Box Score MINOT, N.D. – Minot State University's defensive pressure overcame sporadic offensive outbursts as the Beavers fought off Valley City State 65-44 in nonconference NCAA Division II men's basketball Sunday at the Minot State Dome.

The Beavers (4-0 overall) limited VCSU, which placed the game as an exhibition, to just 26.3 percent overall and only 21.7 percent from beyond the arc. The win gave Minot State a perfect 4-0 nonconference record and tied the 2004-05 team for the best start to a season in program history.

"Defensively I thought we were solid but we need to make sure our focus level is a high level for 40 minutes," said MISU head coach Matt Murken. "We still have breakdowns that would be exploited by the best teams in our league and that needs to be worked out."

Minot State wasn't great offensively, shooting 42 percent from the floor, but had spurts to build a double digit lead – on a 3-pointer from E.J. Williams (Sr., G, Raleigh, N.C.) with 10:06 to play in the first half – and held at least a 10-point lead much of the rest of the game. MISU stretch it out to 18 points a couple times in the second half.

VCSU (1-5 overall), however, never let the game get out of hand. But poor shooting never allowed the Vikings to make any significant runs either. VCSU struggled to just five field goals in the second half, making just 1 of 13 3-pointers.

"Valley City wasn't as crisp offensively today as they usually are, and some of that was our doing," Murken said. "We played well are guarded well but there are still some things we could clean up."

The Beavers got a big lift from sophomore guards Dominique McDonald (Raleigh, N.C.) as McDonald finished with nine points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals in 24 minutes of play. McDonald did not play in the first two nonconference games and was limited in a third due to an injury during training camp.

"My foot is getting better and I'm starting to feel more comfortable out there," McDonald said. "It will come with more minutes but I feel good about how it's going right now. We played good defense today but I know we can play a lot better. Offensively, I am definitely a pass first guy and especially with this team, we have great shooters and our bigs can finish, so I just do my best to find them."

"He is the one true point guard on our team that has played at the college level," Murken added. "We really rely on him to control things and control the tempo of the game. He is a key piece for us to get things going for us and you saw that early with some nice passes for easy baskets."

The Vikings did not have a player reach double figures as Jeremy Ware led VCSU with eight points. Russell Robinson added six points and a team-high nine rebounds.

Samuel Johnson (Sr., F, Las Vegas, Nev.) led a trio of Minot State players in double digits scoring with a game-high 14 points. He also had 10 rebounds and two assists. Williams hit for 12 points, added five rebounds and dished out four assists, while Thomas Korf (Jr., F, St. Cloud, Minn.) scored 10 points and finished with seven rebounds. Chris East (Sr., F, Toronto, Ontario) pulled down 10 rebounds to help MISU to a 35-23 advantage on the boards and netted eight points in the win.

Minot State will move into Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play Saturday as the Beavers play host to rival University of Mary beginning at 6 p.m. at the Dome.