Will Opsahl Leads Minnesota State Past Missouri S&T in Season Opener

A dominant second-half performance carried the No. 9 Minnesota State men’s basketball team to a 68-52 victory over Missouri S&T on Friday afternoon at the Central Region Challenge in Kansas City, Missouri.

Junior Will Opsahl led all scorers with a career-high 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including 2-of-5 from three-point range, while grabbing five rebounds. The Mavericks shot 47.2% from the floor as a team, connecting on 25 of 53 field goal attempts and making 9-of-24 from beyond the arc.

Missouri S&T stayed close through the first twenty minutes, trailing just 32-30 at halftime after Cameron Stovall hit a deep three-pointer with 1:28 left in the half. The Miners shot 43.6% from the field overall but struggled from distance, finishing 3-of-15 on three-pointers and converting only one of four free-throw attempts as Minnesota State committed just nine fouls.

The Mavericks pulled away early in the second half with a 17-9 run that built their first double-digit lead. Freshman Brock Badding capped that surge with a three-pointer to make it 49-39 with 11:39 remaining.

Opsahl then took over the game offensively, scoring on three consecutive possessions, including a three-pointer that stretched the lead to 55-41. Another basket from Opsahl pushed the advantage to 59-41 with 7:41 to play, and Missouri S&T never got closer than 14 points the rest of the way.

Minnesota mn political map with capital saint paul and metropolitan area minneapolis state in the upper midwestern united sta

Senior Caden Kirkman added 10 points, six rebounds, and a team-high four assists for Minnesota State. Junior newcomer Aric Walls contributed 10 points off the bench on 4-of-6 shooting in his Maverick debut, hitting a pair of three-pointers during an 8-0 first-half run that put his team ahead 15-8.

Cameron Stovall paced Missouri S&T with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, while Dwayne Foley chipped in 10 points.

Minnesota State returns to action Saturday at 4 p.m. to face No. 2 Washburn, with the game broadcast on AM 1230 The Fan Mankato and streamed at radiomankato.com/kfsp.