MAYVILLE, N.D. – Valley City State led for the final 31 minutes Saturday evening as the VCSU men's basketball team picked up a big road victory at Mayville State University.
Uhana Ochan's tip-in with 10:58 remaining in the first half gave the Vikings an 18-16 lead and helped fuel a 12-0 run. Jalen Addison capped the stretch of 12 straight points with a jumper to make it 25-16 and the Vikings would not trail again in a 79-69 victory.
The Vikings led 37-32 at halftime and extended the lead to as many as 12 points at 55-43 in the second half. The Comets chipped away and pulled to within 64-62 with 3:59 remaining, but VCSU's Eddie Oyet and Duoth Gach made back-to-back 3-pointers and the Vikings made free throws down the stretch to ice the victory.
Valley City State improves to 13-9 overall and 4-5 in the North Star Athletic Association. Mayville State drops to 12-8 overall and 4-5 in conference play. Saturday's game was just the second home loss of the season for Mayville State. The Vikings and Comets have now split their season series and are tied for fifth in the NSAA standings.
Jalen Addison made three 3's and scored 17 points for VCSU on Saturday, leading four Vikings in double figures. Joshua Kelly went 5-for-7 shooting and finished with 14 points and three assists. Oyet filled up the stat sheet with 11 points and team-highs of eight rebounds, three steals and three assists. Kevin Schramm added 10 points and four rebounds, while Ochan and Gach combined to score 17 points off the bench.
Latrelle Franklin scored 17 points, and Jamison Kramer had 16 points off the bench for Mayville State.
Both teams had nine turnovers and 15 assists, and the Vikings held a slight 35-30 rebounding advantage. VCSU shot 51 percent from the field (30-59), 48 percent on 3's (12-25) and 70 percent on free throws (7-10). The Comets shot 42 percent overall (25-60), 41 percent on 3-pointers (12-29) and 78 percent on free throws (7-9).
Up next: Valley City State hosts Waldorf University and Viterbo University for conference games next weekend.
