CROOKSTON, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston sent shockwaves across the state of Minnesota with a convincing 99-85 win over traditional Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) stalwart St. Cloud State University Saturday at Lysaker Gymnasium in Crookston, Minn. The Golden Eagles connected on 13 three-pointers and shot 24-of-45 for 52.2 percent from the field and were 13-of-24 for 54.2 percent from beyond the arc.

The Golden Eagles improve to 3-4 (1-2 NSIC) with Saturday's win over the Huskies, the first NSIC win of the Dan Weisse era in Minnesota Crookston. St. Cloud State falls to 4-3 (2-1 NSIC) with the loss. UMC fell to St. Cloud State twice last season. They last defeated SCSU, then ranked No. 22 in the nation, Feb. 22, 2013 in a game where the Huskies were missing one of their top players. Saturday, St. Cloud State had their whole team ready to go.

The Golden Eagles got some of their best performances of the season out of a variety of players as several UMC players contributed to the win over the Huskies. UMC was led by Tyler West, Jr. (Sr., G/F, Portland, Ore./Communications), who continued his strong play of late, with a double-double of 27 points and 10 rebounds on 7-of-8 shooting from the field. West also overcame his three-point woes. West was just 1-of-17 from three coming into the game, but connected on 3-of-3 attempts Saturday. He was also 10-of-11 from the charity stripe.

Derrick Redd, Jr. (Jr., G, Menifee, Calif./Sports and Rec Management), who yesterday was hooked up to an I.V. after being stricken by food poisoning and missing the Minnesota Duluth game, bounced back to have a strong game. Redd posted 26 points on 5-of-9 shooting and was 15-of-15 from the line. In addition, Redd dished out seven assists on the game.

Tim Lubke (Sr., G, St. Paul, Minn./Sports and Rec Management) was UMC's leader from beyond the arc Saturday, as he was 5-of-7 for the game from three and finished with 17 points.

John Hughes (Jr., F, San Diego, Calif./Management) added 14 points and six rebounds for the game.

St. Cloud State was led by Jordan Poydras, who had 29 points, eight rebounds and six assists on 8-of-17 shooting. Kevin Levandoski added 15 points, while James Fort had 11 points and six boards and Scottie Stone had 10 points off the bench.

The Huskies were 31-of-62 for 50 percent from the field and 7-of-15 for 46.7 percent from three. They however struggled at the charity stripe, connecting on just 16-of-25 attempts for 65 percent.

UMC out-rebounded St. Cloud State 32-31 on the game.

The two teams would play it close in the first half, UMC would get out to an early 9-2 advantage after a Lubke three with 16:09 remaining. However, the Huskies would get right back in the fray, cutting the lead to one after a Poydras jumper. The two would go back-and-forth for the remainder of the first half with St. Cloud State taking the 42-39 advantage at the half as Poydras drained a three going into the break.

The two would stay close early on in the second half, but a 8-0 run for the Golden Eagles led by four points from Hughes and four points from Redd, would find UMC ahead 56-48 with 14:54 remaining.

St. Cloud State would cut the advantage to five after a Poydras three with 10:05 remaining, but the Golden Eagles used a quick 5-0 run led by free throws and a three from Lubke to go ahead 68-58 with 9:22 remaining.

UMC would sink free throws down the stretch to hold their advantage and come away with the 99-85 win.

UMC did several things out of the ordinary Saturday. The Golden Eagles came in averaging 57.8 points from the game, and put up a season-high 99 points in the win, 16 points above their biggest output of the season. In addition, the Golden Eagles were just 24.6 percent from beyond the arc this season and connected on 54.2 percent of their shots from long range.

The Golden Eagles will hit the road next weekend in the NSIC as they take on Wayne State College (Neb.) Dec. 12 at 8 p.m. and Augustana College (S.D.) at 6 p.m. Dec. 13.

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).