MINOT, N.D. -- Senior Luis Ricci Maia scored a career-high 23 points and tied his career high with 12 assists while Tyler Rudolph added 27 points and Minot State used a late rally to overtake St. Cloud State 82-80 in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference game on Saturday in the Minot State Dome.

Minot State, which improved to 12-1 overall and 6-1 in the NSIC, trailed for over 37 minutes of the game but rallied in the final four minutes with a 15-2 run to defeat the Huskies and claim sole possession of second place in the NSIC North.

The Beavers trailed 75-67 with 4:11 to play before staging the comeback. Rudolph started the rally with a layup and Brandon Green followed with a three-pointer to trim the lead to 75-72 at the 3:24 mark of the second period.

Ricci Maia brought the Beavers to within 75-74 with a layup and Minot State took its first lead of the game at 76-75 when Rudolph converted a pair of free throws with 2:29 left to play.

Jon Averkamp regained the lead for the Huskies at 77-76 with two free throws at the 2:09 mark, but David Akibo put Minot State in front to stay when he drilled a three-pointer with 2:00 remaining in the contest.

A layup by Nathaniel Moore and a free throw by Rudolph extended the Beavers lead to 82-77 with 23 seconds remaining, but St. Cloud State fought back. Andy Foley was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three free throws with 16 seconds left to cut the Beavers lead to 82-80.

Minot State turned the ball over on its next trip, but the Huskies missed a three-pointer and Rudolph grabbed the rebound. St. Cloud State had one more opportunity to win the game in regulation after Minot State missed a pair of free throws with 4.1 seconds to play, but Brindley Theisen missed a game-winning three-point attempt and the Beavers escaped with their fifth-straight victory.

Rudolph, who reached double figures in scoring for the 33rd consecutive game, moved into third place on the Minot State career scoring list with his 27 points. He has 1.656 points in his career, which moved him ahead of Rick Hedberg (1,652) on the career scoring list.

Ricci Maia was brilliant for Minot State has he posted his fourth double-double of the season and topped his previous career high of 21 points. His 12 assists tied his career high, which he set earlier this season against Minnesota Moorhead.

Akibo finished with 15 points and five rebounds, while Green finished with 11 points and three rebounds. Minot State also shot a season-high 58.9 percent from the floor, which marked the fourth consecutive game in which the Beavers have topped 50 percent shooting from the field.

Minot State also shot a season-high 70.6 percent from the three-point line as the Beavers made 12-of-17 from beyond the arc.

St. Cloud State, which dropped to 8-4 overall and 4-2 in conference play, was led by Averkamp who had 21 points. Gage Davis finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds, while Trevon Marshall added 13 points.

Davis scored nine points and Averkamp added eight points in the first half as the Huskies took a 37-33 lead into the intermission. St. Cloud State led by as much as 12 points in the first half before Minot State used a 10-2 run to close the first half to get back into the game.

Minot State returns to action on Sunday (Dec. 31) when it hosts Minnesota Duluth at 4 p.m. in an NSIC contest in the Minot State Dome