The Viking men's basketball team shot 58 percent Friday night as VCSU held off Viterbo University down the stretch for a 79-69 conference victory.

Valley City State shot 59 percent in the first half and 57 percent in the second half Friday en route to their third NSAA victory of the season. VCSU improves to 10-6 overall and 3-2 in conference play. Viterbo drops to 6-7 overall and 1-3 in the North Star.

Viterbo led by as many as seven points in the first half at 26-19, but the Vikings ended the half on a 14-2 run over the final six minutes for a 33-28 halftime lead. The teams traded leads early in the second half before the Vikings took the lead for good when Chase Carpenter's 3-pointer broke a 45-45 tie with 12:19 remaining.

Leading 52-51, VCSU used a small 8-1 run to create a 60-52 lead with 6:30 to go, and Viterbo would get no closer than three points the rest of the way.

Jayden Ferguson poured in a game-high 27 points – including 17 in the first half – to lead VCSU's offense attack. He shot 7-for-11 from the field and was 13-for-14 at the free throw line. In 16 games this season, Ferguson has now scored 20 or more points 12 times.

Rashad Satahoo topped 20 points for the sixth time this season, dropping 22 on Friday and going 3-for-8 from 3-point range. He was a perfect 5-for-5 at the line. Ellwood Ellenson shot 7-for-10 from the field as he matched his season-high with 14 points Friday. Austin Dunbar added nine points and eight rebounds.

Ethan Haberman posted 19 point and seven rebounds to lead Viterbo in the loss. Erik Engelstad scored 16 points; Jake Bamke finished with 15; and Jared Fleischmann had 11 points and seven assists.

VCSU shot 58 percent overall (26-45), 33 percent on 3's (4-12) and 79 percent at the free throw line (23-29). Viterbo shot 42 percent from the field (25-60), 32 percent on 3's (8-25) and 79 percent at the line (11-14).

Viterbo had 13 turnovers and 15 assists, while the Vikings had 15 turnovers and 11 assists. Viterbo held a 29-28 edge in rebounds, including an 11-4 edge on the offense glass.

Up next: Valley City State (10-6, 3-2 NSAA) will travel to Arizona for games Monday and Tuesday next week. Viterbo (6-7, 1-3 NSAA) plays at Dakota State on Saturday afternoon.