BISMARCK, ND – Clutch play down the stretch and another tenacious defensive effort carried the University of Mary men's basketball team past visiting Minot State University 65-58 in the opening game of the Northern Sun season.
The Marauders opened the year with three straight losses by a combined total of 11 points. In each of those contests UMary had possession of the basketball with an opportunity to pull even in the final minute of play. Since then the Marauders have won three straight games and displayed against the Beavers the ability to close out a game down the stretch.
Knotted at 52-52 with under four minutes to play,
Tom Kubank started a 7-0 Marauders run with a 3-pointer that pushed UMary in front permanently. After a pair of misses by the Beavers,
Matthew Kreklow grabbed the defensive rebound and was subsequently fouled on the offensive end. The sophomore center hit a pair of free throws to push the Marauders advantage to 57-52. A steal by
Connor Hellebust led to a
Jaylan White basket and a seven point lead for UMary with just 1:25 left in the game.
Refusing to fade away quietly, Minot State sandwiched a basket and a pair of free throws around a Hellebut free throw, climbing within 60-56 and under 50 seconds on the clock.
Just as he started the Marauders late run, Kubank dealt a near death blow to the Beavers chances with a layup off a feed from White and 37 seconds remaining.
UMary then sealed the game on the boards and at the line. First Kreklow hauled down a Beavers miss, was fouled and hit both free throws.
Dennis Austin III then followed suit, grabbing a rebound and hitting one free throw with eight seconds left to build the Marauders biggest lead of the night at 65-56. David Akibo ended the Marauders 13-4 run with a basket in the closing seconds.
One of the nation's top teams in points allowed, the Marauders posted their fourth straight game of holding the opposition to 58 or fewer points. UMary held a 36-27 rebounding advantage, committed just seven turnovers, outscored Minot State 30-20 in the paint and limited the Beavers to a shooting percentage of 41.2 percent for the night. Those defensive figures helped the Marauders overcome a 3-for-24 shooting effort from behind the arc.
White led the Marauders with 15 points. He also had three assists and two steals while making 5-of-6 free throws. Kreklow made 5-of-7 field goals and all four free throws on his way to 14 points. He also added six rebounds. Kubank had two treys, scored 14 points and had four rebounds. Hellebust added seven points and seven rebounds.
Lucas Mayer had six points and three rebounds off the bench while helping Kreklow prevent the Beavers from scoring in the paint.
Akibo led Minot State (5-5 overall, 0-1 NSIC) with 16 points and seven rebounds. Dorian Aluyi added 15 points.
The Marauders (3-3, 1-0 NSIC) next host Mayville State on Tuesday, Dec. 4, at 7:30 pm before St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth arrive in town for a pair of Northern Sun games on Dec. 7-8.
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