MANKATO, Minn. – The Minnesota State men's basketball team (18-10, 14-6 NSIC) moved into a tie for first place in the NSIC with a win over UMary (5-24, 1-19 NSIC) on Saturday, 85-73. Justin Eagins and Kyreese Willingham played excellent in their final regular season Taylor Center game. Eagins led all scorers with 26 points on 5-10 shooting from deep. Willingham ended the game with a 17-point-13-rebound double-double for the Mavericks.
 
With the win and a Concordia-St. Paul loss, Minnesota State joins Winona State, St. Cloud State and CSP in a four-way tie for first place in the incredibly competitive NSIC.
 
Eagins kicked off the scoring with a step-back three in the opening minute, but Mary's Rich Ashu put the Marauders on the board with a layup. Caden Kirkman made a nice move inside to free him up for his first bucket of the day, then Eagins sunk another three from the wing to put the Mavericks up 8-2 early. Kirkman and Harrison Braudis connected for an alley-oop that the sophomore center threw down, but Ty Rogers hit a three on the other end to cut the Maverick lead in half. Kirkman received a pass at the top of the key, then muscled in a bucket for his third of the afternoon.
 
After he subbed in, David Harmon drove inside for a layup that gave Minnesota State a 10-point lead. Kevin McGaskey stole the ball and finished a saucy layup inside, but Eagins immediately retaliated with a three that swished through the net. Willingham made his first field goal with a one-legged floater from the baseline, then Will Opsahl grabbed an offensive board and put it back up for his first basket which put the Mavericks up 22-7 with 11:06 left in the half.
 
Kirkman drove in for another layup, but the Marauders went on a 9-0 run off a pair of Maverick turnovers to cut the Minnesota State lead back to single digits. Willingham got fouled hard on a fastbreak dunk attempt and made both free throws, then two more from Eagins put the team back up by 11. Back-to-back makes in rapid succession from Jeremiah Jones made it 29-22 with five minutes left in the first.
 
The Marauders made it a five-point game after a technical foul call resulted in a 6-0 run for the away team. Minnesota State didn't make a field goal for over nine minutes since that Kirkman layup, as the team kept its lead alive from free throw makes, until Braudis found Opsahl in the corner for three to give the Mavericks a 38-30 lead headed into the locker room for halftime.
 
Minnesota State shot 44% from the field in the first half with four three-point makes. The Mavericks shot 12-16 from the free throw line in the first 20 minutes. The team had nine turnovers in the first half which allowed UMary to score 10 points. However, MSU outrebounded the Marauders 21-15 in the half.
 
Eagins led the team with 11 points in the first half. Kirkman had eight points, while both Willingham and Opsahl ended the half with seven each.
 
Redfield made the first field goal of the second half before Opsahl banked in a three-pointer on the wing in response. He put another one through the net from beyond the arc, but Redfield responded with one of his own. Braudis made his first shot from the floor, a floater from the block, but UMary made one on the other end to keep it a 10-point game. Willingham's first make of the second half was a hook shot in the lane, then Eagins made his first shot of the period with a floater. Eagins stepped back for his fourth three of the game which put MSU up 54-41.
 
Redfield sunk a three to cut into the Maverick lead, then Drew Daniel banged his way into a lay-in down low. Jones made an and-one layup for UMary, then Eagins was money on a three to put Minnesota State up 12. Willingham put another signature floater through the hoop before the Marauders would make consecutive buckets. Eagins and Kirkman ran a beautiful pick-and-roll that resulted in a double-clutch slam from Kirkman. The Mavericks led 65-56 with 8:30 left to play.
 
That pair locked in another slam dunk in the pick-and-roll, this time an and-one finish from Kirkman to give the Mavericks a 12-point lead. Willingham finally hit from three after some nice ball movement and an extra pass from Braudis. After three minutes without a field goal, McGaskey hit a three for UMary. Braudis hit a three to close the game out as MSU won 85-73.
 
Minnesota State shot 49% from the field (25-51 FG), making 11-29 from three (37.9% 3P) and 24-32 from the line (75% FT) in the win. The team owned the glass, outrebounding UMary 41-30. The team cleaned up the turnovers from the first half to secure the victory at home.
 
Eagins led all scorers with 26 points on 6-13 shooting. He made five threes, dished out two assists and had two steals. Willingham recorded his third double-double of the season with 17 points and 13 rebounds to go along with two blocked shots on senior day. Both Kirkman and Opsahl ended with 13 points each. Braudis ended with eight.
 
UMary ended the game shooting 43.9% from the field (29-66 FG), 27.6% from deep (8-29 3P) and 63.6% from the charity stripe (7-11 FT). The Marauders stole the ball away from the home team 11 times in the loss and dominated in the paint, scoring 40 points down low. Redfield led the team with 18 points on 7-14 shooting. McGaskey scored 15 with four assists and four steals. Jones had 13 points and 15 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
 
The Mavericks close out the regular season with a pair of road conference games. First, on Friday, February 21, MSU travels to St. Cloud, Minn. for a battle with the Huskies (18-10, 14-6 NSIC) at 5:30 p.m. SCSU beat the Mavericks 80-75 in the Taylor Center back in January. Then, on Saturday, Minnesota State takes on MSU Moorhead (18-8, 13-7 NSIC) at 3:30 p.m. in Nemzek Fieldhouse.