Article

Mavericks Can't Defend Playoff Title

MSU wins semifinal game against St. Cloud State before falling in Wells Fargo Finals championship game to USD

by Dax Larson

Issue date: 3/6/07 Section: Mens Sports

No. 7 Minnesota State couldn't find an answer at South Dakota in the North Central Conference postseason tournament championship Sunday. The Mavericks (26-4) fell 97-86 to the Coyotes (23-6), who earned an automatic bid into the North Central Region of the Division II NCAA tournament. A 12-3 run in the middle of the second half put MSU down by double-digits and the Mavericks never found a way to get back into the game.

"They played great, we played bad," said senior Tony Thomason. "Every defensive possession we made some mistake."

"From the start, we weren't there," said Maverick head coach Matt Margenthaler. "We took quick shots on offense and you can get good shots against them. I was disappointed we weren't disciplined."

After a three-pointer by senior Luke Anderson with 14:56 remaining, the Mavericks were only down three and trying to find a way to get just their third lead of the game. But a flurry of mistakes by MSU and hot shooting from South Dakota put the Mavericks in a 12-point hole just two minutes later. During that short span the Mavericks committed two turnovers, two fouls and gave up an offensive rebound. The run by USD was good enough for the victory, as the Mavericks never got as close as seven for the rest of the game.

"It was all created by dribble penetration," Margenthaler said. "They made timely threes. On that day the better team won."

The Coyotes shot an impressive 61.4 percent from the field for the game and an uncanny 71.4 percent from the three-point line in the second half. The Mavericks shot 46.9 percent from the field and a dismal 35 percent from three-point land. The difference-maker for USD was its bench, which scored 37 points. Coyote guard Jesse Becker scored 21 off the bench. MSU guards couldn't stay with Becker's quick moves, ultimately leading to easy baskets and fouls.

"The bigs had their best game of the year," Thomason said. "The guards didn't do a great job. We couldn't stop him [Becker] from getting to the basket."

The Mavericks and the Coyotes faced off in the championship in 2005, with the same result, a USD post-season title. Sunday's loss puts Margenthaler's record at the DakotaDome to 0-8. Senior Paris Kyles led the Mavericks with 21 points, including 7-12 from the free-throw line. Sophomore Mitch Gosson came off the bench to score seven points and bring down a game-high eight rebounds.

The Mavericks were able to reach the title game by beating St. Cloud 78-73 Saturday at the Taylor Center. The teams were supposed to play in Vermillion, S.D., but the severe weather that hit the area Thursday and Friday forced the NCC to change the location of the game to the higher-seed's home court. MSU used the extra edge to defeat the Huskies in the close battle. With 54 seconds remaining, Kyles drove and scored on a lay-up to take the lead for the Mavericks. The basket was good enough to gain the victory for MSU. Kyles had a team-high in points and rebounds with 21 and 8. The Mavericks were able to overcome St. Cloud guard David Dreas' 31 points. The win gave the Mavericks a final home record of 16-0, the only perfect mark since the record was first kept track of in the 1982-83 season.

Dax Larson is a Reporter staff writer