by Dax Larson
March 21, 2006
In a season of firsts, the Minnesota State men’s basketball team has a lot to be proud of. Losing a 16-point lead in the final eight minutes of its final game is not one of them. After advancing to the second round of the NCAA Division II tournament, the Mavericks fell to No. 1 seed Winona State 74-71.
“They capitalized on every opportunity given to them,” junior Luke Anderson said. “They started hitting tough shots and we were turning over the ball.”
MSU defeated Nebraska-Kearney in the first round of the tournament 82-70 and advanced to the second round for the second-consecutive year. In their match up with WSU, the Mavericks were able to get a two-point lead going into the half and continued their momentum, gaining a 16-point lead 12 minutes into the half.
The Mavericks maintained a double-digit lead until WSU got it to nine with five minutes to play. It was all down hill from there for the Mavericks as the Warriors continued their lead until they took the lead with just 21 seconds left on the clock. MSU was unable to score in the final three minutes of the game and a team breakdown led to the end of the Mavericks season.
“I feel our season ended early, but it was a heck of a season for us,” Anderson said. “We will set the bar higher for next year.”
In the loss junior Paris Kyles scored a career-high 23 points, he was the last Maverick to score. Senior Rueben Trotter added a career-high 20 points and tied a career-high with 10 rebound to end his last season at MSU. Although the loss leaves a sour taste in the mouths of the Mavericks, there is plenty to look back on and be proud of. MSU tied last year’s team with 24 wins for the most in the history of Maverick basketball. It is also the second time in school history with back-to-back 20 win seasons. The Mavericks won the conference for the first time in 30 years and had the first outright championship ever. MSU also captured the post-season conference tournament for the first time in school history. The NCAA appearance is the first time in history the Mavericks have reached the tournament in consecutive years.
“The team achieved a lot,” senior Chris Whitfield said. “We proved to a lot of people we can win and we came together as a team.”
