RAPID CITY, SD – Converting all five of their free throws in the final 45 seconds of play, the University of Mary men's basketball picked up their second win of a busy Thanksgiving week with a 68-60 victory at South Dakota School of Mines in the final game of the Dakota Challenge.
 
Ty Rogers and Kevin McGaskey combined to score seven points in the final 45 seconds of play and 33 points for the game. Rogers scored 17 points and led UMary in scoring for all three games during the week. McGaskey scored 16 points for the second straight contest.
 
Leading from start to finish, the Marauders opened the scoring on a Rogers trey. UMary carried the early momentum to a 39-23 lead at intermission and a 20-point advantage at 43-23 in the first minute of the second half. The Hardrockers fought back behind the power of a 20-4 run to close the gap to 47-43.
 
After the Hardrockers pulled within a single possession at 61-58, Rogers provided the Marauders response with a 3-point play with 45 seconds left on the clock. Fouled while making a jumper in the paint, the junior forward drained the free throw to push the UMary lead to 64-58. South Dakota Mines answered with a jumper by Mac Terry to close to a 4-point differential.
 
McGaskey sealed the game for UMary, making two free throws with 19 seconds left to regain a 6-point lead for the Marauders at 66-60. Mines missed a pair of shots with Jeremiah Jones corralling the rebound after the second miss by the Hardrockers. Moments later McGaskey was fouled again and hit two more free throws to cement the victory.
 
McGaskey made 8-of-10 free throws in the game. The Marauders made 18-of-24 from the stripe overall while the Hardrockers finished 9-of-17. UMary also held the shooting edge from the field, making 50% (24-of-48) from the floor to 44% (22-of-50) for Mines. The Hardrockers held a 29-21 rebounding edge while the Marauders were +5 on turnovers.
 
In addition to his 16 points, McGaskey added three assists and two steals.
 
Rogers continued his strong shooting with a 7-for-10 effort from the floor. He also chipped in four rebounds and helped give the Marauders a 34-16 scoring advantage in the paint. Jones contributed 10 points, five steals and two assists. Alex Mattes finished with eight points. Xavier Lewis also scored eight points, snared a team-best seven rebounds and assisted on two baskets.
 
Terry and Keagan Smith both had 17 points for Mines.
 
The Marauders, who started the week with a Northern Sun win at Northern State, next hosts #8 MSU Moorhead in UMary's NSIC home opener on Saturday, December 7. Tipoff is set for 5:30 pm at the McDowell Activity Center. Tickets are available at www.UMaryTickets.com.
 
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