Marshall, Minn. – The Northern State men's basketball team (18-6, 14-4 NSIC) came back against Southwest Minnesota State (4-14, 7-17 NSIC) for a 74-66 win on Saturday night.
 
Midway through the second half the Wolves hadn't held the lead once, and it looked like they were still down after their tough loss the day before. However, when they needed it most the defense was able to shut down the Mustangs' offense, propelling Northern to the lead and the comeback victory.
 
Northern didn't get off to a good start as the mustangs were out-muscling them in the paint, but the long ball was keeping the Wolves in the game. Seven minutes into regulation Northern had gone 3-of-3 from beyond the arc for all nine of their points.
 
The occasional 3-pointer wasn't enough to stop the Mustangs from building a big lead, however. SMSU boasted a double-digit advantage in the ladder minutes of the half, but after not doing much to start the game Parker Fox finally began to heat up, allowing the Wolves to close to a 33-38 halftime deficit.
 
As the second half got underway Northern was able to stay consistent on offense, which allowed them to stay within striking distance of the lead. The long ball also remained strong for the Wolves as they were shooting 50.0% from beyond the arc midway through the second half.
 
After putting consistent pressure on the Mustangs, Northern was able to put together a 12-2 run for their first lead of the game, and they wouldn't look back. Northern was forced to weather a fierce comeback attempt, but did so convincingly, allowing the Wolves to complete the comeback victory.
 
Northern shot 48.2% from the floor, 40.0% from the 3-point line and 66.7% from the foul line. 34 of their points came from the paint, 15 came off of turnovers and 16 were scored by the bench players.
 
No player dominated the score sheet as the top three scorers were all within one point of each other. Gabe King held a slight advantage with 15 points, while Parker Fox and Mason Stark each scored 14 points and combined for 12 rebounds.
 
Andrew Kallman was just shy of the double-digit mark with nine points as he shot 100.0% from beyond the arc. Cole Dahl led the team off the bench with eight points, closely followed by Tommy Chatman with six points and three assists. Rounding out the scoreboard were Jordan Belka and Roko Dominovic with five and three points respectively.
 
The Wolves' next game will be on the road at Minnesota Duluth on February 14. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. from the Romano Gymnasium.