Box Score

BISMARCK, N.D. – After sitting in the driver's seat for the majority of the evening, the Northern State University men's basketball team had to scramble to survive a furious comeback effort by the University of Mary before escaping with a 74-71 victory Saturday evening in a hotly contested Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference travel partner game.

The Wolves led by as many as 18 points in the first half and again midway through the second half before watching the host Marauders mount a comeback campaign that came down to the waning seconds of the game.

After a pair of Robert Thomas (Mankato, Minn.) free throws put the Wolves up 57-40 at the 9:00 mark, the Marauders put together a 10-0 run that included back-to-back 3-pointers from Jordan Wilhelm and Zach Dosch to trim the lead to just seven with 5:36 left to play.

The Wolves then caught an off-court break when a lighting failure caused a six-minute delay in play.  Thomas then broke the Marauder run and a six-minute NSU scoring drought with a 3-point play with 2:52 left on the clock to put the Wolves back up by ten. 

The game was far from over, however, as the Marauders drained three treys in the final 31 seconds of the game while sending the Wolves to the free throw line six times in the same stretch.  The volley effectively trimmed NSU's lead to just two points before a pair of Kevin Ratzsch (Bloomington, Ill.) free throws put the Wolves back up by four.

NSU, however, was whistled for running through a screen on the Marauders' ensuing possession, sending Ryan Malm to the free throw line with four seconds to go.  Malm made the first, making it a three point contest, then purposely missed the second.  The Wolves initially came up with the defensive rebound, but UM freshman UT Udo, who had two of the Marauders' three treys in the final minute, stole the ball away, giving the Marauders the final chance at the basket.

UM, however, could not get off a game-tying shot in time, allowing the Wolves to escape with the victory.

NSU, which moved into fourth place in the conference standings with the win, put four starters in double figures, led by senior Kyle Schwan's (Aberdeen, S.D.) 16 points.  Ratzsch and Thomas each finished with 14, while junior Mitch Boeck (Arlington, S.D.) scored NSU's only three treys of the evening to finish with 11.

Sophomore Brett Newton was 5-for-6 from the free throw line to finish with nine points off the bench, while Thomas snagged a team-best 10 rebounds to register his second double-double of the season.

As a team, the Wolves went 21-for-24 from the free throw line (17-for-19 in the second half) while shooting 51.0 percent from the floor for the game.

The Marauders got 17 points from Jordan Engelhardt, who led four players in double figures for Mary.  Zach Dosch added 13 points and 14 boards.

The Wolves remain on the road for another pair of key NSIC matchups next weekend, facing off against Wayne State on Friday and at Augustana on Saturday.  Both games are re-matches from earlier this season, when NSUS took a tight 65-63 win over WSC at home on Dec. 5 before falling to the Vikings 71-79 in overtime on Dec. 6.