BILLINGS, MT – In similar fashion to the first two games of the season, the University of Mary men's basketball team came tantalizingly close to victory but instead fell just short in a 56-53 road loss at MSU Billings. The Marauders had a pair of opportunities in the closing minute of the contest to force overtime but a 3-pointer just ahead of the final buzzer failed to connect.
In all three games this season the Marauders have had possessions in the final minute of play with the chance to at least pull even. UMary's three losses this season are by a combined 11 points.
Down as many as 11 points in the second half to the Yellowjackets, the Marauders went on a 16-8 run behind 3-pointers from
Tom Kubank and
Connor Hellebust to pull within 44-41 with 9:17 to play.
Points proved tough for both teams to find down the stretch. The Yellowjackets built a seven point advantage before the Marauders closed to 51-49 at the 2:44 mark on a
Lucas Mayer layup. Following a layup by Brendan Howard to build a 4-point lead for MSUB,
Jaylan White hit a floater in the lane with 50 seconds remaining to get the Marauders within 53-51.
Tyler Green tried to end the Marauders night with a 3-pointer ay 00:38 but Mayer responded with a put-back off a missed 3-point attempt with 21 seconds on the clock.
Now down 56-53 and forced to foul, the Marauders sent Green to the line but he missed the front end of the bonus and UMary's
Wyatt Carr snared the rebound. The Marauders proved unable to capitalize after committing a turnover in their offensive zone.
Once again needing to foul, it was Melvin Newburn Jr.'s turn to keep the Marauders hopes alive by missing another front end of a bonus situation with four seconds left in the game.
Matthew Kreklow hauled down the rebound and the Marauders quickly set up a final shot. While on-line, Kubank's deep 3-point attempt to send the game to overtime hit the front rim and fell just short.
Kreklow led the Marauders in scoring with 16 points. The sophomore finished 6-of-12 from the floor, made all three free throws, added two blocks and had two steals.
Kubank had a pair of treys and scored eight points. Mayer came off the bench and scored eight points and grabbed seven rebounds. White had six rebounds, five assists, two steals and seven points.
Dennis Austin III claimed eight rebounds.
Howard led the Yellowjackets with 22 points. Newburn added 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Another strong defensive performance by the Marauders, UMary held MSUB to a shooting percentage of 38.5 for the game, including a 3-for-21 effort behind the arc. The Marauders haven't allowed more than 66 points in any of their three games.
UMary struggled offensively also, shooting 36.4 percent from the floor and sinking 5-of-19 3-point attempts. The Marauders did go 8-of-12 at the line to have an edge over the Yellowjackets, who finished 3-of-6. UMary committed two more turnovers than MSUB (17-15), and the Yellowjackets turned that into a 23-14 advantage in points off turnovers. Despite being narrowly outrebounded 42-38, the visiting Marauders held a 13-9 edge in second chance points.
The Marauders return to Bismarck for their first home game of the season on Friday, Nov. 16, against Yellowstone Christian College. The first of six straight home games, tip off is set for 7:30 pm at the McDowell Activity Center.
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