St. Cloud State
9-12,5-9NSIC
Minnesota State University - Mankato
13-6,7-6NSIC
Huskies come up short in 87-80 loss to Minnesota State
2/1/2022 6:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Luke Taylor tallies double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds
ST. CLOUD, MINN. – When the going gets tough, the St. Cloud State University men's basketball teams gets going. Three days after their double-overtime loss to Southwest Minnesota State, the Huskies were back on the court hosting Minnesota State in nonconference play. Though St. Cloud State battled and led the game multiple times through the first and second half, the Huskies came up short Tuesday afternoon, falling to 9-12 overall and 5-9 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) play with an 87-80 loss to the Mavericks.
GAME SUMMARY
St. Cloud State's offense was hot from the start of the game, as the Huskies raced out to a 25-10 lead over the Mavericks. However, the Huskies had no answer for seven foot tall Kelby Kramer, who scored eight consecutive points on dunks to cut St. Cloud State's lead to 28-22 with five minutes remaining in the first half. Clutch shooting from Ryan Bagley (Pocatello, Idaho / Burley) and Caleb Donaldson (Bloomington, Ill. / Bloomington) allowed the Huskies to hold a lead at half, as they scored six consecutive points to give St. Cloud State a 38-34 halftime lead.
The second half started the same way as the first, with the Huskies holding the hot shooting hand. Again, the team raced out to a nine point lead, but the Mavericks had an answer, cutting the Huskies lead to 47-43 at the first media timeout. After Minnesota State cut the lead to 47-46, St. Cloud State maintained a two-point lead until the 11 minute mark, when the Mavericks took their first lead of the game 57-54. Though Minnesota State continued to push the lead, the Huskies continued to fight back, cutting the lead to 77-74 on a huge three by Luke Taylor (Germantown, Wis. / Germantown). When the Mavericks extended the lead back to five, St. Cloud State answered again, using a three-pointer and one by Matthew Willert (Buffalo, Minn. / Buffalo) to cut the lead to 81-80 with exactly one minute remaining in regulation. The Huskies, though, were unable to come up with the last second shot, falling to the Mavericks by a final score of 87-80.
TOP HUSKIES
- Matthew Willert (Buffalo, Minn. / Buffalo) led St. Cloud State in scoring, tallying 20 points and seven rebounds in the loss.
- Caleb Donaldson (Bloomington, Ill. / Bloomington) and Luke Taylor (Germantown, Wis. / Germantown) each scored 19 points Tuesday afternoon, with Taylor also pulling in a career-high 10 rebounds in the process.
- Anthony Roberts (Chicago, Ill. / Oak Park) tallied a career-high seven assists with 10 points and four steals, while Ryan Bagley (Pocatello, Idaho / Burley) added 12 points and three assists.
The Huskies went 13-32 from the three-point line Tuesday evening, which means fans can bring their ticket to the Blue Line Sports Bar and Grill South location to receive a free appetizer with a purchase of $5 or more.
UP NEXT
St. Cloud State will return to action on Friday, February 4 when the team hosts Northern State at 7:30 p.m. in Halenbeck Hall.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Men's Basketball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
