SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Warriors lost 85-70 against the Sioux Falls Cougars despite a career-high 30 points from
Ryan Heise.
Winona State fell behind 44-37 after the first 20 minutes despite 19 first half points from Heise. WSU battled tough in the second half, dropping the Cougars lead to three points on multiple occasions. USF responded well every time, eventually pulling ahead late to win by 15 points.
How it Happened:
Heise gave WSU a 7-4 lead at the 17:34 mark after five quick points from himself.
Alessandro Tonelli rattled home a three-ball, extending the Warriors' advantage to 10-6 with 15:57 remaining in the first half. Kyle Ingwerson buried a three-ball to grant Sioux Falls a 16-15 lead at the 12:36 mark. Heise connected on an and-one layup pushing the Warriors in front at 22-19 with 10:39 left in the first half. A pair of Bryon Laue free throws gave USF a narrow 27-24 advantage at the 5:39 mark.
Tyler Mason buried a jumper at 3:40, making it 33-29 USF. A pair of Heise free throws at 1:37, gave him 19 points in the half, cutting the Cougars edge to 40-34. Three FTs from Mason were followed by a Jacoby Mehrman jumper, ending the half 44-37 Sioux Falls.
Mason kicked off the second half with a pull-up jumper at 19:25, cutting the Warriors deficit to 44-39. A layup from
Ryan Heise assisted by
Gavyn Hurley put the contest at 54-48 USF with 13:34 to play. Buckets from Mason and Hurley made it a one possession game at 56-53 Sioux Falls at the 11:21 mark. USF extended their lead to 60-53 following a Camden Davis layup at 10:41. Consecutive three-pointers from Heise and Mason brought the game back to a one possession contest at 62-59 USF with 9:47 left. Sioux Falls responded with a 11-4 run capped off by a Mehrman free throw at 6:03, making it 73-63 Cougars. Mason drove the lane for a layup at 4:03 keeping the game within reach at 75-68 USF. Sioux Falls closed the game on a 10-2 run to win 85-70 over Winona State.
Statistical Comparison:
- The Warriors shot 27-of-56 (48.2%) from the field while the Cougars went 27-of-58 (46.6%)
- Winona State connected on four-of-17 (23.5%) three-pointers with USF going 10-of-27 (37.0%) from three-point land.
- The Cougars won the rebound battle 35-31 over the Warriors.
- Heise led WSU with a career-high 30 points on 12-of-19 shooting and five-of-six from the FT line. He added a game-high nine rebounds in the loss.
- Mason added 25 points, going nine-of-15 from the field and two-of-seven from deep.
- Mehrman led the Cougars with 19 points and three steals.
- Other double figure scorers for USF include Lewis Woosnam and Ingwerson each scoring 16 points with Gerard Bosch (12) and Brogan Madson (10) reaching double figures.
Winona State closes out the 2025-26 regular season with a pair of crucial contests. First, WSU travels to Minnesota State University, Mankato for a game on Thursday, February 19 at 7:30pm. Then, the Warriors host St. Cloud State on Saturday, February 21 at 3:00pm for Senior Day.
