MOORHEAD, Minn. — A red-hot shooting night from the field sparked the No. 10-ranked Minnesota State University Moorhead men's basketball team to a 115-82 win over Southwest Minnesota State in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action Saturday night in Moorhead, Minn.
MSUM is now 19-2 overall and 11-1 in the NSIC with the win, while the Mustangs fell to 8-9 overall and 4-8 in the league.
The Dragons shot a season-best 64.6 percent (42-of-65) from the field in the game, including a season-best 64.3 percent (18-of-28) from three-point range. The 18 three-pointers were just one away from tying a single-game school record of 19 (set in 2011 against Concordia). The 115 points scored were the most by the Dragons in an NSIC game.
Nine different MSUM players scored at least four points; six different players hit three-pointers. Senior forward
Isaac Sevlie scored 21 points to lead MSUM, while sophomore guard
Tanner Kretchman had 19 points and a tied a career-high with 10 assists. Senior guard
Tyler Vaughan had 19 points and six assists, while junior forward
Ayob Ayob had 17 points and three assists off the bench. Senior guard
Ngijol Songolo was the fifth Dragon in double figures at 15 points. Junior guard
Aaron Lien had five rebounds and five points.
The game was tied at 7-7 just 2:47 into the game before MSUM went on a 20-6 run to take a 27-13 lead with 11:35 left in the first half. Songolo's three-point shooting was the catalyst, as hit buried three 3-pointers during that run.
The Dragons were far from done in the half, as they pushed the lead to 65-32 by halftime. MSUM shot a torrid 68.6 percent (@4-of-35) in the first half and had four players score in double figures: Ayob (12), Vaughan (12), Kretchman (12) and Sevlie (11).
The blistering shooting continued in the second half for the Dragons as they pushed the lead to as many as 45. MSUM shot 60 percent (18-of-30) in the second half and their lead was never threatened.
Freshman center
Addison Park added nine points for MSUM. Both teams had 32 rebounds.
MSUM plays at Minnesota Crookston on Friday to begin a stretch of four straight road games.
Steve d'Eustachio Stat of Game: The Dragons last played here in Moorhead on Jan. 16 back in 2010. Current Dragon Athletic Administrative Assistant Andrew VanHavermaet hit 8 of 12 three-pointers en route to a career high 30 points, to help his Dragons beat Minnesota Crookston 84-76.
