CROOKSTON, Minn. – A 14-0 run mid-way through the second half would guide University of Minnesota Duluth past University of Minnesota Crookston 66-50 in UMC's conference home opener Friday evening at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Golden Eagles would be down just five (30-25) at the half, and would be knotted up at 33-33 with 15:56 left in the game, but the 14-0 run during a five minute stretch would be the difference.

The Golden Eagles fall to 2-4 (0-2 NSIC) with Friday's loss. Minnesota Duluth improves to 4-4 (1-1 NSIC) with the victory.

Minnesota Crookston was led by Tyler West, Jr. (Sr., G/F, Portland, Ore./Communications), who continued his strong play of late with a near double-double of 15 points and nine rebounds. Off the bench, Brian Enriquez (Fr., G, Lakewood, Calif./Health Science) provided a spark, putting up his best game of date with 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting, including connecting on 3-of-3 shooting from beyond the arc. Fellow freshman Jim Warmack (F/C, East Grand Forks, Minn./Management) added eight points and four boards off the bench.

The Golden Eagles passed the ball well at times, showing their selflessness and getting other teammates involved. West led the way with four assists on the game. UMC finished with 10 assists on the game. UMC also out-rebounded their foes from Duluth, to the tune of 34-28, led by West's nine boards and five boards from John Hughes (Jr., F, San Diego, Calif./Management).

Minnesota Crookston was 21-of-53 for 39.6 percent for the game, and were 6-of-21 for 28.6 percent from beyond the arc. Minnesota Duluth finished the game shooting 24-of-47 for 51.1 percent from the field and 4-of-12 for 33.3 percent from beyond the arc.

UMD looked to forward Brett Ervin, who put on a performance with 26 points on 11-of-17 shooting. Ervin missed last season due to injury and was a noticeable force for the Bulldogs. Brendon Pineda added 15 points for UMD.

The Golden Eagles would struggle out of the gate, letting the Bulldogs out to a 7-0 lead. However, UMC would get a spark off the bench as their second stringers lit a fire under the Golden Eagles and closed the gap, tying the game at 11-11 at the 10:31 mark of the first half led by five points from Enriquez. Minnesota Crookston would stay in the mix and would take the lead 17-16 with 6:24 remaining in the first half led by a Warmack lay-in.

UMD would take over for awhile and would jump out to a 24-17 advantage with 4:04 remaining led by Ervin. However UMC wouldn't go away led by a three from Hughes to get the lead down to 26-25. UMD would go on a 4-0 run to end the half to go into the break up 30-25.

The second half would start out strong for the Golden Eagles, as they would go on a 6-0 run led by a three from Lucas Reller (Sr., G, Lead, S.D./Management) and three points from West. UMD and UMC would be knotted up at 33-33 after a West lay-in with 15:56 remaining.

From there though, UMD would take over, going on a 14-0 run led by the play of Ervin and Pierre Newton.

UMC would attempt to get back into the game, but the Bulldogs would squash every opportunity as they would hang on for the 66-50 win.

The Golden Eagles were without leading scorer Derrick Redd, Jr. (Jr., G, Menifee, Calif./Sports and Rec Management) for the game, due to illness.

UMC will host St. Cloud State University at 6 p.m. Sat., Dec. 6 at Lysaker Gymnasium.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.
 
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The University of Minnesota Crookston is an NCAA Division II Institution and a member of the Northern
Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The Golden Eagle Equestrian team is a member of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA).