St. Thomas head to title game after strong second half
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The St. Thomas men's basketball team advanced to the Summit League championship game with a 85-69 win over North Dakota Saturday night at the Premier Center.
The two teams played even in the first half and were tied at 33 at the break. The second-seeded Tommies went on an 11-3 run early in the second half to take a nine-point lead, and the advantage never dipped below five the rest of the night. St. Thomas later used separate 10-0 and 11-0 runs to balloon the edge to 21.
The Tommies shot 62.5% in the second half. Kendall Blue led the way with 21 points. Carter Bjerke and Drake Dobbs had 15 apiece. Miles Barnstable was also in double figures 14.
UND's Treysen Eaglestaff was held scoreless in the first half and was limited to just six points one night after scoring 51 to knock out South Dakota State. Eli King and Mier Panoam each had 15 to lead the Fighting Hawks.
The Tommies will now meet top-seed Omaha, who routed USD 100-75 in the first semifinal, in the championship game Sunday night at 8 p.m. on CBS Sports Network. Since St. Thomas is still ineligible for the NCAA Tournament, regardless of the result of the title game, the Mavericks will represent the Summit League in the NCAA Tournament.
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