MINOT, ND – It took until February 5, but the Minot State men's basketball team dropped their first of the season on the home court.
Ayouba Berthe collected 22 points, but the Beavers fell to the Minnesota State-Moorhead Dragons 85-73 at home Wednesday.
The Beavers (21-5, 12-5) had 3 players score in double figures, led by Berthe, who had 22 points and 2 steals. Daryl Rice Jr added 12 points off the bench and Caleb Van De Griend helped out with a double-double with 11 points and 15 rebounds.
The Minot State offense was productive from downtown, knocking down 10 threes on 27 attempts. Rice Jr was the most prolific shooter for the Beavers, draining 4 treys in the contest.
Minnesota State-Moorhead was a much different team compared to a month and a half ago when both teams last met, literally and figuratively. The defense hit a little bit of a struggle against some prolific Dragon talent. Head coach Matt Murken felt things were a little too easygoing for Moorhead.
"We didn't guard hard enough to win. Really disappointed with our effort on the defensive end. Offensively we were okay. We got to clean some things up a little bit there too, but we were probably good enough to win on that end. Defensively we let them play comfortable far too much," Murken said.
How It Happened
After falling behind 37-31, Minot State went on an 8-0 run with 3:39 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Jalen Cook, to take a 39-37 lead. The Beavers then lost some of that lead but still entered halftime with a 39-38 advantage. Minot State relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down 8 shots to account for 24 of its 39 points.
Minnesota State-Moorhead proceeded to take a 51-45 lead before Minot State went on a 7-0 run, finished off by Cook's three, to seize a 52-51 lead with 13:35 to go in the contest. Minnesota State-Moorhead reasserted control, outscoring the Beavers 34-21 the rest of the way to hand Minot State the 85-73 loss. Minot State got out on the break in the period, scoring 7 fast break points.
Game Notes
» Caleb Van De Griend notched a double-double for the Beavers with 11 points and 15 rebounds.
» Minot State found success from three-point land, knocking down 10 treys in the game.
» Ayouba Berthe led the Beavers with 22 points.
» Minot State got a game-high 15 rebounds from Caleb Van De Griend.
This article was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.
