TOPEKA, Kan. - The No. 6-seeded Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball team suffers a 69-62 loss to the No. 3-seeded Winona State Warriors in the NCAA Central Region tournament quarterfinals inside Lee Arena on the campus of Washburn University on Saturday afternoon. 

SMSU, ending its season 21-9, finished the game shooting 39 percent (22 of 56) from the field including 9 of 26 from beyond the arc, while WSU, 22-10 advances to the semifinals, shot 42 percent (25 of 59) from the field.  

Steven Kramer led the Mustangs' offense tallying a team-high 18 points. Dunwa Omot followed behind recording 12 points. Jakob Braaten pulled down a team-high eight rebounds while contributing 11 points. 

Connor Drew led the Warriors' offense scoring 17 points and nine rebounds, Isaiah Thompson helped by adding 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Luke Haertle chipped in 12 points.  

In the opening minutes of the game the Warriors created an eight-point lead while holding the Mustangs scoreless for nearly three and half minutes leading into the first media timeout.  

The Mustangs would bring the score within four points before the Warriors would use an 8-0 run creating a 12-point deficit for the Mustangs with 8:17 left in the first half. SMSU struggled to get any shots to fall until a 3-pointer by Landon Pokorski would cut the deficit to seven points with 5:26 left.  

WSU responded with a 12-3 run to rebuild its lead to 34-18 before Mekhi Shaw would get fouled when attempting to shoot a 3-pointer. Shaw would sink all three free throws to cut the deficit to 13 points going into halftime.  

SMSU closed the first half shooting 33 percent (8 of 24) from the field including 2 of 9 attempts from downtown, while the Warriors shot 42 percent (13 of 31) from the field and 5 of 11 from three.  

WSU opened the second half with a dunk and layup to push the score to 38-24, but both team's offenses would go quiet for nearly four minutes until Pokorski would sink a jumper with 14:29 left. 

The Mustangs would make 11 of the next 20 baskets to bring the score within 12 points with 10:48 left in the game.  The Warriors would continue to make baskets, making it difficult for the Mustangs to cut into the deficit. 

SMSU would string a few baskets to go on a 6-2 run to cut the deficit to 11 points before going on an 8-0 run to bring the score to 58-51. SMSU would use a pair of jumpers and a free throw to cut the Warriors lead to six points with 2:12 left.  

The Warriors continued to hold strong to close out the game and advance to the NCAA Central Region tournament semifinals. 

Today's game was the final for SMSU senior, Dunwa Omot.