Bulldogs decimate Minot State 72-54 en route to sixth straight win

The Bulldogs celebrate following their 72-54 victory over the visiting Minot State Beavers Friday Dec. 6 at Romano Gymnasium. (Photo: Brett Sharp)

DULUTH, MN -- The University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldog men’s basketball team (7-1, 2-0 NSIC) dominated the visiting Minot State Beavers (6-2, 0-2 NSIC) from the opening tip, cruising to a 72-54 win Friday night in their second conference contest of the season. With the win UMD extended their winning streak to six consecutive games.

The Bulldogs controlled play from the get-go, jumping out to a quick 7-0 lead just two minutes into the opening half. UMD’s two leading scorers on the season, Alex Illikainen and Brandon Myer, powered the early attack tallying the team’s first 12 points of the game. 

The defense got off to a good start too, holding Minot without a basket on their first eight offensive possessions. The Beavers were finally able to break through with forward Aleksa Cucovic hitting the team’s only three pointer of the first half. 

UMD finished the first half holding Minot to just 21 percent shooting (6-28) from the field, including allowing just one three point basket on 13 attempts. 

The Bulldogs rode this defense, along with the added scoring punch of senior guard Logan Rohrscheib’s team-leading 12 first half points to a 41-16 lead at the half. 

The Beaver’s 16 points in the first half were the fewest allowed by the Bulldogs in a half since 2009. UMD was ferocious on the ball, forcing nine turnovers in the opening frame, including two steals by Myer. 

Illikainen once again started things off for the Dogs in the second half, scoring the first four points, before Myer took over the offensive side of the ball. From there on out, the Bulldogs would never look back, maintaining a lead of 15 or larger until the final buzzer, winning by a final score of 72-54. Myer would go on to add 12 second half points to finish as the game’s leading scorer with 23. 

Illikainen and Rohrscheib joined him as Bulldogs in double-digits, with 16 and 13 points respectively. 

UMD was able to solve Minot’s conference leading defense which only allowed 60.6 points per game coming in, despite finishing the game shooting only 39 percent (24-61) from the field. 

A Full Box Score can be found here

The Bulldogs will look to continue their momentum as they go for their seventh straight victory tonight against NSIC foe U-Mary at Romano Gymnasium. Opening tip is set for 5:30 p.m. Those who can’t catch the game can watch live on umdbulldogs.com