A strong second half carried the Southwest Minnesota State University Mustangs to a 77-64 home victory over the University of Mary basketball team. After trailing 36-32 at halftime, the Mustangs knocked down 45 points in the second half and shot 62 percent. Overall, the Mustangs shot 53 percent from the field, including seven 3-pointers on 19 attempts. SMSU forced 20 Marauder turnovers, which they converted into 30 points.

With just under 13 minutes left in the first half, Lavione West gave the Mustangs a 12-11 lead. This jump-started a 13-2 run by the Mustangs over the next five and a half minutes, giving them a 23-13 lead with seven and a half minutes remaining.

The UMary Marauders fought back with a 14-0 run to build up a 27-23 with just over four minutes left before the half. The Marauders extended the lead to 33-26 before the Mustangs narrowed the lead to 36-32.

The first six minutes of the second half featured several lead changes between the two teams. A dunk by West gave the Mustangs a lead that they wouldn’t give up for the rest of the game. The Mustangs then went on a 10-0 run, pushing their lead to 56-47 with ten minutes left on the clock.

The Marauders cut the Mustang lead to 63-55 with just under seven minutes remaining. A quick 5-0 run topped off with a 3-point play by West extended their lead to 68-55.

The Mustangs were led by West, who scored 19 points, 15 of which were made in the second half. West also recorded three steals and two blocked shots. West was followed by Jordan Miller, who knocked down 17 points, six rebounds, and five assists. Tramel Barnes ended the night with 11 points and five rebounds.

With the win, the Mustangs improve to an overall record of 13-11 and 10-7 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The Marauders fall to 3-18 overall and 2-15 in the NSIC.