BISMARCK, ND – Nearly perfect on the night, Rickey Suggs scored a career-high 25 points and missed just one shot to lead the University of Mary men's basketball team to a 99-79 win over St. Cloud State University. The red-hot Marauders made over 60 percent of their shots to record a season-high point total.
 
The win wasn't just about outscoring the Huskies, who entered the night in third place in the Northern Sun North division. Mary (10-15 overall, 8-11 NSIC) limited SCSU (17-11, 13-6) to a .426 shooting percentage while shutting out Scottie Stone, now the 5^th leading scorer in the NSIC this season. Stone was 0- 4 from the field and held without a point, despite averaging over 18 a game and leading the league in 3-pointers made per game.
 
Suggs made 11-of-12 field goals on his way to a career-best 25 points. The senior was 3-for-4 at the free throw line, added nine rebounds and had two assists and two steals.
 
Damonta Henry added 22 points. Moved back into the starting lineup for the night, the senior from Chicago, IL, added five rebounds and five assists. He was 4-for-9 on treys and 8-of-14 from the field.
 
Mary had six players in double figures. Bryan Jefferson had 14 points and nine rebounds while distributing four assists. He was 6-of-9 from the field. Isaac Lindquist and Pat Thomas both had 11 and Trevor Zacher added 10 points off the bench. Thomas also had five assists.
 
Gage Davis, the leading scorer in the NSIC, exploded for 36 points and grabbed ten rebounds for the Huskies . He hit all ten free throws and dished three assists. Jon Averkamp added 28 for SCSU. No other player had more than seven points for the Huskies.
 
Despite holding a slim 9-11 edge in turnovers, Mary held a 23-10 advantage in points off turnovers.
 
Mary grabbed an early 8-7 lead on a basket by Lindquist and never looked back. An 18-2 run midway through the first half gave the Marauders a 44-27 lead late in the opening session.
 
SCSU quickly cut the Mary lead to four on a run right out of the locker room to open the second half. The Marauders responded with a 21-6 run to regain control of the game. A three-pointer by Henry and a midcourt steal and slam dunk from Suggs energized the team and the crowd. Another triple by Henry and a Lindquist basket capped the run for a 67-47 lead with 12:37 remaining in the game.
 
Mary's lead eventually grew to 23 points before SCSU closed the gap to s single run.
 
The Marauders remain tied with Minot State for fourth place and the final home playoff berth in the NSIC North with three games remaining.  Mary closes out the weekend home stand against Minnesota Duluth on Saturday, Feb. 11, at 6 pm.
 
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