Men's Basketball | 2/1/2025 5:50:00 PM

BISMARCK, N.D. - The University of Mary scored four points in the final 33 seconds to pick up a 70-69 win over the University of Minnesota Crookston Saturday, February 1 at the McDowell Activity Center in Bismarck, N.D. The Golden Eagles held a 69-66 lead with 33 seconds left on the clock.

The University of Minnesota Crookston fell to 5-17 (4-12 NSIC) with Saturday's loss. UMary has won the last five games in the series. The Marauders improved to 5-20 (3-13 NSIC) with the victory. The Golden Eagles are 2-1 in their last three games. 

Minnesota Crookston was lifted by Reid Grant (Sr., G, Johnston, Iowa) with 26 points on 8-of-16 from the field, and 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. Grant dished out five assists. Jordan Mitchell (Sr., F, Columbus, Ohio) finished with 17 points, seven rebounds, four blocked shots, and four steals. Andrew Stokes (Jr., G/F, Westchester, Ill.) notched eight points. Micah Garrett (Jr., G, Portland, Ore.) finished with seven points, and five boards, while Aguek Deng (Sr., F, Des Moines, Iowa) came off the bench for eight.

Minnesota Crookston shot 22-of-48 for 45.8 percent from the field. The Golden Eagles were 9-of-19 for 47.4 percent from distance, and 16-of-19 for 84.2 percent from the stripe. Minnesota Crookston was outrebounded 36-30. They had 12 assists, and 15 turnovers.

UMary was led by 18 points from Alex Mattes on 4-of-8 from the field. Ty Rogers finished with 17 points, and seven rebounds. Rich Ashu notched 10 points, and eight rebounds, while Jeremiah Jones scored 12.

The Marauders shot 25-of-56 for 44.6 percent from the field. They were 7-of-18 for 38.9 percent from beyond the arc, and 13-of-24 for 54.2 percent from the line. They had 12 turnovers Saturday. 

Stokes picked up the first basket of the game for the Golden Eagles as he drove the lane for a pair to knot the game 2-2. Grant sank a three at the top of the key to give the U of M Crookston a 5-2 advantage. A Mitchell put-back extended the lead to 7-2. UMary countered with a 5-0 run with five points from Gunnar Swanson to tie the tilt 7-7 with over 15 minutes left in the first half. The Golden Eagles took a 14-11 lead when G.D. Deng (Jr., G, Des Moines, Iowa) found Grant on the wing for a trey. UMary countered with a Mattes triple to tie the game 14-14. Minnesota Crookston took an 18-15 lead following a pair of Mitchell free throws. An old-fashioned three-point play for Grant widened the gap to 21-15 with 7:28 remaining in the first stanza. UMary pulled within 23-22 on a Mattes triple. The Golden Eagles responded with a Caiden Swenby (Fr., G, Fertile, Minn.) three to extend their lead to 26-22 with under four minutes remaining in the half. Rogers came right back with a triple of his own for UMary to trim the deficit to 26-25. The two squads kept trading treys as Grant's bucket extended the advantage to 29-25 for the Golden Eagles. UMary was able to capture the lead following a Rogers triple, and a steal and transition lay-in for Jones for the Marauders to make it 32-31. The Marauders went into the half-time break with a 33-31 advantage.

Mitchell scored a pair at the bucket to tie the game 33-33 early in the second stanza. UMary countered with a 4-0 rally to make it 37-33. Minnesota Crookston countered and pulled within 37-35 on a Grant lay-in. UMary came back and pushed the lead to 42-35 on a pair of Mattes free throws. The Marauders widened the gap to 44-35 on a transition basket from Jones with just over 15 minutes left in the tilt. Minnesota Crookston pulled back within 48-45 when Grant found Aguek Deng on the wing for a triple with under 12 minutes to go in the contest. Minnesota Crookston came within a pair of a Mitchell put-back to cut it to 49-47. A Tamerrein Henderson triple pushed the Marauder lead to 53.-47. The Golden Eagles came charging back with an 8-0 run, as they took a 55-53 advantage on a Grant trey. Jones knotted the game for the Marauders with a pair to make it 55-55. The Marauders took the 57-55 advantage with 5:57 remaining following two Mattes free throws. The Golden Eagles tied the tilt 57-57 with a pair of Stokes free throws. 

A Garrett triple gave the Golden Eagles the advantage 60-59 out of the final media timeout. Minnesota Crookston pushed their lead to 62-59 on two Grant free shots. A drive from Rich Ashu trimmed the deficit to 62-61 heading into the final three minutes of Saturday's tilt. After a defensive stop, UMary found Mattes on the baseline for the triple as UMary took a 64-62 advantage. Grant knocked down a pair at the stripe to tie the game 64-64 with over two minutes remaining On the opposite end, Ashu made a basket to give UMary a 66-64 lead. With just over a minute remaining, Grant hit a fadeaway trey to give the U of M Crookston a 67-66 lead. The Golden Eagles forced a turnover by the Marauders defensively, leading to a Mitchell basket with 30 seconds remaining to extend the lead to 69-66. A pair of Swanson free throws pulled UMary within 69-68. After a turnover, Rogers hit two at the line to take the 70-69 lead. Minnesota Crookston had one last chance, but the shot was high as UMary picked up the comeback win. 

Minnesota Crookston remains on the road to face Bemidji State University Tuesday. February 4 at 5:30 p.m., in Bemidji, Minn.