WINONA, Minn. – The Winona State University men's basketball team opened up a home NSIC weekend with the Northern State Wolves on Friday night, hosting one of the league's top North Division teams in McCown Gymnasium, home of WNB Financial Court. In a tightly contested, back-and-forth cross-divisional showdown, WSU fell just short in their upset bid, losing to the Wolves, 77-74.
WSU last faced off with NSU on Jan. 22, 2022, a contest that saw the Warriors knock off the Wolves 83-74 in front of nearly 3,500 fans in Aberdeen, S.D. On Friday, the Winona State faithful saw the home side start in impressive fashion with a nine-point lead in the opening minutes of play. However, Northern State was able to climb back into the game throughout the first half and a string of successful NSU free throws late in the second half offset a spirited Warrior effort.
Northern State entered the evening with a 15-5 overall mark and 11-3 NSIC Northern Division slate, but Winona State was the better team in the opening ten minutes, owning a lead of 15-6 with Dillon collecting five points during the run. NSU would score sixteen unanswered points to stake a 19-16 lead over the Warriors, a streak stopped by Dillon with another three-pointer midway through the first half.
The two teams headed to the locker room at the break with the Warriors leading the Wolves 43-42.
After the break, the two teams traded baskets with neither team owning a lead of more than six points, a feat achieved by Winona State when they held a 71-65 advantage following a
Connor Dillon layup with five minutes to play. However, NSU would parlay four successful free throws and a long-range three pointer from Jordan Belka to take a narrow 75-74 lead with 16 seconds to go. After a Warrior miss, NSU earned two more trips to the free throw line, where they hit both to seal the game at 77-74.
James Kelley collected a double-double in his first-ever Warrior start, notching 17 points and hauling in 11 rebounds.
Connor Dillon and
Luke Martens both reached double-digits in scoring as well, with 20 and 13 points, respectively.
As a team, Winona State was 30-of-63 (47.6%) from the floor and hit 10-of-33 (30.3%) three-point attempts. NSU held a slight edge on the boards at 33-31, while Winona State force the Wolves into nine turnovers, compared to just six for the home side. The six foul shots for Winona State tied their second-lowest total of the year, while Northern State was awarded ten trips to the line, converting on nine.
Northern State was led by with Jordan Belka with 21 points. Sam Masten had eight rebounds for the visitors.
With the loss, Winona State moves to 11-9 overall and 6-9 in the NSIC. WSU will work to earn a split in the NSIC weekend on Saturday, Jan. 28 when they host Minnesota State Moorhead. The Dragons and the Warriors will tip off at 3:30 p.m. in McCown Gymnasium, home of WNB Financial Court.
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.
