The University of Minnesota Duluth men's basketball team survived another thrilling overtime matchup this season after edging out a 79-78 victory over the Wayne State College Wildcats and completed the weekend sweep in tonight's Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) contest.

Halftime: UMD (35) - WSC (32)

The game got off to a rocky start for UMD, falling to a 0-9 deficit through the first five minutes. As they started to find their footing on the court, the two traded buckets back and forth with the Wildcats narrowly outscoring them 11-12 through the next five to bring their lead to 11-21. A nine unanswered point run for the Bulldogs, bookended by a N. Katona three pointer, would get UMD back within one point with six minutes left in the half. The shootout would continue down to the one minute mark, with the Wildcats growing their lead back up to four points at 28-32. The Bulldogs would get back to the line three different times with less than a minute left to go, including a pair of Middleton free throws coming from a WSC technical foul, leaving UMD to outscore WSC 7-0 to end the half and take a three point lead before the break.

The Bulldogs shot 12-28 (42.9%) from the field, 5-13 (38.5%) from outside the arc, and 6-8 (75%) from the charity line through the first half tonight. A well even matchup between the two teams, both struggling to find consistent success on offense, turned even better for the Bulldogs as the Wildcats found themselves with 10 personal fouls through the opening 20 minutes. 

End of Regulation: UMD (72) - WSC (72)

The two teams would trade six point runs to open the second half, staying a three point game through the opening three minutes. Through the following four and a half minutes, the Wildcats would hit four shots from three point range to outscore UMD 16-9 and take back the lead. The lead would exchange sides four more times throughout the final 12 minutes as the two teams continued to match each other's tempo, with a pair of Blair free throws officially ending the half with the Bulldogs outscoring WSC 22-18 and sending the game into overtime.

UMD shot 14-30 (46.7%) from the field, 2-9 (22.2%) from three point range, and 7-9 (77.8%) from the free throw line to close out regulation play tonight. The Bulldogs collected four blocks and two steals, making up six  turnovers for the Wildcats, but struggled to stay ahead in rebounding and found themselves in their own bit of foul trouble leading to the tied score after 40 minutes of play.

Final Score: UMD (79) - WSC (78)

The Bulldogs would collect the opening four points of the five minute overtime, but the Wildcats would respond with a run of six unanswered to go up 76-78 with just over two minutes left. However, the foul troubles for WSC would come back to haunt them as C. Katona would reach the line two different times in the final two minutes to take the lead back for UMD. As time winded down, the final possession would come down to fight for the ball that would result in time running out before a jump ball could be called and giving the Bulldogs a hard fought win to complete the weekend sweep.

UMD closed out the win shooting 27-62 (43.5%) from the field, 7-25 (28%) from three point land, and 18-23 (78.3%) from the line through all 45 minutes of play. Small point plays for the Bulldogs continued to benefit their offense, who collected 40 points in the paint tonight. Despite the score being so close, UMD were able to create better opportunities for themselves after forcing 12 WSC turnovers and letting the Wildcats' 21 personal fouls restrict their gameplan.

Top Performers

Fifth year guard Drew Blair led the Bulldog offense tonight shooting 12-25 (48%) from the field, 2-12 (16.7%) from three point range, and 5-5 from the free throw line for a game high 31 points while also collecting four rebounds, two assists, a block, and a steal. Senior forward Charlie Katona shot 1-6 (16.7%) from the field and 6-8 (75%) from the line for eight points while tying team highs with four rebounds and two assists, and a game high three steals.

Looking Ahead

Men's basketball hosts Southwest Minn. State and the University of Sioux Falls next weekend in their final weekend homestand of the regular season. The action for the Bulldogs will tip off on Friday, Feb. 9, at 7:30 PM.