BISMARCK, N.D. – Burning bright throughout a high-octane first half, the University of Mary men's basketball offense suffered a meltdown after intermission in a 98-81 loss to 6
th ranked MSU Moorhead.
Two of the highest scoring teams in the Northern Sun, the Marauders (5-1 overall, 2-1 NSIC) kept pace with the Dragons (9-1, 3-0) throughout an entertaining first half and trailed just 49-46 at intermission. The two teams traded leads eight times and there were five ties. U-Mary shot a blistering 58.6 percent from the floor – including a 6-of-11 effort behind the arc – while MSUM connected on 54.5 percent of its shot attempts.
The Marauders couldn't maintain the pace after intermission, making just one of their first six shots coming out of the locker room. Meanwhile, behind the sharp shooting of Aaron Lein, the Dragons scored 12 of the first 14 points of the second half to build a 61-48 advantage. Lien hit back-to-back treys on the Dragons first two possessions of the second half. After a Tyler Vaughan free throw, Lien followed with a layup and ended the run with another 3-pointer.
Brandon Tyler cut the Marauders deficit to 61-53 on a fast break basket with just under 15 minutes remaining in the game. It was the closest U-Mary would get the rest of the evening.
U-Mary made 42.3 percent of its field goal attempts in the second half and finished the game at 50.9 percent. MSUM was even more efficient in the second half than the first, making 57.7 percent of its shots after intermission and 55.9 percent for the game.
The biggest advantage for the Dragons came on the board. MSUM hauled down 38 rebounds, including 13 on the offensive glass, to 25 for U-Mary. The rebounding efforts of the Dragons led the visitors to 23-7 edge in second chance points. The Marauders had entered the game outrebounding opponents by over ten per game.
The U-Mary reserves sparked the Marauders throughout the game and the home team held a 37-24 scoring advantage over the Dragons.
Damonta Henry led the Marauders with 14 points in a reserve role. The junior guard was 4-of-7 on treys and made both free throws.
Rickey Suggs added ten points and two assists off the bench while
Erron Collins chipped in seven and
Brenden Mann, who hit both his trey attempts, had six.
Combined the Marauders reserves made 12-of-20 shots, including 7-of-10 trey attempts, dished five assists and committed just one turnover.
Marquealis Edwards and
Bryan Jefferson both had 13 points for U-Mary and Tyler and
Devan Douglas chipped in eight points each.
Isaac Sevlie led the Dragons with 22 points and 13 rebounds, both game highs. Lein, who was 5-of-9 on 3-point attempts, finished with 21 points. Tanner Kretchman added 16 points and 10 assists.
The Marauders next play at Southwest Minnesota State University and the University of Sioux Falls on Dec. 11-12.
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