Mankato, Minn. --- The Minnesota State women's basketball team fell to the Sioux Falls Cougars Friday night at Taylor Center, 66-64.

The score was tied up at 64-64 with eight seconds remaining in regulation. After a called timeout, USF had possession and made the game-winning basket with .05 secs left on the clock after the Cougars Sam Knecht hauled down an offensive rebound and made the game-winning layup.

With the loss MSU's overall record falls to 8-17 overall and 7-14 in NSIC play.

Earlier in the first quarter there was eight lead changes and two ties between the Mavericks and Cougars. The Mavericks were leading by two, 13-11, with 4:37 remaining in the quarter before the Cougars rallied off an 8-0 run the next two minutes of game action to give them a 19-13 lead. Heading the second quarter, USF held a 22-16 lead over MSU, as the Cougars outscored the Mavericks 14-4 in the paint. Sophomore Claire Ziegler [Mankato, Minn.] and junior Britney Scherber [Bloomington, Minn.] combined to score 13 points in the first with seven and six points, respectively.

The Mavericks went on an 8-0 run themselves early on in the second quarter to give them a, 26-25, lead over the Cougars with 7:36 before halftime. However the runs continued as the USF immediately went on a 9-0 run themselves the next three minutes of action, which catapulted the Cougars to a 34-26 lead with 4:51 before the break. MSU hung in there tough against USF in the last minutes of action of the first half, as it dwindled the Cougars lead down to two at halftime, 38-36.

Both teams shot efficient from the floor in the first half as the Mavericks shot 52%, including five made three-pointers, while the Cougars connect on 46% of its shots and also hit five three-pointers. Both teams pulled down 17 rebounds apiece in the half and MSU evened up points in the paint in the second quarter as each team recorded 18 points in the paint in the half.

Scherber owned a team-high 12 points at the break and shot 4-of-5 from beyond the arc. Ziegler added 11 points, four rebounds and two assists, while freshman Monica Muth [Cambridge, Wis.] added four points, four assists and three boards.

In the third period the Mavericks turned up the pressure on the defensive end as they held USF to a 21% field-goal percentage in the quarter. The Mavericks held the Cougars scoreless in the last 5:56 minutes of the quarter. MSU finished the quarter on a 6-0 to give the Mavericks a 52-50 lead heading in to the fourth. The Mavericks bench outscored the Cougars bench in the third 9-0. USF's Taylor Varsho scored all 12 of the team's points in the quarter, as she made four three-pointers in the first four minutes of the third.
 

In the final period of play the tightly contested action continued, as the largest lead in the quarter was a three point margin. MSU took its first lead in the quarter after a made three-pointer from Scherber to give the Mavericks a, 61-59. lead with 2:38 remaining in the game.  USF tied the score back up on its next trip down the court after a pair of made free-throws from Varsho with 2:04 on the clock.

The Cougars regained the lead after making three of their next four free throw attempts to give them a 64-61 lead over the Mavericks with 19 seconds left to play. However, MSU had another answer, as Scherber nailed her sixth three-pointer on the night to tie the game back up at 64-64 with eight seconds remaining. Although, the eight seconds remaining proved to be too much as USF converted on its next trip down the court.

The Mavericks finished the game shooting 46% from the field and converted on nine three-pointers, while the Cougars ended the game shooting 36% from the field and made 10 three-pointers. On the boards, MSU grabbed 39 rebounds and USF pulled down 36. 

Turnover margin played a key part in the game as MSU coughed it up 16 times compared to USF's eight. The Cougars were able to take advantage of the Mavericks turnovers, as they tallied 16 points off turnovers.

Scherber finished the game with a team-high 22 points and shot 6-of-8 from three. Ziegler fell just short of posting her sixth double-double of the season with 13 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals. Senior McKenzie Hoelmenn [Lakeville, Minn.] added 12 points, five assists and four rebounds off the bench, while Muth finished with nine rebounds, seven points and five assists.

MSU will close out its regular season schedule Saturday at Taylor Center, as it will host Southwest Minnesota State at 4:00 p.m. The game will also mark as "Senior Night" for the Mavericks' two seniors in McKenzie Hoelmenn and Anna Leloux.