Box Score

DULUTH, Minn. – The Northern State University Wolves put four players in double figures while holding the host University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs to just 21 points in the second half to pull away with a big 71-48 victory Saturday night in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference men's basketball action.

The win gave the Wolves back-to-back victories for the first time since the opening week of the season and moved the team to 7-10 overall and 3-7 in conference play.  It also marked the second straight road win for the Wolves, who broke an 0-5 skid in road games with a win over Bemidji State on Friday.

UMD, which entered Saturday's game fresh off an upset victory over the University of Mary the day before, slipped to 7-10 on the season and sit at 5-6 in league action.

The two teams played back-and-forth basketball through much of the first half before the Wolves pulled away through the final five minutes of the period to go into the break with an 8-point 35-17 lead.

NSU also took advantage of a slow Bulldog start to the second period to crack open the game.  UMD misfired on nine of its first 11 possessions of the second half and did not find its stride until the late going.  The Bulldogs did score on three straight possessions in the final 3:19 of the game, but by then it was too little, too late as the Wolves were long since out of reach.

The Wolves, meanwhile, used the lull to methodically build up a 20-point lead by the midway point of the second half.  NSU was then able to run time off the clock by holding on to the ball deep into the shot clock on the majority of their possessions through the remainder of the game before coming away with the score.

Junior Derek Hoellein and freshman Marko Filipovic paced the Wolves with 15 points apiece, while Filipovic came off the bench to notch nine rebounds.  Redshirt freshman Collin Pryor also had eight boards to go along with his 11 points, as the Wolves posted a 40-23 edge on the glass.

Senior Mitch Boeck was the fourth player in double figures, recording all 11 of his points in the second half.  Junior point guard Jordan King added nine points and another six assists, marking the fourth time in the last five games that he has handed out at least five assists.

Ryan Rasmussen was the lone player in double figures for the Bulldogs, who got limited production from their bench despite having nine players with at least 12 minutes of court time.  As a team, the Wolves' bench outscored UMD's reserves by a final tally of 22-7.

The Wolves will bring their two-game win streak home next weekend to face Concordia-St. Paul and St. Cloud State.  Tip-off for both games is set for 8 p.m. in Wachs Arena.