CROOKSTON, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston came out of the break with a crucial 73-56 win over Winona State University. The Golden Eagles had the hot hand from beyond the arc with 13 three-pointers and a 41.9 percent clip. In addition, Minnesota Crookston had their second-best defensive performance of the season as they limited the Warriors to just 56 points. The Golden Eagles have limited their last two opponents to just 53 points a game.
Minnesota Crookston moves to 7-6 (4-3 NSIC) with Saturday's win. The Golden Eagles are off to their best start in the program's history in NCAA Division II. The Golden Eagles are just two wins shy of tying the school-record nine wins set during the 2000-01 season. The win over Winona State is only the third in school history over the Warriors. The victory is the first for Minnesota Crookston since Feb. 19, 2011. Winona State falls to 8-5 (3-4 NSIC) with the loss.
The Golden Eagles looked to the conference's leading scorer Harrison Cleary (So., G, Oak Creek, Wis.) with 25 points on 9-of-17 from the field and 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. Cleary added five rebounds and three assists. Ben Juhl (Fr., G, Clive, Iowa) added 13 points on 5-of-13 from the field and 3-of-7 from behind the three-point line. Alan Hodge, Jr. (Jr., G, Dallas, Texas) notched 12 points, five boards and four assists. Gable Smith (R-Jr., F, Lodi, Wis.) led the team with 10 rebounds. The nation's blocks leader added four to his season tally. Darin Viken (Jr., G, Fosston, Minn.) added eight points and six rebounds off of the bench for Minnesota Crookston.
Minnesota Crookston was 27-of-57 from the field for 47.4 percent. The Golden Eagles went 13-of-31 for 41.9 percent, as they were just two 3-pointers away from tying the school record of 15 triples. The Golden Eagles went 6-of-7 from the charity stripe for 85.7 percent. The Golden Eagles had good ball control as they had 14 assists to just seven turnovers on the day.
Winona State was held to just one player with double-figures as Tommy Gathje had 10 points and seven boards. Caleb Wagner finished with eight points, but he had averaged 17.3 points per game in the last three Warrior contests. Mason Domask added eight points, while Devin Whitelow also had eight points.
The Warriors were 25-of-62 for 40.3 percent from the field. They were just 2-of-15 for 13.3 percent from beyond the arc. Winona State went 4-of-5 for 80.0 percent from the foul line.
Winona State won the rebounding edge 36-32. The Warriors had 10 turnovers on the game.
The Golden Eagles got out to a quick 15-4 lead as their first five shots came from beyond the arc. Juhl led the way during the run with two 3-pointers. Winona State pulled within 15-9 with a trey from Domask and a jumper from Connor Flack. They pulled within four points at 17-13 on a Charlie Koontz basket.
Minnesota Crookston responded with a triples from Viken and Hodge to get back out to a 23-15 lead with 8:41 remaining in the half. The Golden Eagles would continue the strong play as they extended their advantage to 12 points at 31-19 with a jumper from Cleary. Winona State responded with a 6-0 run culminated in a Gathje basket to make it 31-25 with 2:13 left in the opening half. Minnesota Crookston used a 7-2 run to move the lead to 38-27. Whitelow ended the first half with a basket for Winona State as they pulled within 38-29 going into the locker room.
A trey from Viken and a jumper from Juhl ignited a 5-2 run for Minnesota Crookston to move the lead to 43-31 early in the second half. They would continue their strong play as they moved the lead to 15 points on a trey from Hodge with 16:31 left in the game. Winona State used a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to 50-41. Minnesota Crookston fended off the run with a 4-0 rally led by a Cleary trey to make it 54-41. The Warriors did not go away as they used a 6-0 run culminated by a Gathje basket to pull within 54-47 with 9:10 left in the game. Gabrys Sadaunykas (R-Fr., G, Vilnius, Lithuania) stopped the run with a bucket to make it 56-47. Winona State would get the lead down to six on a Domask three. The Golden Eagles stopped the run right there with a 9-0 rally of their own guided by five points from Cleary. Minnesota Crookston would not give up any ground the rest of the way as they took the 73-56 win over the Warriors.
Minnesota Crookston will look to build on the strongest start in school history as they close out 2017 at Lysaker Gymnasium Sun., Dec. 31 at 3:30 p.m. against Upper Iowa University.
