MINOT, N.D. – Minot State University outscored Mayville State 55-30 in the second half going on a 40-11 run over the first 11:30 to blow out the visiting Comets 93-57 in nonconference NCAA Division II men's basketball Sunday afternoon at the Minot State Dome.

The Beavers missed just three shots in the opening 12 minutes of the second half to help shoot 78.6 percent in the half and an outstanding 66.1 percent for the game.

"First, we had really good energy on the defensive and that's where it starts," MSU head coach Matt Murken said. "With that, we had great ball movement on the offensive end and that builds excitement when you can have everyone involved in the play. We really shot it well and it makes everything seem probably better than it was. I would love to make 13 3s every game. We certainly did good job of finding space and making the extra pass."

The Beavers (3-2 overall) started to make a move late in the first half, going on a 21-0 run started by a jump shot by Channing Reed with 1:42 to play before the break. It was 55-27 before Mayville scored again with 15:42 remaining in the game. During that stretch, the Beavers hit four 3s including three by Russ Davis.

"Our team was really moving the ball and we were shooting open shots," said Davis. "I felt pretty good after hitting my first one. I missed my first three but my role on this team is to shoot and I kept shooting it."

Davis went 7 for 11 from beyond the arc and scored a game-high 24 points in his best game as a Beavers.

"We know he can shoot it and we were looking for a breakout game for him," Murken said of Davis. "The guys were looking for him. I think he did some good things to find better spacing on the floor. And, he was better on the defensive end, much more active."

Mayville (5-1 overall), which played the game as an exhibition, was on early and led by as many as five in the first half. But the Beavers clamped down defensively at the halfway point of the first, only allowing 11 field goals in each half and held the Comets to 28.6 shooting on 3s.

"We had a goal to keep them under 60 and accomplished that," Davis said. "I think we did a lot of the things we came in wanting to do. Our goal is to keep getting better."

Max Cooper was the only Comet to reach double figures as he came off the bench to lead Mayville with 10 points.

Four Minot State players scored in double figures and eight of nine reach the scoring column. Along with Davis, Steven Jovanovic and Luis Ricci Maia netted 18 apiece. The duo missed just five shots between them. Nathaniel Moore scored 13 points of the bench and Tyler Rudolph finished with nine points, seven rebounds and four assists in the win.

The Beavers will have one more nonconference game before beginning Northern Sun play as MSU takes on Valley City State Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Dome.

About Minot State
Minot State University is a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) and NCAA Division II offering 14 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletics programs. The NSIC is a premier NCAA DII, 16-member conference featuring teams in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa. The Beavers are the only public NCAA Division II institution in the state of North Dakota.