Sioux Falls, SD – The No. 12 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs went up against the Minnesota State Moorhead Dragons on Tuesday afternoon. The entire game was back and forth, and the Dragons held the lead for the majority of the game, but the Bulldogs were able to keep it close as they went into half time trailing by just four points. Ultimately in the end, the Dragons were too much to contain as they beat the Bulldogs with a final score of 81-73.
 
Without Austin Andrews, Sophomore Joshua Brown stepped up and was the star for the Bulldogs throughout the game. In the first half he led the team with 15 points, 4 rebounds and was 5-8 (63%) from the field. The Bulldogs trailed with ten minutes left in the first half 16-17 as Brown led the team. There was a bunch of action at the rim for the Dragons and it was a hard offense to stop. With 4:30 to go, Brown had scored his ninth straight point and the game was tied at 29. Brown scored his 15th point with 2:00 left and the Bulldogs trailed 36-40 heading into the half. In the first half, the Bulldogs shot 13-26 (50%) from the field, 3-4 (75%) from three-point range, and 7-9 (77.78%) from the line.

Drew Blair had a steady scoring pace throughout the game and in the second half, Charlie Katona provided some extra scoring for the team. With 15:30 to go, Katona drained a three pointer to give himself 12 points and tie the game at 48. Katona, Blair, and Brown worked hard together as they kept the pressure on the Dragons and scored as much as they could. With 9:00 left in the game, the Dragons took the lead, 61-60, and held off the Dogs for the rest of the game.

Joshua Brown finished the game with 25 points, 7 rebounds, and 1 assist. Brown was 9-19 (47.4%) from the field, 2-5 (40%) from three-point range, and 5-5 (100%) at the line. Drew Blair had 18 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Blair was 5-16 (31.3%) from the field, 4-9 (44.4%) from three-point range, and 4-6 (66.6%) at the line. Charlie Katona finished with 18 points as well, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists. Katona was 8-12 (66.6%) from the field, 2-4 (50%) from three-point range, and 0-3 (0%) at the line. In total, the Bulldogs shot 27-59 (45.8%) from the field, 9-20 (45%) from three-point range, and 10-16 (62.5%) at the line.

The Dragons played an all-around team game as they had five separate players with double digit points. Jaden Stanley-Williams led the team with 15 points, 4 rebounds, and 0 assists. Stanley-Williams was followed by Gavin Baumgartner, who had 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Overall, the Dragons shot 35-61 (57%) from the field, 4-11 (36%) from three-point range, and 7-13 (54%) at the line.

What's Next:
Despite the loss, the Bulldogs season is far from over as they will go on to compete in the Central Region Tournament