by Dax Larson
Issue date: 11/14/06 Section: Mens Sports
If the first four minutes of Friday's exhibition with Athletes in Action is any indication on how the Minnesota State men's basketball team will start games this season, it doesn't look good.
Four minutes into the game MSU was down 16-6 and head coach Matt Margenthaler was livid. Margenthaler pulled four of his five starters leaving only senior Luke Anderson to start over with four fresh guys. Three minutes went by and the deficit was only cut to eight, so most of the starters were put back in. The little message Margenthaler sent to his starters was received and MSU went on an 8-0 run to tie the game 21-21.
"I hope it sent a message," Margenthaler said. "If it didn't, we are not a smart basketball team. We are only as good as our last game and we lost that one."
AIA and MSU traded scoring streaks throughout the rest of the game with AIA staying in the lead most of the way. But MSU didn't give up as back-to-back three pointers by Anderson and senior Tony Thomason and a lay-up by senior Paris Kyles gave the Mavericks a four point edge with only 1:16 left in the game. The four point advantage was the largest lead MSU held in the game. It may have been the biggest lead, but it was at a time when it mattered and MSU was able to come away with a victory and a lesson learned.
"We can't look past teams," Anderson said. "It was a good experience, I'm glad we found that out now. It was good to see that we can buckle down and make the big plays at the end of games."
This season the Mavericks will rely on their shooters to produce the majority of the offense. In Friday's exhibition, the MSU shot 47.1 percent from the field including 46.2 percent from three-point land. All five starters were in double figures in scoring with Anderson leading the way with 20 points. Sophomore Jake Morrow went 5-of-8 with all his baskets coming from behind the arc.
"It's nice having five guys on the floor that can score," Margenthaler said. "I'm glad we found a way to win."
Dax Larson is a Reporter staff writer
