Box Score

ABERDEEN, S.D. – Midway through the second half of Saturday's Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference game, Northern State University senior Kevin Ratzsch (Bloomington, Ill.) had just 13 points – well below his season average – and the Wolves were fighting tooth and nail for every possession against the University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs, who had entered the weekend as the top team in the league.

Finally, Ratzsch had had enough.  The 6-foot-7 senior scored 13 points in the last 12 and a half minutes to finish with 26 and lead the Wolves to a hard-fought 69-64 win over the Bulldogs.

In a game that featured nine ties and 12 lead changes, the Wolves put four players in double figures despite shooting just 25 percent (2 for 8) from 3-point territory, converting on all six free throw attempts in the final minute of play to secure the win.

NSU senior Kyle Schwan (Aberdeen, S.D.) scored eight of the team's first 10 points to open the game.  The Wolves controlled much of the action in that first stanza, and led by as many as nine late in the period before a tip-in at the buzzer by UMD's Ivan Franklin made it a 6-point affair at the break.

The second half, however, proved to be a physical, back-and-forth battle.  All12 lead changes came in that half, as neither team could make a break-away run.  NSU did not take the lead for good until the 2:10 mark on Ratzsch's 11th field goal of the game.  Ratzsch and junior Mitch Boeck (Arlington, S.D.) then combined to go 6-for-6 from the line in the final minute to seal the victory.

Schwan and Boeck joined Ratzsch in double figures with 13 and 10 points, respectively, while junior center Robert Thomas (Mankato, Minn.) added 11.  Sophomore Bojan Todorovic (Pozarevac, Serbia) grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds before fouling out in the second half.

Schwan also finished with four assists on the night.

UMD was led by junior Ron White, who had 14 points, while big men John Vaudreuil and Brian Sykora had 11 and 10 points, respectively. 

Saturday's win marks the second Wolves' victory over UMD.  NSU took a 63-59 win over the Bulldogs on Nov. 29 at the NSIC HoopsFest in Sioux Falls.

The Wolves hit the road next weekend for the first of two weekends on the road.  NSU takes on Concordia-St. Paul next Friday before visiting St. Cloud State on Saturday.