SPEARFISH, S.D. – Once again it was
Matthew Ragsdale who sparked and guided the Black Hills State men's basketball team (16-12, 14-8 RMAC) to a thrilling 94-83 victory over the Chadron State College Eagles (12-16, 9-13 RMAC) with a 36-point performance, erasing a 16-point deficit to end the regular season victoriously in front of the home crowd inside the Donald E. Young Center on Saturday night.
Both sides came out of the gates scoring the ball as
Deegan Williams (So., Gillette, Wyo.) had a quick four points but it was the Eagles with a 13-8 lead after a five-point run heading into the first media time out. Chadron State was hot behind the arc in the first four minutes, knocking down their first three attempts.
Joel Speckman (Fr., Parker, Colo.) would go to work down low, grabbing rebounds and getting involved on the offensive end of the floor for BH as the two sides traded buckets. Chadron State found early success going down low to their big men, as they opened up a 20-12 lead nearing the 12-minute mark of the first half. The Eagles would continue to knock down shots and building their lead up to 27-14.
Shooting 63.2% through the first 10 minutes of play, Chadron State opened up a 32-16 lead.
Matthew Ragsdale (Gr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) looked to light a spark to get BHSU back in it, scoring seven-straight points. And a spark he provided as Ragsdale sparked a 10-2 Yellow Jacket run as he knocked down five of his last six shots to pull within 10 points at 36-26, Chadron State with six minutes to play. Black Hills State closes the first half on an 8-0 run as the Yellow Jackets pull to within give at the break, 45-40.
After starting on fire and knocking down their first six 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes of play, Chadron State would come down to earth by the second part of the first half. Ragsdale's 18 first half points sparked the 10-2 run over the three and a half minutes allows BH to pull within striking distance. CSC hit seven of their eight 3-point attempts in the first 20 minutes of play.
It was the Eagles who struck first in the second half with a deep ball, but
Caelin Hearne (Jr., Norman, Okla.) looked to get involved more in the second half. Chadron State continued to put points up at an efficient clip, rebuilding a double-digit lead at 54-44 four minutes into the half. A fastbreak score form
Myles Johnson (Jr., Portage, Mich.) and a defensive stop gave BH the ball down just six points out of the media time out. After Chadron State pushed their lead back up to eight points, BH responded with five-straight points in less than a minute to make it a one score game at 62-59.
With six minutes to play, Black Hills State trailed 71-64 but the Eagles continued to find ways to convert shots each time the Yellow Jackets made their own push. With three minutes left, Ragsdale knocked down a deep ball in transition as the A2 Arena crowd started to come to life. Trailing 76-71 with a minute and a half remaining Ragsdale knocked down a massive 3-pointer to pull within two, 76-74 Eagles. After a pair of time outs, a defensive miscue by the Eagles allowed Hearne to drive uncontested to the basket to knot the game up at 76-76. The last second hot by CSC wouldn't fall and the game would go to overtime.
Overtime would be completely controlled by the Yellow Jackets, outscoring the Eagles 18-7. Ragsdale would put the Yellow Jackets up for the first time since it was 8-5 BH with 16:59 remaining in the first half, with a layup, to be followed by a
Hoku Fisher (So., Wilmington, N.C.) would nail a 3-pointer to give BHSU their largest lead of the night (81-76) and force Chadron State to call a time out. The dominant play in the extra period wuld continue as BHSU would prevail 94-83 to conclude the regular season slate.
GAME NOTES
- Matthew Ragsdale drops his fifth 30-point game this season and third-straight game, leading all scorers with his 36 points on 15-for-26 (5-for-10 3FGM) shooting.
- Hoku Fisher dropped a double-double with his 16 points and 10 rebounds.
- Caelin Hearne was the other Yellow Jacket in double digits with his 13 points, also grabbing six rebounds and dishing out three assists.
- Myles Johnson added eight points and eight rebounds in the victory.
- As a team, BH shot 21-for-23 (91.3%) from the free throw line.
- BHSU outscored CSC 19-0 on fastbreak point opportunities.
- Tonight marked the second overtime game of the season, improving to 2-0 in OT games this year.
- BHSU improves to 20-10 all-time against the Eagles and 12-1 in front of the home crowd.
Up Next: Black Hills State will be the No. 4-seed in the RMAC Tournament and will play host to MSU Denver on Tuesday, March 5 inside A2 Arena with tip-off slated for 7:00 p.m. from the Donald E. Young Center.
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