Crookston, Minn. – Minnesota Crookston used the hot shooting of
Leonard Dixon (R-Jr., F, Demascus, Ore.) and a big second half to beat Mayville State, 81-70, to wrap-up the exhibition season in Lysaker Gymnasium on Thursday night.
Minnesota Crookston finishes the exhibition season with wins over Hamline University and Mayville State.
The first half would be a back-and-forth affair.
Zen Goodridge (R-Jr., C, Orlando, Fla.) got the Golden Eagles started with a put back to give the Golden Eagles a 2-0 lead.
Back-to-back threes by
Uzo Dibiamaka (R-So., G, Adelaide, South Australia) and
Brian Sitzmann (R-Sr., G, Savage, Minn.) would give the maroon and gold a 10-6 lead.
Five-straight points from the Comets would give them a brief one point lead at 11-10. It wouldn't last long, as Dixon would score two of his game-high 32 points to give the Golden Eagles back the lead.
The first half would be a seesaw affair throughout most of the first stanza, seeing both teams retaking the lead and having a number of ties in the opening 20 minutes.
Dixon and
Ethan Channel (R-Jr., G, Beaverton, Ore.) would score four straight points to give the Golden Eagles a 31-28 lead with 3:36 remaining in the first half.
The Comets would take a 39-36 lead following a last second three from Sebastian Griffin at the half.
Both teams shot 50 percent from the field in that high scoring first half.
Minnesota Crookston would score the first five points of the half, including four straight from Channel.
Dixon would score 17 second half points, including burying two threes in a minute span to stretch the Golden Eagles to 12, their largest of the game up to that point.
The Golden Eagles would stretch the lead to 17, which would force a Darren Tighe timeout.
Mayville State would eventually cut the lead to single digits at just nine, but a
Zach Westphal (R-Sr., G, West Fargo, N.D.) tip-in on a rebound would stretch the lead back up to 11, a number that the Comets would not get within the rest of the game.
MSU made a late run, but the Golden Eagles held off a feisty Comets squad. 81-70.
It was a really balanced scoring night for the Golden Eagles, who were led by Dixon, who finished with 32 points on 14-25 shooting from the field and 4-11 from deep.
Goodridge finished with nine points and nine rebounds, while Tiley had eight points. Dibiamaka was outstanding running the offense for the maroon and gold, finishing with six points, eight assists and nine rebounds.
Minnesota Crookston outscored the Comets 45-31 in the second half and outrebounded Mayville State 44-30 in the game.
What's Next
The Golden Eagles are back in action next Friday to kick off the regular season as they head to Duluth to compete in the American Family Insurance Classic. The Golden Eagles will take on East Central (Okl.) at 4 P.M., next Friday afternoon.
