DICKINSON, N.D. – Dickinson State used an 11-3 run over a five-minute span in the second half to pull away and pick up a 79-73 win over Valley City State in Frontier Conference Men's basketball in Dickinson.

Valley City State is 9-15 overall and 5-14 in the conference. Dickinson State is 8-17 overall and 6-13 in the conference.

The first half had six lead changes and three ties. The biggest lead for Dickinson State was seven points and the biggest lead for Valley City State was four

After a brief 2-0 lead to start the game, Valley City State came back to take a one-point at 10-9 on a bucket by Kaleb Larson a little over four minutes into the game. The Blue Hawks would go on a 11-3 run over the next 4:16 to take their biggest lead. A basket by Isaiah Vargas made it 20-13 Dickinson State with 11:38 to go in the half. The Vikings followed that up with an 11-0 run to take their biggest lead. A three-pointer by Taylor Bryant-Frey made it 24-20 Vikings with 9:09 to go in the first half.

Dickinson State would retake the lead on two Griffin Doughty free throws that made it 34-33 with 2:18 to go. The Vikings would get the lead back on an Alex Lester basket that made it 35-34 with 1:24 to go in the half. That was the halftime score.

The biggest lead for the Vikings in the second half was seven when Joel Nelson made a three-pointer to give VCSU a 47-40 lead with 16:20 remaining in the second half. Dickinson State would take the lead for good thanks to a 13-4 run. Cordell Stinson made two free throws that gave the Blue Hawks a 53-51 lead with 11:16 to go in the second half. Caden Grinde made one of two free throws to make it a one-point game, but that would be as close as the Vikings would get. Dickinson State would get the lead to nine points on two more free throws by Stinson that made it 66-57 with 5:01 to go in the half. A three-pointer by Joel Nelson cut the lead to 66-64 with 1:58 to go in the game. That would cap a 7-0 run by the Vikings and mark the closest they would get the rest of the way.

A 10-2 run by the Blue Hawks made it 76-66 and Dickinson State would seal the game at the line, making four out of six over the last 28 seconds.

Joel Nelson scored a career high 27 points and added six rebounds for Valley City State. Kaleb Larson had twelve points and six rebounds. JR Cison had eight points and four assists. Logan Deal and Jaelyn Johnson each had six points and Taylor Bryant-Frey added five.

UP NEXT: The Vikings have another important game on Saturday as they travel to Bismarck to play the Mystics. Gametime is set for 7pm in the capitol city.