Nov. 24, 2004

BEMIDJI, Minn. -- [box score] The Bemidji State University men’s basketball used a hot shooting hand early to power past the University of North Dakota Wednesday in front to 524 at BSU’s Memorial Hall Gymnasium. Beaver junior Alvin Muse (South Holland, Ill.) led all scorers with 19 points as his sweet shooting touch vaulted BSU to its second consecutive victory.

The Fighting Sioux scored the first bucket of the game, but the first half belonged to Muse. The BSU sharp-shooter single-handedly kept BSU in the game in the first half scoring the Beavers first 10 points of the game, giving them a four point lead after just 3:44.

The junior would go on to collect 15 of his game-high 19 points in the half as BSU went to the locker rooms with a 38-35 advantage.

BSU was 16-of-29 (.552) from the floor and 5-for-10 (.500) from beyond the arc while the Beavers won the battle on the boards 16-14 and the turnover game 5-4 in the first half.

The second half BSU stepped up its defensive presence reverting to a full-court press at times to rattle the Fighting Sioux. The game-plan worked as the Beavers made defensive stops on 15 of UND’s first 21 possessions stretching its lead to 13 with 7:11 to play in the game. Spencer Carter (Chicago, Ill.) capped the run off with a jumper for his seventh point of the half.

The Sioux would make a charge as the final buzzer neared, shrinking their deficit to seven points with just over a minute to play, but it was too little too late as BSU was a perfect 4-of-4 from the free-throw line inside the final minute, shooting its way to a 68-57 victory.

The Beavers finished the game shooting 27-of-58 (.466). They were 7-of-20 (.350) from beyond the arc while holding a 39-37 advantage on the glass.

Muse paced the Beavers with 19 points on 8-of-12 from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point land. Carter turned in his most impressive night in the Green and White pulling down a career-high 11 boards an adding 11 points for his first career double-double and the first of 2004-05 for the Beavers.

UND’s Todd Rypkema totaled 16 points to lead the Fighting Sioux offensive attack. He added nine boards.
The win snaps an eight-game losing streak to teams hailing from the North Central Conference dating back to Nov. 15th of last year when the Beavers defeated the Fighting Sioux 87-85 in the BSU Gymnasium.

In addition to improving BSU’s overall record to 2-3 this season, the win also extends the Beavers’ home winning streak to 11 games and the team has now won six consecutive games in Memorial Gymnasium-winning its last four home games of the 1959 season and its first two games at the venue this season.

The Beavers will be back in action Friday (Nov. 26) when they attempt to avenge a 103-78 loss suffered at the hands of Augustana just eight days earlier. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. at BSU’s Memorial Hall Gymnasium.