WINONA, Minn. – Winona State University connected on an eye-popping 17 three-pointers Saturday night inside McCown Gymnasium, which was just enough to secure an 80-77 victory over Sioux Falls as the Warriors completed their first NSIC weekend sweep of the season.
The Warriors (9-11, 6-8 NSIC) have now won three in a row and four of their last five contests. Sioux Falls drops to 14-6 (9-5 NSIC) with the loss.
WSU's three-point total was its highest of the season, and most since also knocking down 17 in an overtime win against St. Cloud State on January 13, 2018. It stands as the Warriors' most three-point baskets in a regulation game since hitting 18 triples against Minot State on November 19, 2011.
Kevion Taylor once again led the way with 27 points for WSU as the sophomore has netted at least 20 points in five of the last six games, and is averaging 24.2 points per contest in the month of January. He knocked down four three-pointers for the third straight ballgame as the Warriors shot 56.7 percent collectively from long range.
Senior Mason Domask set the tone of Winona State's three-point clinic by knocking down three straight triples to open the tilt to stake the Warriors to a 9-7 lead. Caleb Wagner's first of three three-pointers came at the 15:06 mark of the opening half and gave the Warriors a 14-11 edge; a lead that the home team would not relinquish for the remainder of the evening.
Domask struck again from beyond the arc with 7:48 left on the first half clock to spark a 13-4 run which padded the Warrior lead to double digits and saw Tommy Gathje and Dalante Peyton also connect from downtown. Following a Cougar three-pointer on the other end, Taylor drilled a three and Devin Whitelow knocked down a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession to give WSU its largest lead of the night at 42-28.
Despite facing a 14-point deficit with under three minutes left in the period, Sioux Falls was resilient and answered with a 12-point run to slash the Winona State lead to 42-40 at the break. Thirty of the Warriors' 42 first half points came from beyond the arc.
Winona State began the second half just how it started the first – with a made three-pointer from Gathje. The Warriors went on to shoot 7-of-12 from downtown in the second half. Freshman Luke Martens hit a clutch three at the 12:11 mark of the second half to stabilize the WSU lead when it had shrunk to just one point at 54-53.
A competitive finish ensued from there with the Warrior lead never exceeding two possessions. When the Cougars knotted the score at 57-57, freshman Alec Rosner stepped up with a layup at the 9:59 mark to put WSU back in front. With the Warrior lead down to 69-66, Wagner again found nothing but net from downtown as the home team continued to produce clutch baskets.
Taylor, who scored 20 in the second half alone, tallied the final eight WSU points of the game. He completed the old-fashioned three-point play with the lead down to just one at the 2:28 mark, and with the score tied at 75-apiece, he buried a three-pointer from the top of the key. Taylor then pulled down a huge offensive rebound in the waning seconds of the contest before being fouled and sinking a pair of free throws. He was perfect on Saturday in seven attempts from the charity stripe and has connected on all 12 of his trips over the weekend sweep.
Taylor came up just one rebound shy of a double-double for the second straight night as he led the team with nine boards. He also dished out six assists – each coming in the first half. Whitelow recorded a game-high eight assists.
Winona State will switch gears for a pair of road games against NSIC North opponents next weekend when the Warriors travel to Duluth on Friday and St. Cloud State on Saturday.
