Moscow, Idaho — A late second-half comeback by the Fighting Sioux men's basketball team fell just short as Monmouth escaped with a 57-52 victory in final day action at the Basketball Travelers Classic. UND (3-5) sandwiched its victory over Eastern Michigan on Saturday with a pair of losses to finish the three-day tournament on the campus of the University of Idaho at 1-2.  

Monmouth guard Will Campbell was the catalyst for the Hawks in the second half as 13 of his game-high 17 points came after the break. The Hawks (3-4), who went 2-1 in the tournament, led by as many as 17 points in the second half, but the Sioux were able to whittle their deficit to just two points in the closing minute. 

Senior Derek Benter (Crosby, N.D.) made it a 54-52 contest by sinking a pair of free throws, but the Hawks got a clutch basket late in the shot clock by Jordan Davis with 24 ticks left on their next trip. The Sioux could not come up with a bucket after Davis' make and one more free throw by the Hawks sealed the five-point victory.

Benter and redshirt freshman Josh Schuler (Urbana, Ohio) each led the Sioux in scoring with 10 points. Sophomore Spencer Goodman (Jackson, Mo.) added nine points, which were the first nine of the contest for UND.

“I thought we got better,” UND head coach Brian Jones said. “You saw the resiliency from our team. We could have very easily on the third day of the tournament just cashed it in. I give a lot of credit to our upperclassmen. Everyone bought in and we found ways to get stops and we were down to a one-possession game with the ball.

“That is all you ever ask out of your club is to have a chance to win. Through the tough stretches that we had, we still found ways to get back in the game. That started with our defense and led to some rhythm on the offensive end. After three games in three days, I know we got better.”   

The Sioux got back in the game with a 13-2 run over a four-minute stretch midway through the second half when their shots started to fall. Freshman Troy Huff (Milwaukee, Wis.) sparked the run with four straight points and Schuler added five during the stretch that made it a 46-40 contest with 7:42 to play.

After Monmouth pushed its lead back to double figures, the Sioux answered with a 9-1 run that was capped by Benter's two free throws to make it a one-possession game for the first time since early in the opening half.

Goodman gave the Sioux their only lead of the half at 6-5 with his second trifecta of the game, but the Hawks responded with a 13-0 run over the next 7:18 to create some separation.

Goodman snapped the field-goal drought with his third trey at the 9:42 mark and someone besides the 6-foot-5 sophomore finally scored when junior Patrick Mitchell (Des Moines, Iowa) drilled a 3-pointer of his own on the next trip down the floor.

Mitchell's shot pulled the Sioux to within eight, but the Hawks would push their lead to 12 once again with another little spurt.

The Sioux had an answer through and trimmed their deficit to just six at the half after holding Monmouth off the scoreboard in the final three minutes. Huff had a pair of steals to spark the 6-0 run that made it a 29-23 score at intermission.

Monmouth held a 33-27 advantage on the glass despite Mitchell pulling down a game-high eight boards. The Sioux shot 38.5 percent (20-for-52) from the floor for the game, while the Hawks made 47.7 percent (21-for-44) of their attempts.

The Fighting Sioux will return to action on Saturday in a clash with North Dakota State at the Fargodome. Tip-off for the first matchup between the two teams since a 2004 overtime victory by the Sioux is set for 7 p.m.

– Go Sioux –