New day. New game. 

That was the mentality the University of Minnesota Duluth installed tonight as it rebounded from a rough night yesterday to take down Northern State University, the top team in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, with a 76-70 conference win at Romano Gymnasium. The Bulldogs have already eclipsed their NSIC win total this season with their eighth win on Saturday. UMD, which went 7-15 in the NSIC in 2017-18, is one win away from tying their win total from last season. 

The Bulldogs had under 24 hours to forgot about last night's loss to Minnesota State University Moorhead and fight through adversary against one of the league's best.

And they did just that.

UMD fended off the Wolves late despite having its top two scorers battle foul trouble for the majority of the second half. The rest of the Bulldogs stepped up in the closing minutes including the bench, which amassed 25 points tonight.

Senior forward Sean Burns and junior forward Brandon Myer each picked up their fourth fouls seconds apart midway through the second half as UMD was deadlocked with Northern State with just over 10 minutes left. The Wolves gained control and push the lead out to five points but the reserves held their ground. Sophomore forward Jake Paper rejected a layup, freshman guard Mason Steffen grabbed a key loose-ball rebound, and junior guard Trevor Entwisle buried a three pointer in response to a three by Northern State to remain close.

Head coach Justin Wieck inserted Burns and Myer and UMD each received baskets from those two to tie the game at 58-58. Entwisle delivered a momentous three on the left wing to shoot the Bulldogs ahead 61-58. Myer, with four fouls, swatted a shot attempt the next possession and transitioned to a shooting foul at the other end. Myer drilled both free throws to give the Bulldogs a 63-58 advantage. 

However, Northern State worked that foul trouble to its advantage as Myer picked up his final foul, and the fifth leading scorer in the NSIC had to watch from the bench. Senior forward Ryan Kaczynski stepped up for the absence of Myer and finished with six points, a rebound and a steal. 

Clinging to a four-point lead, UMD took advantage of a break on the defensive end. Senior guard Mamadou Ngom came up with another stellar defensive play, slashing in front of a pass and finding junior guard Logan Rohrscheib for the easy two the other way. After a couple of missed shots by Northern State, Ngom and Rohrscheib went perfect from the line and UMD built a 10-point cushion with a minute remaining. The Bulldogs executed the press break and made their free throws in the final minute to send the Wolves back to Aberdeen, S.D. with their third conference loss.

Burns led all players with 23 points on a solid night from the field. The Robbinsdale, Minn., native made eight of his 11 attempts and he went 7-for-9 from the line. Andrew Kallman scored a team-high 21 points for Wolves. Myer collected 10 points and nine rebounds to go along with three blocks and Entwisle posted 12 points including a pair of three-pointers as he led all bench players. Rohrscheib finished one point shy of reached double figures. Ngom compiled five points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals.

UMD is back at home on Friday to host Winona State University. Opening tip of that NSIC contest is slated for 7:30 p.m.

Highlights:


Postgame: