MOORHEAD, Minn.—The Minnesota State University Moorhead men's basketball team built a seven-point halftime lead and pulled away in the second half in a 88-63 rout of Minnesota State, Mankato on Friday night at Nemzek Fieldhouse.

The Dragons improved to 13-8 overall and 9-6 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. Minnesota State falls to 11-10 overall and 9-6 in the NSIC.

MSUM shot 49.2 percent (29-of-59) from the field and 57.1 percent (8-of-14) from three-point land compared to 44.3 percent (27-of-61) from the field and 23.5 percent (4-of-17) from three for Minnesota State.

Sophomore guard Gavin Baumgartner led the way for the Dragons across the board, scoring 23 points, grabbing a season-high 11 rebounds, and dishing out a team-high four assists. Junior forward Kaedrick Williams 16 points and had nine rebounds, freshman forward Jack Rusch scored 11 points. Sophomore guard Bryce Irsfeld scored 13 points off the bench.

A majority of the first half stayed tightly contested. The first half saw seven lead changes and eight ties. The Dragons grabbed firm control of the lead with 7:24 remaining in the half thanks to a jumper by Irsfeld. MSUM did not trail from that point on, and went into halftime with a seven-point lead.

In the second half, the Dragons extended their lead. At the 11:17 mark, an Irsfeld free throw gave the Dragons a 10-point lead. MSUM controlled the lead by double digits for the remainder of the game. A jumper by Williams with 0:41 remaining ended the game, giving the Dragons an 88-63 win. That 25-point lead was the largest of the game for MSUM.

The Dragons are back home on Saturday for a matchup with Concordia-St. Paul at 5:30. This will be their last home game until Feb. 21, as MSUM will head on a four-game road trip.

Steve d'Eustachio Stat of the Game: Tonight's win ended the longest losing streak the Dragons versus an opponent (five).