Lakeland, Fla. --- The Minnesota State men’s basketball team opened the 2011 Terrace Hotel/Ledger Media Group Tournament with a 90-85 loss to Armstrong Atlantic. 

The Mavericks were held to just 36.8 percent shooting in the loss as they hit on 25-of-68 shots.  The Mavericks did drill 10 three-pointers in the loss, six of which were by junior guard #DJ Hoskins# who led MSU with 22 points.

“It was a struggle for us at times tonight,” said head coach Matt Margenthaler.  “We made some bad turnovers that led to a lot of transition points for Armstrong Atlantic.  We have to find a way to eliminate those mistakes and it has to start tomorrow. “

Armstrong Atlantic led for much of the first half as it opened a 37-34 halftime edge.  Neither team shot the ball well as the Mavericks connected on 28.6 percent of its opportunities in the first half, while the Pirates hit on 40 percent. 

Freshman post Zach Romasko led MSU in the paint in the first half with seven points and six rebounds to go with three assists.

Armstrong Atlantic opened the second half with an 11-3 run to push its largest lead of the game at 48-37 with 16:47 remaining, forcing a Maverick timeout.

The Mavericks responded with a 9-3 run to cut the deficit to 51-46 which made the Pirates call a timeout.  Five of the points during the scoring spurt were scored by freshman guard Miles Chamberlain.

Armstrong Atlantic answered with a 9-4 run to push a double-digit lead.  Minnesota State used a late 6-0 run thanks to five points from Hoskins to cut the deficit to five but it would eventually run out of time.

Minnesota State won the battle of the glass, 46-42 in the loss, including 15-10 on the offensive end.  Sophomore post #Connor O’Brien# led MSU with ten rebounds to go with 12 points, recording his second double-double of the game and the fifth of his young career.

Hoskins scored his 22 points on 7-of-15 shooting, including 6-of-8 from beyond the three-point line and 2-of-4 from the free throw line.  Sophomore point guard #Jimmy Whitehead# passed out a career-high seven assists.

Five Pirates reached double-digits in the win led by Keyshore Williams’ 23 points.  Armstrong Atlantic finished the game connecting on 47.7 percent of its shots, including 40.9 percent from the three-point line.