Article

Men's Hoops Finds New Ways to Win

Mavericks look to start new winning streak after team comes from behind once again in win over Nebraska-Omaha.

by Dax Larson

Issue date: 2/15/07 Section: Mens Sports

The No. 12 Minnesota State men's basketball team is getting wins in many different ways this season. The Mavericks (22-3 overall, 8-2 NCC) started the year by blowing teams out. Early conference games saw leads that were blown until the final few minutes when the Mavericks would step their game up. Lately, the Mavericks have been getting down by 10 or more in the second half and having to comeback to gain the victory. MSU is able to get the late win by playing defense over the last five minutes of the game. Unfortunately, they are in that position because they aren't playing defense the first 35 minutes.

"There is no reason not to play good defense," said Mavericks head coach Matt Margenthaler. "The five guys on the court have to put their mindset to get it done. You can't turn it off and on like a light switch."

Defense wins games and championships and the reason MSU has lost two of its last four games is because the lack of defense. Before their loss to Minnesota-Duluth on Feb.1, the Mavericks had been able to mask the lackluster effort on the defensive end by exceptional shooting. South Dakota found a way to shutdown the Mavericks Thursday by not letting MSU score over the last three minutes when the teams were only separated by one point. The Mavericks didn't play good defense in these games and it cost them their second and third losses of the season, respectively - losses that had dropped their national ranking from four on Jan. 30 to 12 on Tuesday. The Mavericks can't afford anymore losses in their final two games if they want a chance at the conference title and an opportunity to host the conference tournament.

"We have to play every game like our backs are to the wall," said senior Luke Anderson. "We need to do what needs to be done."

MSU concludes its conference road season Thursday when they travel to Augustana. The Vikings (16-8 overall, 3-6 NCC) almost upset the Mavericks on Jan. 20 at the Taylor Center, but the Mavericks completed a comeback to gain the 81-76 victory. The Mavericks will need all aspects of their game to win against the Vikings who are 11-1 at home this season.

"If we want to win the conference we have to win the next two games," Margenthaler said. "We have to refocus, rejuvenate and get back to feeling good about ourselves."

Dax Larson is a Reporter staff writer