Box Score

MANKATO, Minn. – Minnesota State stayed atop the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference South Division standings pulling away in the second half and defeating Southwest Minnesota State 101-72 in men's basketball on Saturday night at the Taylor Center.
 
It's the fourth straight loss for SMSU which drops to 8-8 overall, 3-7 NSIC, while MSU improves to 12-4 overall, 8-2 NSIC.
 
MSU, which scored just 43 points and shot 23 percent in a home loss to Sioux Falls on Friday, finished tonight shooting 49 percent (37 of 76) from the field with 12 3-pointers. MSU, which committed just five turnovers, held a 47-38 rebound advantage. Cameron Kirksey led the Mavericks with 23 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Ryan Bruggeman scored a game-high 31 points for the Mustangs, connecting on 13 of 24 field goals. It's his sixth 30-point game of the season and the eighth of his career. Taylor Schafer recorded three 3-pointers and finished with 15 points for the Mustangs, while Grant Kramer scored a career-high eight points with a career-high 11 rebounds. SMSU played without leading rebounder Steven McNease, who missed his third game in the last two weekends.
 
SMSU closed the game shooting 40 percent (25 of 63) from the field, including 5 of 20 from 3-point range.
 
SMSU jumped out to a 10-4 in the first four minutes, but MSU answered back and regained the lead at 17-14 with 12:10 remaining.
 
MSU continued to maintain the lead before a pair of Kenny Byers free throws and a jumper from Schafer put the Mustangs in front at 22-21 with 8:25 left in the half.
 
The game remained tight for the next five minutes as SMSU trailed 37-34 with three minutes remaining following a Bruggeman layup, but MSU closed the half on an 11-4 run, including a final second 3-pointer by Kevin Krieger to take a 48-38 halftime advantage.
 
MSU put the game away in the opening minutes of the second half scoring 13 of the first 15 points and held the Mustangs without a field goal for the first seven minutes in building a 65-43 lead.
 
The Mavericks held a 73-53 lead midway through the half before the Mustangs tried to make a comeback attempt, cutting the deficit to 76-62 following a Bruggeman jumper at the 7:50 mark. MSU answered with a 3-pointer to end the run and never looked back in defeating SMSU for the third straight time.
 
Southwest Minnesota State will look to snap its losing skid next Friday, Jan. 18, hosting Minot State (7-12, 2-8 NSIC) with tip-off slated for 7:30 p.m. at the R/A Facility.