MOORHEAD, MINN. – Valley City State University men's basketball closed out the Mayville State University Comets, winning 78-72. The Vikings improved to 8-11 overall and are 4-10 in Frontier Conference games. The Comets are now 7-12 overall and 3-11 in Frontier Conference games.

The Vikings stormed into the lead, starting the first half on a 12-0 run. The Vikings had tallies from Kaleb Larson, Joel Nelson, JR Cison, and Alex Lester in the first five minutes of the contest. Holding strong the remainder of the half, the Vikings steadily held a multiple-possession lead over the Comets for the rest of the first half.

At the half, the Vikings shot 13-for-31 from the field, 6-for-13 from the three-point line, and 9-for-14 from the free throw line. The Vikings were led by Larson, who had 12 first-half points along with three rebounds and an assist. Cison followed with eight points, three assists, and a rebound. The Vikings had points from seven different players by halftime.

The Comets shot 13-for-32, 2-for-6 from the free throw line, and 3-for-4 from the free throw line. Christian Bowen-Web led the Comet with 12 points and a rebound.

Starting the second half, Mayville surged out scoring 9-1, tying the game at 42-42. They went on to capture their largest lead of the game at 51-47. After that, Larson responded with a pair of threes that spurred a Viking comeback. They tied and reclaimed the lead at 55-55 after Cison buried two free throws. Taylor Bryant-Frey extended the Viking lead with a timely three. Down the stretch, Cison hit another three, making it 69-64. Logan Deal made a couple of free throws, moving the Vikings' lead to 71-64. Mayville fought hard, making threes in the final minute, but the Vikings confidently held their lead as Cison and Larson made all their free throws in the final minute.

Closing the game, the Vikings shot 21-for-57 from the field, 11-for-28 from the three-point line, and 25-32 from the free throw line. The Vikings were led by Kaleb Larson, who scored 21 points along with six rebounds. Larson recorded his 1,000th career point at the college level. JR Cison followed with 17 points and six assists. Logan Deal put up another double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. The Comets shot 30-for-70 from the field, 6-for-18 from the three-point line, and 6-for-8 from the free throw line. They were led by Christian Bowen-Webb with 18 points.

UP NEXT: The Vikings are set to host Dakota State University on Friday, Jan. 30.