Washington and Winkel Combine for 51 Points as Huskies Hold on to Beat Minnesota Crookston 80-78

Saturday, January 31

Crookston, MN

3:30 P.M

St. Cloud State

17-5,14-2NSIC

Minnesota Crookston

4-18,2-14NSIC

St. Cloud St.

Minn.-Crookston

Photo by: Kayden Kircher

Washington and Winkel Combine for 51 Points as Huskies Hold on to Beat Minnesota Crookston 80-78

1/31/2026 8:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

SCSU picks up tenth straight win

Crookston, MN – St. Cloud State Men's Basketball (17-5, 14-2 NSIC) strung together their 10th straight win Saturday afternoon as they beat Minnesota Crookston 80-78. Azayah Washington and Luke Winkel combined for 51 points in the game.

St. Cloud State burst out of the gates with a 13-5 run after Azayah Washington finished a fastbreak layup for the and-one. The Huskies held firm on their lead through the first 10 minute, but the Golden Eagles would battle back to cut the lead down to three with 10:31 remaining in the half. Ove the next five minutes, SCSU pushed the lead back up to double digits as back-to-back threes by Washington and Anish Ramlall set the score at 35-23 with 5:18 to go in the half. St. Cloud State would ultimately go into halftime leading 41-32.

SCSU held a steady lead through the first five minutes, but the Golden Eagles stayed within striking distance in the midst of a run. As UMC continued to cut into the lead, Washington consistently weathered the storm with timely makes. Crookston finished a layup with 6:57 left in the game to tie it up at 62, but the freshman from St. Cloud again answered with a big time three to retake the lead for SCSU. The Golden Eagles would not go away as they stayed within a possession over the next few minutes, but Luke Winkel found his stroke late and cashed multiple threes to keep them at bay. With the score set at 75-72 with 1:39 remaining, Lee Marks III finished a layup inside to push the lead up to five. UMC would come down and finish a layup of their own to get it down to a single possession. Out of a timeout on a crucial possession, Winkel ran a pick and roll with Wyatt Hawks. Crookston went under on the screen which allowed Winkel to step into a three which he buried. The Golden Eagles had one last run in them as a layup cut the lead down to two with three seconds left. Out of another timeout, Ramlall inbounded the ball to a streaking Kynan Philippe across halfcourt who freed himself off the set play. Philippe caught the ball and ran out the clock as SCSU captured an 80-78 win for their 10th consecutive win.

Top Huskies

Azayah Washington scored a career-high 21 points on an efficient 8/15 shooting. Washington also cashed four threes to go with three rebounds. He also set career-highs in field goals made and three-pointers made.
Luke Winkel led the team in scoring with 30 points to go with three rebounds, assists, and steals. Winkel set a career-high in three-point makes by going 6/12 from deep. He also went 6/7 at the free throw line as he ultimately tied his career-high in scoring.
Lee Marks III closed in on a double-double with 11 points (4/6) and eight rebounds. This was the second straight game that Marks III has scored 10+ points and grabbed 8+ rebounds.

Notables

St. Cloud State is now 41-44 all-time against Minnesota Crookston and have won 12 straight over the Golden Eagles.
The Huskies led the game in three-pointers made (11-9), free throws made (13-9), rebounds (39-34), offensive rebounds (16-5), steals (6-4), points off turnovers (9-4), second chance points (14-6), and fast break points (14-4).
Wyatt Hawks totaled nine points, six rebounds, and a block and steal.
Anish Ramlall tallied seven points, four rebounds, and an assist.
Izaac Neal produced two points, two rebounds, and a block.
Nathan Bunkosky grabbed three rebounds.

Up Next
St. Cloud State will be back in action next Thursday as they host Southwest Minnesota State at 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.