MANKATO, Minn. --- The Minnesota State men's basketball team defeated the Sioux Falls Cougars 79-67 Saturday night at Taylor Center in MSU's final game of the regular season.

The Mavericks got on the board early with effective ball movement finding senior Trey Sampson open at the top of the key for a three-point shot. Minnesota State and Sioux Falls traded baskets in the early going with the Cougars attacking the paint and the Mavericks hitting their jumpers highlighted by junior Charlie Brown coming off the bench and immediately hitting a deep two from just inside the arc giving MSU a 12-9 lead with 14:44 remaining in the first half.  Freshman Cameron Kirksey also made an immediate impact coming off the bench nailing a pair of three-point shots from the top of the key and playing tight defense inside and out.  

At the 9:43 mark the Mavericks held a 21-18 lead and out of the timeout inbounded the ball to Kirksey who put in a contested layup. Minnesota State made a point to capitalize on missed shots, pushing the ball up the floor on offense and driving to the basket, a strategy highlighted when senior Aarias Austin made a half-court pass up to senior Jon Fuqua, who drove to the basket and drew a foul on the make leading to a 36-28 Maverick advantage with 4:47 remaining in the first half. Outside shooting continued to be a strength for MSU as sophomore Joey Witthus nailed a shot from the left corner off an Austin assist to give the Mavericks a 43-33 lead going into halftime.  

Fuqua led Minnesota State in scoring during the first half with 12 points and added six rebounds. Austin also added 10 points coming off the bench. The Mavericks shot 63% from the field and made 8-of-13 three-point shots compared to 37.5% from the field for the Cougars and 3-of-8 from deep.
  
Out of halftime Minnesota State started slow on offense missing several good opportunities before Fuqua was able to power through a foul and hit a low post layup and converting on the free-throw to make the score 46-37 at the 16:00 mark. Both teams struggled to find consistency on offense in the middle of the second half and with 10:27 remaining the Mavericks held tightly to a 52-48 lead.  

Coming out of a timeout, Witthus hit a contested turnaround jumper in the paint and was fouled but could not convert on the free throw, pushing the lead to 54-48.  The Maverick offensive pressure put them into the penalty bonus with 7:49 remaining as they maintained a 61-51 lead. Austin continued to attack the basket drawing a foul and nailing both free-throw attempts and driving to the basket for a pull up eight-foot jumper to help stretch the Maverick lead to 69-55 with 4:18 left in the second half. As the clock wound down Sioux Falls Mack Johnson hit a three-point shot off a screen to bring the game to 74-64 with 1:43 remaining while the Cougars employed a full-court press.  Sioux Falls was then forced to foul to extend the game but couldn't get any closer leading to a final score of 79-67.  

Austin, coming off the bench, led all scorers with 22-points and added five rebounds while Fuqua added 15 points and six rebounds.  Also off the bench, Kirksey added 13 points and six rebounds. The Mavericks shot 56.3% from the field for the game and 57.9% from three compared to 39.7% from the field and 37.5% from three for the Cougars.  Minnesota State also outscored Sioux Falls 46-5 in bench points.

With the win, Minnesota State moves to 19-9 (14-8 NSIC) on the season. The Mavericks will host the University of Mary in the first round of the Sanford Health/NSIC Tournament on Wednesday at Taylor Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

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