MINOT, N.D. -- Senior Tyler Rudolph scored 32 points and Minot State won its sixth straight contest by holding off Minnesota Duluth 80-71 on Sunday in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference game in the Minot State Dome.

Minot State, which improved to 13-1 overall and 7-1 in conference play, jumped out to a 19-point lead early in the second half but had to hold off the Bulldogs to secure the win.

The Bulldogs used a 29-10 run midway through the second half to tie the game at 64-64, but Minot State would answer the challenge with an 11-0 run of its own.

Luis Ricci Maia put Minot State ahead to stay with a three-pointer at the 7:02 mark and Russ Davis followed with another three-pointer that upped the Beavers lead to 70-64 with 6:10 to play in the second half.

Rudolph made three straight free throws and then knocked down a jumper to push the Minot State lead to 75-64 at the 3:25 mark of the second half. Minot State then made 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to claim the victory.

Minot State shot 50.9 percent from the floor, including 64.3 percent in the first half, which marked the fifth consecutive game the Beavers have topped 50 percent shooting from the floor. MSU also shot 46.7 (7-of-15) from the three-point line and 85 (17-of-20) percent from the foul line for the game.

Rudolph posted his eighth career 30-point game by finishing the contest 9-of-16 from the field and 13-of-14 from the free throw line. He also extended his string of double figure scoring games to 34 straight.

The Beavers placed four players in double figures in scoring as Davis finished with 16 points, Ricci Maia had 13 points and David Akibo recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Minnesota Duluth, which dropped to 4-8 overall and 1-6 in the NSIC, was led by Brandon Myer who scored 28 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Logan Rohrscheib chipped in with 17 points for the Bulldogs.

Minot State took control of the contest midway through the first period on the strength of a 14-0 run fueled by seven points from Rudolph and five points from Max Cody.

Rudolph put Minot State ahead 11-10 with a three-pointer at the 15:04 mark of the first half and then tacked on four free throws to extend the lead to 15-10 with 14:19 to play before halftime.

Following a jumper by Nathaniel Moore, Cody converted a layup and a three-point play giving the Beavers a 22-10 lead at the 12:35 mark of the first period.

Minot State took a 48-33 lead into halftime as Rudolph had 17 points and Davis added 13 points.

The Beavers opened the second half on a 6-2 run, which gave Minot State its largest lead of the game at 54-35 at the 16:59 mark of the second half.

Minot State will open the new year next Friday (Jan. 5) when it visits Minnesota Moorhead at 8 p.m. in an NSIC contest and will then face league-leading Northern State on Saturday (Jan. 6) at 6 p.m.