BISMARCK, ND – Led by seniors Tom Kubank and Dennis Austin III playing their final collegiate game at the McDowell Activity Center, the University of Mary closed out the 2018-19 season with a dominating 83-63 victory over the visiting MSU Moorhead Dragons. The victory gives the Marauders a season sweep over the Dragons.
 
UMary dominated the opening half, shooting a scorching 62 percent from the field in the opening half, including a 6-for-10 effort from behind the arc. And as hot as UMary was in the first half, the Dragons were as cold as the frigid temperatures outdoors. UMary defenders harried the MSUM shooters to a 26.7 field goal percentage in the opening half and a 34.3 percent efforts for the game.
 
Kubank and Austin set the tone for the game during an opening 11-1 run for UMary. Kubank took a feed from Austin and scored the opening basket of the game on an easy layup. After Jaylan White hit a floater in the lane, Austin scored on layups on the Marauders next two possessions, the second after he grabbed a defensive rebound and went coast to coast. Following a defensive stop on a Kubank block, the Marauders senior got the ball back on the other end of the floor and capped the run by draining his first 3-pointer of the night.
 
After the Dragons cut the Marauders advantage to 18-15, UMary turned up the defense and exploded offensively. Halfway through the opening half, Connor Hellebust nailed a 3-pointer to kick off a 27-5 run. After a steal by Justin Engg led to the first of two straight Matthew Kreklow baskets, Hellebust forced a turnover that resulted in a Jaylan White basket.
 
Following the under 10:00 media timeout, the Marauders continued to take it to the Dragons. Fouled on a layup, Austin hit his free throw to complete a three-point play. Kubank then drained 3s on UMary's next two possessions and Austin soon followed with a trey of his own as UMary scored noine straight points behind the arc. The Marauders lead eventually grew to as many as 27 points before going into intermission with a 49-24 lead.
 
MSUM climbed within 13 points in the second half but could get no closer. Fouled behind the arc, Hellebust hit three straight free throws, followed by a 3-pointer from White and a Trever Kaiser trey. The Marauders lead stayed above 20 for most of the remainder of the game.
 
Austin tied for the team scoring lead with 15 points, making 6-of-8 shots. He also added five rebounds. Kubank posted 11 points, finishing 3-of-4 behind the arc and adding five rebounds and two steals.
 
Kreklow had 15 points, four rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Hellebust scored 11 points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds. White chipped in ten points and five assists. Richard Brown came off the bench to score a career-high 10 points, making 4-of-5 shots. Evan Anderson had five assists in a reserve role.
 
Gavin Baumgartner led MSUM with 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
 
The Marauders posted a field goal percentage of .534 for the game and went 13-of-15 at the line.  
 
UMary finishes the season 9-5 at the McDowell Activity Center. It is the team's most home wins since posting 12 in 2010-11. The Marauders finish the regular season 12-16 overall and 9-13 in the NSIC. UMary tied for 5^th in the NSIC North and 10^th in the NSIC overall. MSUM is 19-11 overall and 13-9 in the NSIC.
 
The Marauders, seeded sixth in the NSIC North, now open the 2019 NSIC/Sanford Health men's basketball tournament at Wayne State College on Wednesday, Feb. 27. Game time is 6 pm.
 
#marauders#