Wayne State 68 Bemidji State 56

Jamar Diggs and Bryce Caldwell scored 18 points apiece to lead Wayne State in a 68-56 Northern Sun Conference men's basketball win over Bemidji State Friday evening in Wayne, Nebraska.  With the win, the Wildcats remained tied for third in the NSIC with Southwest Minnesota State at 6-4 in the league and 11-8 overall while Bemidji State drops to 5-14 overall and 2-8 in the NSIC.

WSC jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead in the first 2:30 of the game.  However, Bemidji State used a strong inside game to get WSC into early foul trouble and the Beavers took a 17-16 lead with 7:29 to go in the first half following a three-point play from Patrick Cassidy.  The final lead for the Beavers in the game would come at 22-21 with 5:02 to go following a layup by Cassidy.  WSC then scored 9 of the next 10 points to grab a 30-23 lead and enjoyed a 32-27 lead at halftime.

The Wildcats pushed their lead to nine points early in the second half at 38-29 following a jumper from Jamar Diggs with 16:19 left in the game.  Bemidji State made one more run at the Wildcats, getting as close as three points at 41-38 following a three-pointer by Arron Evans.  WSC then put together a quick 10-2 run, increasing their lead to 51-40 with 11:43 remaining.  The Beavers got as close as five points on several occasions, but WSC would hold off Bemidji State for the 68-56 win.

The Wildcats had three players in double figures with Diggs and Caldwell scoring 18 points each with Matt Rathje adding a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds.  WSC made 22 of 62 shots from the field for just 35.5 percent.  The 'Cats were 6 of 16 from the three point line and 18 of 27 at the charity stripe. 

For Bemidji State, Arron Evans poured in 16 points with Alex Smith adding a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, including three dunks.  The Beavers shot 23 of 56 from the field for 41.1 percent.  BSU hit just 3 of 15 attempts from the three point line and 7 of 21 from the charity stripe for just 33 percent.

WSC won the rebounding battle over the Beavers 50-39 as Rathje hauled in 13 boards to lead the Wildcats while Smith grabbed 10 caroms to lead BSU.  Wildcat freshman Sean Thurston added five blocks for WSC.

The Wildcats will be in action again Saturday evening, hosting Minnesota, Crookston at Rice Auditorium with tip off set for 8:00 p.m.