SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Northern State University needed every second of Monday night's NSIC Tournament Semifinal matchup against Winona State University to avoid an upset to the sixth-seeded Warriors. And after wiping out an eight-point halftime deficit, the top-seeded Wolves didn't leave a second to spare as Mason Stark's floater in the lane beat the final buzzer to knock off the Warriors inside the Sanford Pentagon.
Northern State's dominance in the paint and at the free throw line were the difference in the ballgame. The Warriors successfully chased the NSIC's top three-point shooting team off the arc all night, but allowed the Wolves to slash the lane for 38 points. NSU also cashed in all but one free throw attempt as the Wolves knocked down 18 shots from the charity stripe.
Caleb Wagner did all he could for the upset-minded Warriors, netting a game-high 24 points while dishing out six assists, but it was a missed free throw by the junior guard with 12 seconds left on the clock that led to the Wolves' game-winner on the other end of the court.
Wagner's jumper in the lane at the 2:50 mark halted an eight-point NSU run that saw the Wolves claim a 71-67 lead on the previous possession. Kevion Taylor followed that bucket with a big steal on the defensive end and sank a pair of free throws to knot the score at 71-71 with 1:54 remaining. The Wolves immediately answered with a basket to regain the lead before Taylor sank a three-pointer to give WSU a 74-73 edge heading to the final minute of play.
Taylor scored nine of his 17 points in the second half while Tommy Gathje scored 10 of his 11 in the first half of action. Fellow senior Mason Domask was perfect in two attempts from beyond the arc as Winona State shot 53 percent in the opening half from downtown.
Gathje's first of two three-pointers in the first half came at the 16:17 mark and gave the Warriors a 10-9 advantage that they wouldn't relinquish for the remainder of the period. With 7:15 left in the half, Gathje scored five straight points amid an 11-5 run that saw Taylor and Devin Whitelow also connect on triples for a 33-23 lead entering the final media timeout.
The Wolves hit the last basket of the first frame to cut their halftime deficit to single digits and extended that into a nine-point run to open the second period to set up what proved to be a gritty finish which ultimately ended in heartbreak for the Warriors.
Senior Charlie Koontz finished with five points and a pair of rebounds in his Winona State curtain call, a day removed from scoring a career-best 18 points to help lift the Warriors to the semifinals.
Whitelow concludes his sophomore season with a career-best 137 assists and will set a new NCAA record across all three divisions with his 5.96 turnover/assist ratio when the 2018-19 campaign comes to an end.
Winona State's season culminates with a 14-17 record in what was an up-and-down year that saw the Warriors play with, and defeat, some of the top teams in the Central Region over the final two weeks. Northern State advances to the NSIC Championship with a 25-6 record and a chance to defend its title.
