to beat the Bison more than any other rival in my career.”

“I also remember scoring 54 points against Minnesota-Morris,” Beeson said. “It was as though everything was in slow motion that night. The only way I can explain it is that I was seeing things happen before they actually did.”

While Beeson was very much a self-made success story, he is eager to thank a support system that never wavered.

“I was very fortunate to play with wonderful people during my years as a Dragon and always loved it when we went on the road together,” Beeson remembers. “Some of the best conversations I have had took place on those rides.”

“My family provided tremendous inspiration for me to succeed in my athletic endeavors. My father, Larry, and his brothers attended MSU in the 60s and 70s. We were always big fans of the program, and I remember going to nearly all of Dragon basketball and football games as a child. We also attended a lot of track and cross-country meets to watch my uncle, Bob. He was an All-American at MSU and had his picture on the wall at Alex Nemzek Hall. Every time I saw that picture I told myself one day mine would be up there, too.”

What new adventures await Beeson?

“Now that my professional basketball career has come to an end, I am focusing on being a college basketball analyst. I am currently doing radio and internet TV broadcasts for Long Beach State and Cal State Dominguez Hills. It is my goal to eventually rise to the top and be a color commentator for an NBA franchise. I have also secured a role in the major motion picture SWEETWATER, the story of Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton, the first African-American to sign an NBA contract.”

It seems only right that serious Dragon fans can expect to hear from Beeson again, on another stage at another time.

Scotty's Stroll: How You Going to Keep Her Down on the Farm?

by Larry Scott, former Sports Information Director

It’s a long journey from shooting jump shots on a frozen farmyard in eastern North Dakota to the bright lights of major college basketball, a path not often traveled and an adventure beyond even the wildest childhood dreams of Nicole (Nikki) Scholl.

The Grandin, ND native and onetime Dragon is in her second season as head women’s basketball coach at NCAA Division I affiliate Binghamton University in upstate New York. Her ascension is the stuff of patience, hard work and a little luck. A rock solid, rural upbringing didn’t hurt, either.

“I’d like to say I took a big part in the farm, but I would be lying if I said that,” Scholl remembers. “At the time, the primary crop was sugar beets, and we raised beef cattle and pigs. I did help out a little bit, but more times than not, I grabbed my basketball and went outside so I could avoid doing some of the farm work.”

Her outdoor court was nothing special, just a patch of Midwest soil, but it became an incubator of dreams for a young girl.

“I had an outdoor hoop from the time I first remember picking up a basketball. My older brother (Kelly) played basketball, too, so we were always out in the driveway playing. He, of course, never let me beat him,” Scholl said.

“I played basketball since I was in first grade. Before Halstad and Hendrum joined together to become Norman County West, we were the Halstad Pirates. I remember in first grade they did basketball with the grades, first grade against second, third against fourth, fifth against sixth. What really happened was most of the boys played basketball, and the girls were cheerleaders. I didn’t want to be a cheerleader so I ended up playing with the boys.”

Scholl was a four-year letterwinner at Norman County West High School and scored 1,038 points in her career. She was voted Most Valuable Player as a sophomore and was twice named to the All-Northern Plains Conference team. Scholl was elected basketball captain as a senior and was an all-region selection.

She found time for more than basketball, however. She was a three-year starter in volleyball and served as captain and starting setter. Scholl also lettered in track and golf and was a member of the concert and jazz band.

For college options, Scholl had simply to look up and down the Red River Valley. She was recruited by Minnesota, Crookston and head coach Lori Ulferts, but those plans were scrapped when Ulferts accepted the head job at MSU Moorhead in 1989.

“I had originally committed to go to (Minnesota) Crookston, but when Lori got the job at Moorhead State, she asked me to go along with her so that’s how I ended up at MSUM.”

Scholl was a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter for the Dragons from 1989-1993 and earned all-conference, all-district and honorable mention Kodak All-America honors as a senior. ?
For nearly 20 seasons she owned a share of the MSUM single game record of six three-point field goals, set in 1989 against Minot State. Scholl built the finest lifetime free throw percentage of .885 in 1991-92 that still stands and ranks third in career three-point field goals, 129, and fifth in steals, 164.

Scholl has warm memories of her career with the Dragons. “I remember my teammates, playing cards on bus trips, and especially, the overall improvement of the program. My first two years we weren’t real successful, but my junior and senior years we had 20-plus win seasons,” Scholl said.

Scholl’s success has carried her to a much bigger basketball stage now, but she has no regrets of casting her lot with the Dragons.

“I wouldn’t change anything. I was happy playing so close to home, and I loved the fact that my parents (Harley and Bonnie) could come to all my games. I ended up having a very good experience at MSUM.”

“The one thing I wish I could have done is participated in the AAU programs that go on now, not necessarily to have exposure to go to a different school, but just to have that extra playing that went along with it.”

Scholl graduated cum laude from MSU Moorhead in 1994 with a degree in Physical Education and added a Master’s Degree from North Dakota State in 1999, where she also served as a physical education and health instructor.

Following graduation from MSUM, Scholl spent three years as the head girls’ basketball coach at Hastings High School where she led the Raiders to a Minnesota State Class AA State Championship and overall record of 64-14. In 1996, she was honored as the Region 3AA and Minnesota Class AA Coach of the Year.

“My second year (at Hastings) we won the state tournament. I was fortunate to come into a good program. The booster club had done a phenomenal job developing young kids who had been playing together since sixth grade, a lot of AAU stuff, and there was also a good nucleus of older kids.”

Scholl’s coaching portfolio also included a two-year stop at North Dakota State, where she helped lead the Bison to a pair of NCAA tournament appearances.

“They were looking for a graduate assistant, and I thought it was about time to make the move, because college is where I wanted to be and that was a good opportunity for me.”

“I was there two years,” Scholl said. “It was a whole new world for me, a lot different than teaching and coaching in high school. As a graduate assistant, you’re there to be an assistant to the head coach, and that was a different role for me. I learned a lot about the ins and outs of the daily stuff---film exchange, travel plans, recruiting and the on-the-floor (coaching).”

The 2009-10 campaign marks Scholl’s 11th year with the Bearcats. She was elevated to the head position on April 30, 2008 after serving as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator the previous three years, and assistant coach for seven seasons.??In her first season at the helm, Scholl guided a young squad picked to finish sixth in the America East Conference to fourth place and a berth in the America East semifinals. For the first time, the Bearcats landed two players on the America East All-Rookie Team, including a first-ever America East Rookie of the Year. ?
Scholl somehow seems startled by her success, but knows the bar has been raised.

“I always wanted to coach, even from a young age. I remember in high school helping out with the elementary kids, and in college Missy Narum and I ran a camp in the summertime back at my old high school. . . . Now I’m making a living at it.”

“It’s been a big adjustment after being an assistant for so long,” said Scholl. “It’s a different role with different responsibilities. I do have a great staff, and I really enjoy the players I work with, and that makes the job easier. In college coaching there is so much to do; one person can’t take care of it all.”

“When I got here, Binghamton was in the transition from (NCAA) division two to division one, and at onetime had actually been a division three school.
We recruit from all over the place; we have a lot of international players—Estonia, twins from Ireland, Athens, Greece and two players from Canada.”

“At this level, there is pressure to win, not that every coach doesn’t feel that, but here it’s more of a business. It’s all about recruiting good players and winning basketball games. That’s quite a bit different from the high school level.”

It’s a challenge, indeed, but one that Scholl is ready to take on, and lessons and values developed long ago on a small outdoor court will serve her well.