Box Score Wayne State 79 Minnesota Crookston 72

            Wayne State used 52 percent shooting and four players in double figures as the Wildcats downed Minnesota Crookston 79-72 in a Northern Sun Conference men's basketball game played Saturday evening at Rice Auditorium in Wayne.  The Wildcats move to 8-16 and 6-12 in the NSIC with UMC dropping to 7-17 and 3-15 in the NSIC North Division.
            The Wildcats jumped out quickly to a 16-4 lead at the 13:49 mark of the first half.  But the Golden Eagles used a 3-point barrage from Connor Gamble (three consecutive makes) to rally for a 24-22 lead with 6:11 to go before halftime.
            The two teams traded several ties and lead changes to close out the first half with WSC leading 33-31 at halftime.
            WSC then opened the second half with a 16-2 run and held the Golden Eagles without a basket for the first 6:40 of the half to take a sizeable 49-33 lead.
            Minnesota Crookston got as close as six at 53-47 following a Chase Johnson basket.  But WSC pushed the lead back to double digits at 11 (60-49) and keep the lead mostly in double figures the rest of the way as UMC scored the final five points of the game to make the score 79-72.
            Wayne State shot 52.1 percent from the field making 25 of 48 shots.  The 'Cats were 5 of 12 behind the arc and shot a season-high 92.3 percent (24 of 26) at the foul line.
            Kendall Jacks scored a team-high 19 points, his 16^th straight game in double figures, to lead a balanced Wildcat attack.  Austin Esters added 16 points off the bench on 6 of 7 shooting while Vance Janssen and Matt Thomas each scored 15 for the Wildcats.
            Minnesota Crookston made 25 of 54 shots for 46.3 percent, including 7 for 22 from 3-point range.  The Golden Eagles were 15 of 19 at the line.
            Harrison Cleary scored 25 points to pace UMC in scoring.  Connor Gamble added 22 with Chase Johnson accounting for 14.
            WSC held a 31-22 edge in rebounding over the Golden Eagles thanks to seven boards by Cornelius and Jacks while Johnson had 12 for UMC. 
            Wayne State had 19 turnovers in the game to 15 by UMC.  Both teams had 18 points off turnovers while WSC held a 38-28 advantage on points in the paint.
            The Wildcats will be on the road next weekend, playing at Southwest Minnesota State Friday evening at 8 p.m. and Sioux Falls Saturday in a 6 p.m. contest.