MOORHEAD, Minn.—The Minnesota State University Moorhead men's basketball team ended the regular season with a 75-69 loss to UMary on Saturday night at Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse.
Johnny Beeninga, right, was honored on Senior Night
(Photo by Jenna Britz)
The Dragons fall to 17-11 overall and 13-9 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. UMary improves to 12-16 overall and 7-15 in the NSIC.
Despite the loss, MSUM will host an opening-round game on Wednesday in the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament. The Dragons will face Wayne State (Neb.)
MSUM shot 42.9 percent (27-of-63) from the field and 21.1 percent (4-of-19) from beyond the arc compared to 42.6 percent (23-of-54) from the field and 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from three for the Marauders.
Senior guard
Johnny Beeninga led the Dragons across the board with 13 points, six assists, and five rebounds. Sophomore guards
Gavin Baumgartner and
Bryce Irsfeld each added 12 points for MSUM. Junior forward
Joe Sevlie scored eight points and pulled down five rebounds. Freshman forward
Dane Zimmer added nine points.
In the first half, the Dragons scored the game's first points thanks to a Zimmer layup. A UMary three-pointer with 7:47 remaining in the first half put the Dragons down 10; their largest deficit of the game. The Dragons were able to close the deficit to just four points and went into the half down 37-33.
In the second half, the Dragons fought to retake the lead with 6:38 remaining in the game, leading 54-53 thanks to an Irsfeld three-pointer. UMary took control once again, and led 70-64 with 1:15 remaining. The Dragons were able to cut the lead to just three at 72-69 with 21 seconds on the clock. MSUM would go on to lose 75-69.
Sophomore center
Jesse Bergh finished with eight points off the bench.
The Dragons host Wayne State at 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
Steve d'Eustachio Stat of the Game: The Dragons won their first-ever NSIC North title six years ago tonight with a 95-94 overtime home win against the University of Mary.
Tyler Vaughan converted an old-school three-point play with 0:25 left to give the Dragons the lead, then they got a defensive stop to hang on for the win.
