VALLEY CITY – There’s now a three-way tie atop the North Star Athletic Association men’s basketball standings.
Valley City State dispatched conference leader Mayville State in impressive fashion Saturday afternoon, opening up a 54-38 halftime lead en route to a 94-68 victory in Valley City.
With five conference games remaining, VCSU, Mayville and Bellevue University are now all tied for the conference lead with 6-3 records in North Star play.
With Saturday’s victory the Vikings improved their overall record to 15-4. VCSU continues to receive votes in the NAIA Top 25 Coaches’ Poll. Mayville State drops to 9-4 overall.
Kevin Schramm scored a season-high 26 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead VCSU’s attack Saturday. The senior forward poured in 11 of VCSU’s first 15 points and finished with 17 points in the big first half. Connor Entzi added 22 points for the Vikings – 12 of which came in the second half. The first 11 minutes of the game featured seven ties and four lead changes as the teams traded baskets throughout the early going.
Mayville State took its last lead at 32-30 with 7:45 remaining in the first half. Schramm followed with a 3-pointer to spark a 9-0 Viking run, and VCSU outscored the Comets 24-6 heading into the locker room. Mayville State would get no closer than 15 points early in the second half, and VCSU pulled away down the stretch for a 26-point victory.
“Our guys were locked in today,” said VCSU head coach Ryan Montgomery. “It just shows you they’ve grown up and they’ve figured out how to play championship level basketball. And that’s what every game is going to be this season going forward.”
The Vikings dished out 22 assists – including eight by Joshua Kelly and five by Schramm – while committing just eight turnovers. VCSU also shot 62 percent overall in the game, going 39-63 from the field and 9-for-17 on 3’s.
“I teared up in the locker room,” said Montgomery. “I told the guys that when I see really good basketball it makes me emotional, and they did that today. I’m extremely proud of this team right now.”
Chris Thompson added 13 points and four assists for VCSU. Jalen Addison scored 10 points and Daevonte Munson added eight.
Mayville State was led by 14 points from Latrelle Franklin and 12 points by Josh Ketchel. The Comets shot 41 percent overall (26-64), 31 percent on 3’s (11-35) and 63 percent at the line (5-8).
Up next: Valley City State hits the road next weekend for conference games at Viterbo University (Feb. 5) and Waldorf University (Feb. 6). VCSU defeated Waldorf University and lost to Viterbo University in their earlier meetings this season.