BISMARCK, ND – On a night when baskets were hard to find for both teams, the University of Mary men's basketball team came up just short in a 68-62 loss to visiting Winona State University. Gerald Gittens led the Marauders with 24 points and Brock Heffner added 15 as the Warriors used their edge in free throws to capture the win.
 
Gittens gave the Warriors fits all evening. The junior guard from Brooklyn, NY, hit 8-of-11 shots, including 2-of-3 from downtown. He was also 6-of-8 at the free throw line and added a team-leading seven rebounds.
 
Heffner also proved hard to manage. The sophomore forward in his first season at UMary added five rebounds to his 15 points. Limited to 16 minutes in part by foul troubles, Heffner made 6-of-9 shots.
 
Zyon Smith added 10 points for UMary (6-11 overall, 1-10 Northern Sun), hitting a pair of treys in the game. He dished out seven assists.
 
Connor Dillon led all players with 32 points for Winona State (10-7, 5-6 NSIC). Brock Voigt added 19.
 
The Warriors finished the game making 21-of-25 free throws while the Marauders were 10-of-13. UMary shot 39% for the game on 58 field goal attempts while Winona State was 21-of-44 (47.7%).
 
Winona State scored the first eight points of the game and held a 16-11 lead for over five minutes of play. UMary broke out with an 8-0 run to take the lead as Smith hit a driving layup and a trey before a Heffner basket and a free throw pushed UMary out in front for the first time at 19-16. UMary entered intermission leading 28-26 as Gittens grained a trey in the closing seconds.
 
In a game that featured seven ties and six lead changes, UMary took its last lead at 45-44 and claimed its last tie at 51-51 on a layup by Alex Mattes. Down as many as seven points, the Marauders clawed within 64-62 on a Heffner basket with less than 30 seconds on the clock. After grabbing a rebound off a Warriors missed free throw, the Marauders had possession with a chance to tie or take the lead on a trey but couldn't convert a shot. Winona State grabbed the board with six seconds left and made four straight free throws to close out the game.
 
The Marauders close out their four-game home stand with a visit from #1 Minnesota State University on Saturday, January 20. It's the first time UMary has hosted the nation's top ranked team since January 2007. Tip off between the Marauders and the Mavericks is slated for 5:30 pm at the McDowell Activity Center.
 
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