MINOT, N.D. – One week ago, Minot State University proved it can win a gritty, grind-it-out style game.

On Friday, the Beavers proved they could win a race.

The Beavers put on an offensive show early in the second half and held off numerous charges by a plucky University of Mary squad, earning a 93-88 win in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference men's basketball at the MSU Dome.

"It was a game where we looked good offensively at times and good defensively at times against a team that I've always respected how hard they play and how well-coached they are," said MSU head coach Matt Murken. "You know it's going to be a battle when you play them. Especially being a rivalry game for us. Two great wins over them."

The Beavers (7-4 overall, 3-3 NSIC) scored 53 points in the second half  – just seven points short of their total output in a 60-58 win over the University of Sioux Falls last week – and hit their first 10 shots of the second half to build a lead. It ballooned to as many as 12, on a free throw at the 15:03 mark by Tyler Rudolph (Fr., F, Bismarck, N.D.) and was still six when MSU missed its first shot of the half with just 5:46 to play.

The first miss was a three by Michael Pelo (Jr., G, Charleston, Utah), but the Beavers promptly got an offensive rebounds by Everett Robinson (Sr., G, Grand Junction, Colo.). Robinson moved it to Nathan Mertens (So., G, Devils Lake, N.D.) who found Thomas Korf (Sr., F, St. Cloud, Minn.) for a 3-pointer to push the lead back to nine in a key sequence in the contest.

"We really just talked at halftime that we can get whatever shot we want – we just have to be patient enough to get it and not be the weak link and throw up a bad shot," Murken said. "I thought we did a nice job of that in the second half. We've got some good pieces and they kept finding each other in that second half. Good game."

Pelo didn't miss many 3s in the game, however, and the Beavers didn't as a team either. MSU was 12 of 26 from behind the arc with Pelo knocking down 3 for 7, Korf hitting 6 of 8 and Robinson burying 3 of 5. Minot State was 13-of-18 shooting overall in the second half (72.2 percent) and hit 6 of 8 triples.

But, even with the offense clicking, the Beavers couldn't shake a hard-charging Mary team. The Marauders hit 6 of 15 3s in the second half to keep pace. U-Mary cut the lead to five with 7:35 to play on a layup by Marquealis Edwards.

But the Beavers answered with a Pelo 3 to push it back to eight and it hovered between six and nine points the rest of the way with solid free throw shooting by the Beavers down the stretch.

"You've got to beat teams twice in this league to finish towards the top of the league," Murken said. "That's our first step towards doing that."

Edwards led four U-Mary players in double figures with 20 points. He added five assists, three rebounds and three steals in the loss. Chris Mason finished with 19 points and Germain Decoste added 11 points and eight boards for the Marauders.

Korf led all scorers with 21 points and added six rebounds and a steal for the Beavers. Robinson continued solid play with 18 points and seven rebounds, while Pelo (16) and Rudolph (12) both notched career-highs. Dominique McDonald (Jr., G, Raleigh, N.C.) rounded out the Beavers in double figures with 11 points. Mertens had a stellar floor game with eight points and eight assists, while Rudolph added seven rebounds to his points.

Minot State was 29 of 37 from the line and held a 35-31 edge on the glass, while the teams combined for 49 fouls and 68 free throws.

MSU is back at the Dome for its final nonconference game this season, taking on the University of Jamestown starting at 6 p.m.