Bagley's bucket lifts basketball to 80-78 victory

Saturday, January 16

St. Cloud, Minn.

2 p.m.

St. Cloud State

2-3,2-1NSIC

Minot State University

2-3,0-1NSIC

Minot St.

St. Cloud St.

Caleb Donaldson follows through after a dunk against Minot State Saturday afternoon.

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

1/16/2021 4:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

ST. CLOUD, MINN. - Fans had to wait a long time to see the St. Cloud State University men's basketball team in action in 2020-21. After two weekends on the road, the Huskies certainly did not disappoint. With its high-flying offense on display, and plenty of dramatics along the way, St. Cloud State earned its first home victory of the season, as a last-second shot by Ryan Bagley (Pocatello, Idaho / Burley) lifted the Huskies to a 80-78 victory over Minot State University.

The Huskies got off to a bit of a slow start to open the first half, as they trailed by as many as 10 points to the visiting Beavers. In fact, Minot State went on a 7-0 run around the eight minute mark in the half to take a 30-20 lead with 6:43 remaining.

The Huskies flourished toward the end of the first half, as their offense, combined with stingy defensive play, allowed them to overcome a 10 point deficit to trail 40-39 at the half. Three student-athletes scored 10+ points in the opening 20 minutes of play, including sophomore Anthony Roberts (Chicago, Ill. / Oak Park), who tallied 13. Caleb Donaldson (Bloomington, Ill. / Bloomington) and Ilya Tyrtyshnik (Kyiv, Ukraine / Kyiv Specialized School) also had big halves for the Huskies, as they both scored 10 points respectively.

A shootout is the best and only way to describe the second half of the basketball game, as neither team led by more than three points through the first 10 minutes. Eventually, after getting a big stop at the other end of the court, St. Cloud State jumped to a 64-61 lead on a three-pointer by Matthew Willert (Buffalo, Minn. / Buffalo) and eventually extended its lead to six on a layup from Bagley not two minutes later.

With four minutes to go and a 75-69 advantage, it seemed like the Huskies were destined for victory. Minot State, though, put together a mini comeback of its own, tying the game at 78-78 with 18 seconds remaining in regulation. St. Cloud State, though, had possession and a time out, which head coach Matt Reimer called to advance the ball and set up the offense.

Whatever Reimer said in the time out worked, as the Huskies took an 80-78 lead on a shot by Bagley. Initially, though, it looked like Donaldson might be St. Cloud State's hero, but his shot at six seconds clanked off the back of the rim and shot off to the left, right into the waiting hands of Bagley. The junior didn't hesitate, as he executed a perfect catch-and-release shot to give the Huskies that two-point advantage.

With three seconds on the clock, St. Cloud State needed one last defensive hold to secure victory. The Huskies stingy defense forced the Beavers to take a Hail Mary shot from half court. The shot fell way short, allowing St. Cloud State to take the game 80-78.

Roberts and Tyrtyshnik were the top offensive players of the game for the Huskies, as they closed with a team and game-leading 23 points while shooting a combined 18-32 from the floor. Donaldson added 18 points and seven rebounds, five of which came on the offensive side of the ball, while Badley led with three steals for St. Cloud State.

Analytics say the Huskies played one of their best defensive games of the season, as they forced 13 Minot State turnovers and scored 16 points off those. Additionally, St. Cloud State scored 50 points in the paint and 12 off fast breaks.

With the win, the Huskies overall record improves to 2-3 and the team is 2-1 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) North Division play. St. Cloud State will return to action on Sunday, January 17 when it hosts the same Minot State team at 2 p.m. in Halenbeck Hall.