ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. --- The #14 Minnesota State men's basketball team put together a late second-half surge Friday evening to defeat the Tampa Spartans 73-72 in day one of the Eckerd College Thanksgiving Classic.

With the win, the Mavericks improve to 4-1 on the season, while the Spartans fall to 2-3.

The first half saw Tampa jump out to an early lead as the Spartans led by 11 at 25-14 with 10:29 left in the first half. However, the Mavericks finished the first half on a 21-7 run to take a 35-32 lead into the second half.

Freshman TJ Lake led all scores in the first half with 12 points, while sophomore Mike Busack tallied six points and six rebounds. As a team, MSU shot 14-of-31 (.452) from the field, including a 45.5% showing from behind the arc in the first half.

The first 11 minutes of the second half saw neither team lead by more than four points as the lead changed hands three times. With 3:31 left in the game, the Spartans managed build an eight-point lead at 71-63.

Minnesota State would not be denied as they put together a rally of their own as the Mavericks outscored Tampa 10-1 through the final 3:31 of the game. Senior Connor Miller added five points late, while senior Assem Marei notched the game winning dunk to give the Mavericks the 73-72 win.

Miller finished the game leading all scorers with 17 points, including a 3-of-6 showing from behind the arc. Both Lake and Marei added 16 points, with Marei recording nine rebounds.

Busack finished with a game-high 12 rebounds, while senior Zach Monaghan added 12 points and eight assists.

As a team, MSU shot 50% from the field and posted 38 rebounds. The Mavericks also passed out 18 assists.

Eugene McCrory led the Spartans with 16 points, while Marcei Robinson notched 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

The Mavericks wrap up the Eckerd College Thanksgiving Classic on Saturday as they take on the Eckerd College Tritons. The opening tip is set for 6:30 p.m.

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