WINONA, Minn. – Beating the same team three times in a season is a tall task in college basketball, but the Winona State Warriors drew that assignment in the first round of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) postseason in hosting the University of Mary on Wednesday. UMary guard Kai Huntsberry had a career night to spark a Marauder upset of the Warriors, 82-70.
Winona State had defeated UMary on two occasions in 2021-22, winning a neutral site matchup 86-70 and defending home court against the Marauders on Jan. 28, 89-78. Unfortunately for WSU, a breakout night for Huntsberry scoring a season high 29, combined with an off night at the free throw line for Winona State, led to an early postseason exit.
Playing in front of a strong student section crowd, Winona State owned a lead for much of the closely contested first half. The Marauders made a run with five minutes left in the first frame, closing the gap and eventually surpassing the Warriors to claim a 34-32 lead at the break.
After the intermission, a pair of back-to-back Devin Whitelow three-pointers allowed Winona State to take the lead early in the second half at 38-36, but at that point, UMary methodically wore down WSU with long possessions, often ending in a Huntsberry score.
A UMary dunk by Gertautas Urbonavicius at the 12-minute mark of the second half quieted the crowd momentarily but Alec Rosner answered with a driving finger-roll for two of his 19 points at the other end of the floor. UMary would see Urbonavicius and Huntsberry combine to score the next 11 Marauder points and extend their advantage to double digits.
A key component of the Winona State response in the second half was Connor Dillon, delivering off the bench to the tune of seven points in just over a three-minute span. As the game wound down, Winona State dialed up the drive game in attacking the basket, earning 11 free throws along the way but converting only seven. When Drew Adams drained two free throws with 1:40 to play, WSU had some hope, but UMary responded with a lengthy possession ending with a 15-footer to maintain their advantage.
In the end, the inside-outside play of Huntsberry and Urbonavicius allowed UMary to maintain their grip on the game. Forced to foul, WSU saw the Marauders make eight of nine shots from the charity stripe in the final three minutes of the playoff contest to seal the win.
As a team, Winona State shot 25-of-57 (43.9%) from the floor and 8-of-27 (29.6 %) from behind the arc. At the free throw line, Winona State was an uncharacteristic 12-of-18 (66.6%).
Individually, Rosner's 19 was the top WSU scoreline, with Whitelow and Dillon both adding 14. Connor Drew scored 11 points and Luke Martens led his team with seven boards.
UMary's Kai Huntsberry led all scorers with 29 points, a season-high mark. Gertautas Urbonavicius hauled in 13 rebounds for the Marauders and scored 18 points. Second-look opportunities for the visitors made life tough on WSU, as UMary owned a 35-20 advantage on the boards.
The loss marked the end of Devin Whitlow's Warrior career, but the dynamic floor leader left his mark on the Winona State record book.
In a campaign in which he led his team to the NSIC postseason, Whitelow surpassed the 1,000-point plateau at 1,026 and concludes his run at WSU with 473 career assists and 142 career steals. The Peoria, Ill. senior now ranks in the top five all time in assists at Winona State and is top 10 in steals. Whitelow's 125 games played for Winona State - tied for 10th all-time - translates into over 3,700 minutes on the floor for head coach Todd Eisner.
The University of Mary (11-16, 9-12 NSIC) will advance to play the University of Minnesota Duluth on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 11am. Winona State finishes the 2021-22 season at 15-11 overall, 11-9 in NSIC play.
For the most up-to-date news in Warrior Athletics, please visit: www.WINONASTATEWARRIORS.com and @WinonaStateATH.
About Winona State University Athletics:
The Winona State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, as an integral part of the educational mission of the institution, is committed to offering opportunities to experience academic and athletic excellence for our student-athletes through two simple words: Graduate Champions.
Fourteen Warrior programs compete at the NCAA Division II level within the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Winona State University competes as an affiliate member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) in the sport of women's gymnastics.
