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Statement made

Minot State knocks off defending national champion Augustana 88-84

Photo courtesy of Sean Arbaut/Minot State athletics  Minot State's Nathaniel Moore goes for a basket during a men's college basketball game Friday. 

Minot State had been waiting for a win like this for a long time.

On Friday, the Beavers made a statement on their home court by knocking off the defending national champion Augustana Vikings 88-84 at the MSU Dome.

“I’m very fired up,” MSU junior forward Tyler Rudolph said. “It’s a big win, when you can win in crunch time like that, there’s nothing better. Coming together as a team and getting a win like this, it’s such a great feeling.”

It’s unlikely anyone outside of the MSU locker room saw this coming, considering the Beavers had dropped three close Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference games heading into Friday’s contest.

But Rudolph, who finished with a team-high 22 points, said he believed in his teammates.

“It’s definitely a big win,” he said. “We knew they were a good team going in, and we knew we just had to lock in and get it done.”

Minot State shot 54.4 percent from the floor and held Augustana to 47.7 percent shooting.

“It was good to see our guys be more active on the defensive end,” MSU coach Matt Murken said. “We preached it and we looked much better on that side of the court than we have all year. A win or a loss there wasn’t going to make our season or change our program, it’s just another day.

“We have to come back (today), and get another victory.”

The Vikings and Beavers were locked in a 17-17 tie with 11 minutes left in the first half, but Minot State went on an 8-0 run to take a 25-17 lead after a Rudolph 3-pointer and a 3-point play from Luis Ricci Maia. Minot State’s large run forced Augustana coach Tom Billeter to call a timeout and sent the MSU Dome into a frenzy.

Augustana reduced the deficit to two just before halftime, but an inside basket from senior guard Nathan Mertens gave the Beavers a 39-35 halftime lead. The Beavers shot 53.6 percent in the first half.

Minot State opened the second half on fire, and built a 10-point lead for the first time in the game with just under 16 minutes remaining at 49-39.

Ricci Maia hit three 3-pointers to open the second half to give the Beavers a 64-53 lead. Later, Rudolph used a post move to extend the Beavers’ lead to 66-53, then hit a mid-range shot on the next possession to make it a 15-point game, the largest lead of the night for MSU.

Augustana chipped the lead down to six, but a Nathaniel Moore three extended the Beavers’ lead to nine points with less than 5 minutes remaining.

The Vikings chipped away at the Minot State lead and got it all the way down to two points with 2.7 seconds remaining, but Rudolph hit two free throws to seal the win for MSU.

“It’s a credit to our team,” Rudolph said. “We paid attention to the scouting report all week and locked in on defense. We really played a complete game.”

Ricci Maia had 21 points for MSU, while Nathaniel Moore had 15 points and Stevan Jovanovic contributed 12.

Mike Busack had 25 points for Augustana and Jordan Spencer had 20 for the Vikings.

Minot State (5-5, 1-3 NSIC) takes on Wayne State at 6 p.m. today at the MSU Dome, while Augustana (7-2, 3-1) faces the University of Mary at 6 p.m. today in Bismarck.

Garrick Hodge covers Minot State athletics, the Minot Minotauros and high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @Garrick_Hodge.

Photo courtesy of Sean Arbaut/Minot State athletics  Minot State's Nathaniel Moore goes for a basket during a men's college basketball game Friday.  Photo courtesy of Sean Arbaut/Minot State athletics  Minot State players celebrate on the court after upsetting defending national champion Augustana 88-84 on Friday at the MSU Dome. 

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