MANKATO, MN – Facing a second straight team fighting to finish atop the Northern Sun, the University of Mary men's basketball upset hopes came up short in an 85-73 road loss at Minnesota State University.
Cayden Redfield came off the bench to score a career-best 18 points and
Jeremiah Jones posted a double double for the Marauders.
One of the most difficult road trips of the season for UMary, the Marauders faced two of four teams currently tied for first place in the Northern Sun standings with two games to play. The NSIC regular season concludes next Saturday. Both Minnesota State and Winona State University, UMary's Friday foe, are tied for first place in league play. UMary next plays Southwest Minnesota State University, which will move into a tie for first place should the Mustangs defeat the University of Minnesota Crookston on Saturday night.
A slow start to the game found the Marauders trailing by 16 midway through the first half. Redfield sparked an 8-0 UMary run to get the Marauders back in the game with a jumper, followed by layups from
Tamarrein Henderson,
Jeremiah Jones and
Rich Ashu to close the gap. A 3-ball from Redfield capped an 11-2 run to close the Marauders deficit to 25-18.
A 4-point run by
Kevin McGaskey on a pair of free throws following a technical foul on MSU and a jumper in the paint moved the Marauders within 33-28 with under two minutes to play in the half. The Mavericks hit a trey in the closing seconds to enter intermission with a 38-30 lead.
Minnesota State built a 15 point advantage in the second half but couldn't shake UMary. A Redfield trey followed by a
Ty Johnson layup pulled UMary within 63-56. The Mavericks eventually pushed the advantage back to double digits before another basket by Johnson moved the Marauders deficit to single digits one last time at 67-58.
Redfield drained four treys in the game on his way to 18 points. Overall the junior guard made 7-of-14 shots and grabbed three rebounds in 24 minutes of play. His previous high was 16 points in the second game of the season against St. Edwards. The four treys is also a season-best.
After just missing a double double the previous three games, Jones accomplished the task with 13 points and a career-best 13 rebounds. He had nine points and 12 rebounds Friday at Winona State University. The sophomore guard hit 5-of-8 shots from the floor and all three free throws. The NSIC leader in steals took the ball away twice from the Mavericks and delivered five assists.
McGaskey followed up a career-best 29 points on Friday at WSU with 15 points against the defending NCAA Division II national champions. The graduate transfer from Prairie View A&M also dished out four assists and made four steals.
Wylee Delorme finished with eight points, draining a pair of treys.
Justin Eagins led the Mavericks with 26 points, hitting five treys and finishing 9-of-10 at the free throw line. Kyreese Willingham added 17 points and 13 rebounds.
UMary outscored MSU 40-24 in the paint but the Mavericks went 24-for-32 at the free throw line to seven makes in 11 attempts for the Marauders.
The Marauders now return home for the final weekend of the 2024-25 season. UMary hosts #22 Southwest Minnesota State University on Friday, February 21, at 5:30 pm. The season wraps up with Senior Day on Saturday, February 23, when UMary faces the University of Sioux Falls at 3:30 pm.
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