MANKATO, Minn. --- #3 Minnesota State picked up its 12th win of the season Saturday afternoon at Taylor Center as the Mavericks bested Concordia-St. Paul 88-80.

With the win, MSU improves to 12-0 on the season, including a 6-0 NSIC record. With the loss, CSP drops to 7-6, including a 2-5 conference record. This is the third time under head coach Matt Margenthaler that the Mavericks have started a season with a 12-0 record, with the previous two times coming during the 2004-05 and 2009-10 seasons.

"Today was a typical grind it out game," Margenthaler said. "We didn't shoot the ball well at all and still found a way to win. That's what good teams do."

CSP controlled the pace early on in the first half as the Golden Bears built an 11-5 lead nearly three minutes into the game. The Mavericks would respond with an 11-0 run over their own, as five different Mavericks recorded a basket, to put MSU up 16-11 with 12:41 to go in the half.

MSU would hold the lead the rest of the way in the first half as they led by as many as 11 before taking a 43-36 lead into halftime.

Justin Eagins led the Mavericks in the first half with 11 points, while Elijah Hazekamp tallied 10 points. As a team, MSU shot 34.9% from the field in the first half, including a 6-of-15 (.400) showing from three point range. The Mavericks also scored 14 points off 12 CSP turnovers.

Antwan Kimmons led the Golden Bears in the first half with 11 points. As a team, CSP shot 48.3% from the field, including a 5-of-10 performance from behind the three point line.

The first 5:23 of the second half saw the Mavericks build their largest lead of the game at 18 as MSU outscored the Golden Bears 16-5 to take a 59-41 lead. Undaunted, the Golden Bears responded with a 29-7 run of their own to go back up by four at 70-66 with 7:38 remaining.

MSU would quickly regain the lead however as back-to-back three from Eagins and Hazekamp put the Mavericks back up by three at 75-72 with 4:11 to go. Minnesota State would hold the lead the rest of the way as it outscored CSP 13-8 in the final four minutes to claim the 88-80 win. 

Eagins and Hazekamp led the Maverick offense with 20 points each. Dylan Peeters finished with nine points and a career-high 19 rebounds. He is the first Maverick to haul in 19 rebounds in a game since Kelby Kramer did so back on Feb. 26, 2021 against MSU Moorhead. Peeters also reached 1,000 career points and has now tallied 1,003 for his career.

As a team, MSU shot 35.7% from the field, including a 10-of-27 (.370) performance from downtown. The Mavericks also cashed in on 18-of-23 (.783) attempts from the free throw line. MSU also scored 23 points off of 18 Golden Bear turnovers.

Antwan Kimmons led all scorers in the game with 26 points, while Marcus Skeete notched a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

As a team, CSP shot 50.8% from the field, including a 10-of-20 showing from behind the three point line.

Minnesota State concludes the 2023 calendar year on Tuesday as it hosts #21 Minnesota Duluth. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m., at Taylor Center.