A surge late in the second half helped the Minnesota State University Mavericks to a 68-57 win over the Southwest Minnesota State University Mustangs on Monday, March 3 in Sioux Falls, S.D. in the semifinals of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference/Sanford Health Tournament.

During the first eight minutes of the first half, the Mustangs jumped to a quick 16-8 lead. Of those 16 points, Will Giddings scored 12. A six-point rally by the Mavericks helped them decrease the deficit to 16-14, but two field goals by Vinard Birch helped push the lead to 20-14 with nine minutes remaining in the first half. During the remaining nine minutes, the Mavericks were able to come within one point on four different occasions. With just under two minutes left in the first half, the Mavericks cut the Mustangs’ lead to 28-27. However, a 3-pointer and a layup by Joey Bartlett and Birch, respectively, gave the Mustangs a 33-27 lead. The Mavericks scored once more before halftime, making the score 33-29.

Throughout the first half, the Mustangs shot 52 percent, but were outrebounded 21-17. The Mavericks picked up eight offensive rebounds.

The Mavericks scored a quick four points in the second half to tie the score at 33, and would carry that momentum to late build a 43-39 lead with just under 14 minutes left on the clock. A 3-pointer by Bartlett then a field goal by Matt Zager gave the Mustangs a 44-43 lead. However, the Mavericks countered with a 7-0 run to claim a 50-44 lead with under 11 minutes remaining. The Mustangs answered with an identical seven-point run, four of which were from Nick Smith, to take back a 51-50 lead. A 3-pointer from MSU gave MSU the lead once again, but it was soon lost after a field goal by Birch.

The Mavericks put together a 9-0 run to make the score 62-53 with just under four minutes left on the clock. They never looked back, defeating the Mustangs with a score of 68-57.

The Mustangs were paced by Giddings with 16 points, followed by Birch with 12. Mitch Weg recorded six points and pulled down career-high 12 rebounds. Nick Smith chipped in eight points, pulled down nine rebounds, and stopped four shots. Bartlett scored eight points off the bench, two of which were 3-pointers.

With the loss, the Mustangs end their season with an overall record of 19-12, while the Mavericks improve to 28-4 overall.