DULUTH, Minn. – Third-ranked MSU Moorhead utilized 43 points from
Logan Kinsey and
Jacob Beeninga to power past (RV) Northern Michigan on Friday evening. The Dragons bested the Wildcats to open the St. Louis County Basketball Classic, 82-71.
Both offenses would erupt in the opening stages of the first half with neither team gaining a massive advantage.
Logan Kinsey would open the game strong for MSUM, scoring six of the first 10 points for the Dragons on a perfect three of three from the floor. Kinsey's output helped MSUM lead 10-7. While Northern Michigan would take a 13-12 lead a few minutes later, it was
Sam Hastreiter who ignited MSUM again.
Hastreiter buried a triple to put the Dragons right back in front and kickstarted an 11-2 MSUM run. Jumpers from
Jacob Beeninga,
Shaun Wysocki and
Levi Birkholz helped the Dragons to their largest lead of the half in nine points. Credit to the Wildcats, who responded with a 10-0 run of their own midway through the half to regain the lead, 25-24. Hastreiter would bury his second three of the half to put the Dragons back up four points (32-28) with just over seven minutes to play.
It was Hastreiter who paced the Dragons offensively as he would nail another triple with five minutes to go. Birkholz would earn three points the hard way on the next trip down to push MSUM's lead to six points. The Dragons would close the half making three of their final four field goal attempts to lead 46-38. Beeninga capped a phenomenal offensive half for MSUM with his 10
th point of the frame.
Hastreiter led MSUM with 12 points on a perfect four of four shooting. Beeninga and Kinsey combined for 19 points on nine of 13 shooting in an all-around effort. The Dragons shot an astounding 67.9 percent from the floor through 20 minutes while outrebounding the Wildcats, 16-7.
Kinsey would leadoff the second half with a three to give MSUM its biggest lead of the game in 11 points.
Eddie Beeninga would nail a three with just over 16 minutes to play to keep MSUM up nine points. Following Beeninga's triple, Northern Michigan would rip off a 7-0 run to pull the count within two points. The Dragons would stave off the Wildcat run with baskets from Beeninga and Kinsey, coupled with lockdown defense. Wysocki led the way defensively for MSUM, forcing a Wildcat turnover and providing good contests on shot attempts.
MSUM would build the lead back out to seven points before Northern Michigan came punching again. The Wildcats used a short 6-2 burst to get the game to within three points (61-58) with over eight minutes left.
Jacob Jennissen would provide a needed bucket out of a Dragon timeout to help MSUM's offense come alive. Beeninga nailed a three on the ensuing possession to push the Dragons back in front by six points.
Kinsey and Jennissen would score again while limiting Northern Michigan on the other end. With under five minutes to play, MSUM led 70-62. Out of the media timeout, Hastreiter would splash home a three off a nice dime from Beeninga. The basket would get the lead back into double digits with four to go. Kinsey would keep the momentum with a mind-bending tip-in slam to keep the advantage at 11 points.
Down the stretch, Northern Michigan would rally again to bring the score to within six points. The Wildcats worked back into the contest with a daunting fullcourt press on MSUM. Leading 77-71 with under a minute to go, Wysocki would make possibly the game's biggest play. As Kinsey missed on a three-pointer, the freshman was able to tip the ensuing rebound and keep possession with MSUM. The play allowed the Dragons to whittle the clock down with Beeninga ultimately converting on a pair of free throws.
The Beeninga brothers would continue to ice the game at the line late as MSUM won 82-71. The elder Beeninga and Kinsey combined to score 43 points on a 60.7 percent success rate from the floor. For the game, MSUM shot 56.6 percent from the field.
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Up Next
MSUM (5-0) wraps up the St. Louis Country Basketball Classic tomorrow afternoon against Michigan Tech. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. from Romano Gymnasium.
