Bison pull away in second half to take down Tommies

FARGO, N.D. -- A second half blitz allowed North Dakota State University to even the season series over St. Thomas men's basketball during a 64-50 loss Thursday night in Fargo, N.D.

The Tommies (17-11, 7-6 Summit League) opened the game on a 10-0 run before the Bison (14-14, 7-6 Summit League) came back for a halftime lead and a game high 18-point lead late in the second half. St. Thomas shot 36.5 percent (19-52) from the field and 24.0 percent (6-25) from long range compared to 47.6 percent (22-46) overall for the Bison, including 17-of-25 on two-point field goals.

NDSU won the rebound margin, 39-20, but St. Thomas gave away fewer turnovers, 12-9. The Bison outscored the Tommies on points off turnovers, 15-11.

RECAP
The Tommies got off to a quick start behind a 10-0 run over the first five and a half minutes, five points coming from grad student Parker Bjorklund followed by a 3-pointer to start the game by grad student Brooks Allen and a layup from Anthony to cap the run. Following that point, St. Thomas sank one of its next 12 field goals along with three turnovers given away to allow North Dakota State to take its first lead of the game.

Anthony put in his first 3-pointer of the game to give the lead back to the Purple, which also started an 8-0 run and a 20-13 advantage with 5:36 to play in the first half. Bjorklund put in the final St. Thomas points of the half one minute later as NDSU grabbed a 23-22 lead heading into halftime.

NDSU continued its run into the second half with seven of the first nine points overall over the first two minutes. Sophomore Kendall Blue and Bjorklund put in back-to-back layups to bring the deficit back to two, its closest margin the rest of the way. Layups from sophomore Ahjany Lee and junior Ryan Dufault kept the game within one possession eight minutes into the half while a 9-0 run by the Bison extended the lead to double digits, 46-34.

TOP TOMMIES
·      Graduate student Parker Bjorklund led the Tommies in scoring for the 13th time this season on 11 points, including nine in the first half. He moved into 28th all-time at St. Thomas in scoring with 1,157 career points, surpassing Mike Gitzen (1977-81) and Joe Buri (1996-2000) on the night.
·      Sophomore Kendall Blue and freshman Carter Bjerke scored eight points each, both knocking down two free throws.
·      Grad student Raheem Anthony led the Tommies with five rebounds, his 10th time leading this season, and also led with three assists.

QUOTABLES
Head Coach Johnny Tauer on the fast start Thursday night:
"We came out with really good energy. We got great shots. In fact, neither team was shooting really well but we got that 10-point lead early. You know they were going to make a run. They're a tough physical team. They're really good on offense. They've got a bunch of guys who can shoot it well and their posts are a tough matchups. We missed a lot of shots in the first half, even though we had that lead, they could have really stretched it out.

"Second half got away from us. Our interior defense in the second half wasn't as tough as it has been, but collectively we've got to be better. They've been playing as well as anyone in the conference lately. We had a chance tonight but unfortunately we let it slip away."

UP NEXT
St. Thomas concludes its road schedule Saturday at 2 p.m. against South Dakota State in Brookings, S.D.

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Team Stats

Parker Bjorklund

Kendall Blue

Carter Bjerke

Raheem Anthony

Players Mentioned

Brooks Allen

Raheem Anthony

Carter Bjerke

Parker Bjorklund

Kendall Blue

Ryan Dufault

Ahjany Lee