Duluth, Minn. – The No. 13/22 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs hosted the Mary Marauders Saturday afternoon in Romano gym. In what was a close game throughout the majority of the first half, the Bulldogs managed to pull away in the second half to win the game 77-64. With the win, the Bulldogs extend their winning streak to 11 games as they improve to 11-0 (5-0).
 
In what was a competitive start to the game, both teams came out shooting the ball well. Neither team could pull ahead of the other as teams found themselves in 20-20 stalemate with 10:32 left in the first half. Teams continued to trade baskets throughout the remainder of the first half as they got to a 29-29 tie with 3:58 remaining. The Bulldogs were able to close out the first half strong thanks to back-to-back three-pointers from Joshua Brown and Drew Blair. Jacob Shields capped off the late first half run with a layup in the last few seconds of the first half. The Bulldogs went on a 10-0 run to end the half to take a 42-33 halftime lead. Blair and Brown lead the Bulldogs in the first half as they both had 11 first half points. Austin Andrews also added 9 points in the first half. Overall, the Bulldogs shot 15-23 (65.2%) in the first half while also shooting 3-8 (37.5%) from three-point range. The Bulldogs also shot 9-11 in the first half from the foul line. The Marauders shot 14-31 (45.2%) from the field in the first half and 3-11 (27.3%) from three-point range.
 
Mary started the second half in control as they battled back early to draw it to a 4-point deficit. The Bulldogs responded quickly as they scored 7 straight points to take a 55-43 lead with 13:28 remaining in the game. Mary once again was able to get it back to within a few points but once again the Bulldogs responded quickly and got the lead back to over 10 points. As the game started to wind down, the Bulldogs took a 17-point lead with 2:39 left in the game. The Bulldogs defense managed to hold off a late Mary rally to secure the win as the Bulldogs won the game 77-64. The Bulldogs relied on big games from Joshua Brown and Drew Blair as they led the Bulldogs on the night. The Bulldogs leaned on their defense in the second half as they struggled shooting the ball as they shot just 9-25 (36%) from the field in the second half. Mary could not take advantage of the Bulldogs poor shooting however as they shot just 13-30 (43.3%) from the field in the second half.
 
The Bulldogs were led by Drew Blair who had 22 points while Joshua Brown added 21 points on the night. Austin Andrews led the team with 7 rebounds on the night. Andrews also added 4 blocks on the night while Charlie Katona added 2 steals on the night. Overall, the Bulldogs shot 24-48 (50%) from the field on the night and 6-19 (31.6%) from three-point range. They also shot a season best 23-26 (88.5%) from the foul line.
 
The Marauders were led by Kai Huntsberry who had 19 points on the night. Jacob Jackson added 7 rebounds on the night while Huntsberry led the team with 3 assists. Overall, the Marauders shot 27-61 (44.3%) from the field and 5-19 (26.3%) from three-point range. They also shot 5-7 (71.4%) from the free throw line.
 
Coming into the weekend, the Bulldogs were just 1 of 14 remaining teams left undefeated in Division II basketball, and that number dwindled down to just 12 teams on Friday. The Bulldogs are off to an already historical start as they have shattered the programs previous best start to the season at 7-0. The Bulldogs have been getting it done on both ends of the floor as they have the first ranked offense in the NSIC and the second-best defense in the NSIC so far.
 
Who's Next:
The No. 13/22 Bulldogs will take their 11-0 record to Reno, Nevada next week for an exhibition game against Nevada University. From there, they will then travel for their last two NSIC games of the calendar year as they will face Northern State on Friday and then will face off against MSU Moorhead on Saturday.