Box Score Mankato, Minn. --- The #9 Minnesota State men’s basketball team withstood Sioux Falls’ second-half surge to claim an 87-78 win Friday evening at Taylor Center.

With the win, MSU improves to 21-4 overall, with a 17-4 record in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play. With the loss Sioux Falls drops to 11-14, with a 7-13 NSIC record.

The Mavericks entered the second half with a 44-26 lead and seemed poised to finish off a blowout win as they increased their lead to 23 at 60-37 with 14:21 left in the game. The Cougars managed to claw their way back to within four on two occasions but that was as close as they would get as MSU claimed the 87-78 win.

Sophomore Zach Monaghan led all scorers with 23 points, to go along with six helpers and three steals. Junior Connor O'Brien added 17 points and six rebounds while junior Gage Wooten posted nine points and seven rebounds.

As a team, MSU shot 44.4% (28-of-63) from the field and brought down a total of 40 rebounds. MSU also connected on 33-of-44 (.750) of its shots from the charity stripe.

A.J. Holland led the Cougars with 21 points, including a 6-of-12 (.500) showing from three-point land. Robert Goffney added 15 points as well.

The first half saw some back and forth action early on as both teams found themselves tied at 14 with 11:49 left in the first half. The Mavericks would close out the opening frame on a 30-12 run to take a 44-26 lead into the locker room.

Monaghan led all scorers in the first half with 13 points, while O’Brien posted eight points, including a pair of dunks. Wooten added seven points and a team high six rebounds in the first half as well.

As a team, MSU shot 50 percent (14-of-28) from the field, including a 4-of-6 (.667) effort from beyond the arc.

Robert Goffney led the Cougars in the first half with seven points.

Minnesota State wraps up its regular season Saturday as it hosts Southwest Minnesota State. The opening tip is set for 6 p.m. Should MSU defeat SMSU, the Mavericks would win at least a share of the NSIC regular season and south division championships.
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