WINONA, Minn. – Tommy Gathje knocked down the go-ahead three-pointer, and freshman Kevion Taylor tallied his first career double-double as Winona State University rallied late to knock off Southwest Minnesota State University on Friday night at McCown Gymnasium, 78-75.
SMSU built an eight-point lead with 7:55 left in the second half prompting a timeout by Warrior head coach Todd Eisner. Winona answered with a 12-point run to claim a 73-70 advantage with 3:10 left on the clock.
Ryan Bruggeman scored the next five points for the Mustangs to put SMSU back in front, 75-73, with 1:41 remaining in the contest. Gathje followed with what proved to be the game-winning shot from downtown off an assist from Taylor at the 1:23 mark.
Senior Corey Jeffs blocked Bruggeman's go-ahead shot attempt on the other end of the court, and proceeded to pull down a pair of huge offensive rebounds for the Warriors in the final minute as Winona held on for an exhilarating victory on its home court.
The Mustangs led by as many as 10 points on two occasions in the first half of action before the Warriors offense finally got going in the final 10 minutes of the first half to take a 41-40 edge into halftime. WSU trailed 22-14 midway through the half, but WSU outscored SMSU 19-9 in the final six minutes leading into the break.
Taylor set career highs in points (21) and rebounds (11) as Winona improved to 7-1 at home this season.
After going cold on the road for two games prior to the New Year, the Warriors regained their shooting stroke on Friday, knocking down 51 percent of their shots, including a 12-of-25 effort from beyond the arc.
Gathje totaled 17 points and recorded three steals on the night. Charlie Koontz chipped in 10 points off the Warrior bench, while Devin Whitelow had seven points and a team-best five assists.
Winona State improves to 9-6 (4-5 NSIC) with the win, and SMWU drops to 10-5 (6-3 NSIC) after the teams split their season series.
The Warriors wrap up the weekend and look for another season split on Saturday against Sioux Falls. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. in Winona.
