Men's basketball drops OT heartbreaker to MSU 80-77

Saturday, November 17

St. Cloud, Minn.

4 p.m.

St. Cloud State

3-1, 0-0NSIC

Minnesota State University - Mankato

2-1, 0-0NSIC

OT 1

Minn. State Mankato

St. Cloud State

Jace Kitchen goes up for a layup in overtime of Saturday's fame against Minnesota State.

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

11/17/2018 7:18:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

ST. CLOUD, MINN. – There are some losses that are tough, some that are heartbreaking, and some you wish you could redo all over again.

It's safe to say the St. Cloud State University men's basketball team experienced all of that in just one loss Saturday afternoon.

In a nonconference thriller for the ages, No. 13/18 St. Cloud State hosted its Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference rival Minnesota State Saturday afternoon. However, rather than see their win streak extended to four games, as they hoped, the Huskies were dealt their first loss of the season in heartbreaking fashion, as the Mavericks came back to beat St. Cloud State in overtime by a final score of 80-77.

Saturday afternoon's game was a physical battle between two evenly matched NSIC teams. In the first half, the Huskies dominated in terms of scoring, jumping out to an early 36-30 lead after the initial 20 minutes of play. In fact, St. Cloud State outshot Minnesota State from both the floor (16-28) and beyond the arc (4-9), holding the Mavericks to a .371 shooting percentage in the first half. Gage Davis (Bolingbrook, Ill. / Bolingbrook) and Sean Smith (Athens, Ga. / Canarias Basketball Academy) were a huge part of the team's success both offensively and defensively, as Davis scored a team and game-leading 18 points from the floor on 8-12 shooting in the first half while Smith held Minnesota State at bay defensively. The senior tallied and impressive five blocks in the opening half, allowing the Huskies to jump ahead and take that definitive 36-30 lead to the locker room at halftime.

Everything seemed to be rolling St. Cloud State's way at the start of the second as the team jumped ahead to a 10 point lead on back-to-back jumpers from Jace Kitchen (Dekalb, Ill. / Dekalb) and Brindley Theisen (St. Cloud, Minn. / St Cloud Cathedral). From there, the Huskies went on a little scoring, extending their lead to 46-32 on a three-pointer from Trevon Marshall (Evanston, Ill. / Evanston Township). When the Mavericks finally did manage to score a basket, cutting the lead back to 46-34, St. Cloud State had the perfect answer, as Davis hit his first jumper of the second half to extend the lead back to a seemingly comfortable 14 points.

However, that 14 point lead proved not be enough, as Minnesota State slowly but surely chipped away at the Huskies lead. By the 10 minute mark, the Mavericks managed to whittle it all the way down to a seven-point deficit at 55-48 before getting within five of St. Cloud State's lead at 55-50.

Smith, though, seemed to turn the momentum back in the Huskies favor, as he hit two jumpers in a minute to boost St. Cloud State's lead to 59-52 with 8:52 remaining in the half. The tension quickly returned to Halenbeck Hall, though, as Cameron Kirksey's statement dunk cut the lead to five points at 59-54.

From that point on, the Mavericks went on to outscore the Huskies 6-1 over the next two minutes, tying the game at 60-60 on a jumper by Carlos Anderson. Though Kitchen broke the tie with a layup, St. Cloud State was never quite able to shake Minnesota State. The Mavericks had an answer for every basket the Huskies scored and eventually took a 69-67 lead with 1:26 remaining in regulation.

Davis, fortunately, came up clutch for St. Cloud State. With just over a minute left in the game, the senior hit a jumper from the free throw line, tying the game at 69-69 with 1:11 remaining in regulation. Kitchen, then, game up with a big steal on defense, giving the Huskies a chance to win with 43 seconds remaining on the clock. Unfortunately, Theisen's three-pointer as time expired clanked off the rim, sending the game to overtime with the two teams deadlocked at 69-69.

Unfortunately, things did not go the Huskies way in extra time, as the Mavericks opened the extra period by scoring nine unanswered points to take a 78-69 lead. However, Davis got his team back in the game by hitting a huge three-pointer from the left corner, swinging the momentum back in the Huskies favor. From there, St. Cloud State chipped away at Minnesota State's lead, pulling within three on a free throw by Kitchen.

Another jumper by the Mavericks extended the lead to 80-75 with 1:24 remaining in overtime. It was Kitchen that pulled the Huskies within three, making a big-time layup to cut the lead to 80-77. However, the senior missed the free throw on the foul, giving the ball back to Minnesota State with 41 seconds remaining in regulation.

Smith gave St. Cloud State hope, as his block and defensive rebound returned possession to the Huskies with exactly 10 seconds left. However, St. Cloud State was unable to tie the game, as Davis' three-pointer rimmed out, and Kitchen was unable to convert the layup or draw the foul, resulting in the 80-77 overtime loss.

Davis was the leading scorer for both teams on the night, as he finished the game with a season-high 28 points and a team leading 13 rebounds for his third double-double of the season. Theisen finished with 18 points on 7-15 shooting, while Smith closed the game with 12 points and nine rebounds respectively. Kitchen also had an impressive game for the Huskies, nine of his 11 points in either the second half or overtime.

With the loss, St. Cloud State's overall record falls to 3-1, as the team suffers its first loss of the 2018-19 season. The Huskies will return to action on Friday, November 23as they partake in the Sea Lion Thanksgiving Classic in San Diego, California.