Sioux Falls 95 Wayne State 83

            The University of Sioux Falls shot a sizzling 58.8 percent from the field as the Cougars held off a furious Wayne State rally late to post a 95-83 win over the Wildcats in Northern Sun Conference men's basketball Saturday evening at Rice Auditorium in Wayne.  The Cougars now take over sole possession of sixth place in the NSIC South with the win, improving to 9-9 and 6-8 in the NSIC South while WSC falls to 8-10 and 5-9 in league play.
            Wayne State trailed nearly the entire game and was down by 30 points, 76-46 with 9:49 to play, before mounting a serious comeback to get as close as nine points before falling to the Cougars.
            The Wildcats led three times early in the game with the final lead coming at 7-6.  USF built an 11 point lead late in the first half before finishing with a 42-33 lead at halftime.
            After shooting 50 percent in the first half, USF got even hotter in the second half making 14 of 19 shots from the field for 73.7 percent and took a commanding 30 point lead before the Wildcats mounted an energized rally. 
            Trailing 76-46 with 9:49 to play, the Wildcats got as close as nine points at 90-81 following a Joel Heesch lay-in with 1:26 to play before falling 95-83.
            Senior forward Ryan Rolfzen led Wayne State in scoring with 21 points followed by Adol Aluong with 20.  Joel Heesch added a career-high 15 points with Ty Bauschek scoring 13. 
            The Wildcats made 30 of 58 shots for 51.7 percent, going just 6 for 21 from 3-point range and 17 of 23 at the free throw line.
            Sioux Falls had five players in double figures led by Charles Ward with 23 points.  Robert Goffney added 22 off the bench with Jordan Stotts notching 15 points.
            The Cougars made 30 of 51 shots for 58.8 percent, including 11 for 19 from the 3-point line while sinking 24 of 31 free throws.
            Sioux Falls dominated the rebounding battle against the Wildcats 36-20 thanks to seven boards from Stotts while Wayne State's top rebounder was Rolfzen with seven.
            The Wildcats are on the road next weekend play at St. Cloud State Friday evening at 8 p.m. followed by a 6 p.m. Saturday evening contest at Minnesota Duluth.