Wayne, Neb. – St. Cloud State Men’s Basketball (20-5, 17-2 NSIC) came up clutch in Wayne, Neb. Thursday evening as they took down Wayne State 67-64. The Huskies closed the game on a 7-2 run as they captured their 13th straight win.
SCSU got off to a strong start as an and-one layup by Lee Marks III gave the Huskies a 12-4 lead four and half minutes into the game. St. Cloud State held a steady lead for the next eight minutes following the early spurt by forcing turnovers. Back-to-back threes by Wayne State with 6:13 left in the cut the lead down to four as they looked to gain momentum. The teams were interlocked the rest of the half, but SCSU led 37-35 at halftime.
Out of the break, the Wildcats carried over their momentum from the end of the half to the second half to take a four-point lead. The Huskies would retake that lead with back-to-back threes by Anish Ramlall and Azayah Washington followed by a fall-away baseline jumper by Marks III. At the 15:02 mark of the second half, WSC rattled off a 10-0 run as they took a six-point lead and held all the momentum. As he has done throughout the year, the freshman Washington came up with a big three to halt the momentum. The ensuing possession saw Wyatt Hawks reject a layup attempt and then knockdown an elbow jumper as the Wildcats called a timeout. The teams then battled back and forth as a layup by Luke Winkel tied the game at 60 with 5:20 to go. Both teams went scoreless the next two minutes, until WSC made a jumper to retake the lead with 3:24 remaining. On their possession, Winkel collapsed the defense with a baseline drive and fired a pass to an open Ramlall in the slot who buried a big triple as SCSU took a 63-62 lead. Wayne State retook the lead following another jumper before the teams traded defense stops. With 1:19 left in the game, SCSU had possession on the sideline. After getting a screen from Winkel, Ramlall jetted down the lane from the top of the key and finished a left-handed layup as the Huskies regained the lead. Winkel stood tall on the next defensive possession as he forced a tough layup that would be boarded by Marks III. Ramlall would then drive into the lane and kick out to Marks III who then drove into the paint. He collapsed the defense and found an open Ramlall at the top of the key who fired a potential dagger three. His three would hit back iron, but Kynan Philippe crashed the glass from the corner and got a hand on the ball which deflected out to Hawks who secured the extra possession on an instrumental play by Philippe. The Huskies would call a timeout to reset with a new shot clock and 23 seconds remaining. Out of the timeout holding a one-point lead, the Huskies went to Hawks in an isolation at the elbow. The White Bear Lake native worked his way into the paint, split through a double team and then finished inside with a right-handed hook for the clutch bucket to give St. Cloud State a 67-64 lead with nine seconds remaining. SCSU would foul twice as Wayne State called a timeout with seven seconds left. Needing a three to tie, the Wildcats went to JJ Ferrin after he was freed up off a cross screen off ball action. Hawks got out to contest Ferrin who fired a deep three for the tie. His shot went off the right side of the rim as Philippe came away with the rebound as the buzzer sounded. St. Cloud State would come away with the 67-64 win for their 13th straight win.
Top Huskies
- Anish Ramlall led the Huskies in scoring with 17 points on an efficient 6/11 shooting while going 3/6 from three. Ramlall also notched two rebounds and steals. Seven of his points came in the final six minutes. This was Ramlall’s second game scoring 17+ points as he tied his season-high in scoring.
- Wyatt Hawks was a force on both ends as he totaled 13 points (5/8), seven rebounds, two assists, six blocks, and two steals. Hawks tallied a career-high in stocks with eight and then tied his career-high in blocks for the third time this season. He also moved into fourth all-time in blocks with 111 and is five away from passing Jon Hinzman (1994-98) for third.
- Lee Marks III scored a career-high 15 points on 6/12 shooting. He also grabbed eight rebounds and nabbed a steal. This was his sixth game with 8+ rebounds.
Notables
- St. Cloud State is now 28-6 all-time against Wayne State and have five straight games.
- The Huskies led the game in field goal percentage (44.6-42.2), free throws made (9-2), blocks (7-3), steals (5-4), points in the paint (30-18), points off turnovers (12-8), second chance points (13-9), and bench points (12-11).
- SCSU won their 13th straight game which is the longest streak since 2002-03 where they also won 13 in a row.
- With the win, St. Cloud State will have the opportunity to win the NSIC on Saturday against Augustana with a win against the Vikings.
- Azayah Washington was the final Husky to score in double figures as he tallied 10 points on an efficient 3/5 shooting. Washington went 2/4 from three while recording three rebounds and a block and assist. This was his fourth straight game scoring 10+ points (seventh overall) and ninth multi-three game.
- Kynan Philippe tallied six points and rebounds. He cashed two threes for his 11th multi-three game. This was also his 10th game with 6+ rebounds.
- Luke Winkel totaled four points, two rebounds, and two assists.
Up Next
St. Cloud State will be back in action on Saturday as they take on Augustana at 3:30 p.m.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Men’s Basketball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
