Michigan Tech University hit nine three-pointers to keep their hopes alive in the first half and did just enough to edge the University of Minnesota Duluth 60-58 at Romano Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.
UMD (3-1) saw its season-opening winning streak draw to a close but had the ball in hand twice in the final seconds, just unable to secure a go-ahead shot against the Huskies (1-0).
TOP SCORERS• Junior guard
Brendon Pineda continued to impress in the early going of his Bulldog career, netting 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting, but was denied a go-ahead three-pointer at the buzzer. Juniors
Pierre Newton (13) and
Taylor Lavery (15) also hit double figures for UMD.
• MTU senior Ben Stelzer hit seven three-pointers to finish with a game-high 28 points. Junior guard Jordan Chartier had a game-high eight rebounds.
UMD shot 51.9 percent in the opening half, taking a 36-31 lead into the locker room, but nine three-pointers by the Huskies on 15 attempts kept their hopes alive. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, came up empty too many times from beyond the arc, just 4-of-12 in the first half and 2-of-8 after the break and Michigan Tech erased the halftime deficit with a pair of threes, their only scores from long-distance in the second half, to take a one-point lead. The teams had five lead changes and a pair of ties in the late going, and UMD put the ball in Newton's hands with just seconds to go and trailling by one. He drove the line, but had the ball swatted away as the Bulldog bench erupted looking for a foul. The Huskies made one of two free throws to bring a two-point lead. Pineda took a three-point attempt at the buzzer, but it rimmed in and out as Michigan Tech secured the victory.
UP NEXTThe tough tests continue for the Bulldogs this weekend when a pair of NCAA II Tournament teams from 2013-14 come to town in Michigan Tech University on Saturday and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside on Sunday. Both games are scheduled to tip at 3:00 p.m.
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