Eagins leads ‘Cats to 76-69 road win

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BISMARCK, N.D. — Wayne State used a big second half from redshirt freshman guard Justin Eagins to secure the Wildcats’ first road win of the season, claiming a 76-69 win at University of Mary.

Wayne State started the first half slow, allowing the University of Mary to jump out to a 9-2 lead just five minutes into the contest. With 8:36 to go before halftime, senior forward Jordan Janssen scored his first points of the ball game, cutting the Marauder lead to just four at 21-17.

Wayne State got as close as three at 38-25 on a Jay Saunders layup and trailed 37-32 at the half, with Cody McCullough scoring 13 points in the opening 20 minutes.

The Wildcats opened the second half on a 6-0 run and took their first lead of the game less than 90 seconds into the second half 38-37. The Wildcats pushed the lead to nine going into the first media timeout of the second half, leading 54-45, outscoring the Marauders 22-8 to open the second half.

Eagins scored 16 of his 20 second-half points in the first 10 minutes of the second half, helping the Wildcats to lead by as many as 10 before settling on the seven-point win.

Eagins finished with a game-high 22 points while McCullough had a career-high 17 points to lead the Wildcats. Janssen extended his streak of double-digit scoring to 32 consecutive game with 12 points. McCullough led WSC in rebounds with eight and Janssen added six boards. Alec Millender had nine assists to go with six points and five rebounds.

Wayne State’s scheduled Saturday game at Minot State was canceled due to COVID protocols within the Minot State program. The next scheduled contest for the 9-6 Wildcats is Friday, when St. Cloud State visits Rice Auditorium for a 7:30 p.m. matchup.