Black Hills State men's basketball got back into the win column Saturday night with a 66-57 victory over Westminster.

The Yellow Jackets (14-1, 8-1 RMAC) used a 35-21 second half to overcome a slow start, while shooting at a 45.5 percent clip from deep in the final period.

Joel Scott led all scorers with 21 points to go along with 14 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season. He also tallied three assists, two steals and a block.

Matthew Ragsdale finished with 14 points and a block, going 5-of-10 from the field.

Caelin Hearne had a career game, going 3-of-3 from deep and 4-of-4 from the field in an 11-point, three rebound performance. He also put up a block and a steal.

Adam Moussa tied for the team lead with three assists on the night.

Seven quick points from Ragsdale helped BHSU out to an early 11-6 lead four minutes into the game. WC scored six straight from there to take a 12-11 lead before back-and-forth play commenced.

The next four minutes saw four lead changes and three ties as the Griffins held a 17-16 advantage midway through the first half. BHSU would trail 29-19 as the clock ticked under six minutes to play before layups from Ragsdale and Moussa and a Hearne triple helped draw them back to within five, 36-31, at the break.

Out of the locker room, a Hayes layup and back-to-back threes from Scott and Hearne brought BHSU back to within one, 40-39, with 17:48 to go.

Both offenses fell quiet over the next several minutes before a Moussa three at 10:29 made it 45-44, and then a Scott layup on their next possession gave the Yellow Jackets a 46-45 lead with under 10 to play.

Those possessions led to an 11-0 scoring run, capped by another Hearne 3-pointer to extend the BHSU lead to 51-45 with 7:50 remaining. A few possessions later, Hearne came up big again with a steal and score to make it 55-49.

Jaeton Hackley extended the Yellow Jacket lead into double figures with a three as the clock ticked under four to make it 60-49.

In the closing minutes, a 4-of-6 free throw performance and the help of a Dukic layup would ultimately seal the 66-57 victory.

Up Next
The Yellow Jackets hit the road next weekend to take on New Mexico Highlands on Friday, Jan. 20 at 7 p.m., and then CSU Pueblo on Saturday, Jan. 21 at 7:30 p.m.