The Minnesota West men’s basketball team embraced the role of spoiler Wednesday night and rallied to knock off visiting Ridgewater in overtime, 97-90, at the Center for Health and Wellness.
It was a big night for the Bluejays’ Teddy Collins Jr., who hit for 30 points in the ballgame. Collins shot 11-of-18 from the floor and made three-of-four 3-point attempts. He also grabbed seven rebounds as Minnesota West outrebounded the Warriors 45-35.
With the win, the Bluejays knocked Ridgewater out of the postseason. Minnesota West had already been eliminated, but nevertheless came out and played a memorable game that featured six of its players scoring in double figures. Henry Counsel added 17 points and seven rebounds, Kenneth Logan had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Karasharo Ojulo chipped in with 12 points and seven rebounds. Jordan Sinclair made every shot he took, finishing with 10 points as well as 10 assists, and Paul Fairley Jr. contributed 10 points, including three huge free throws with 5.1 seconds remaining that forced overtime.
Minnesota West trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half, but Collins made a putback at the halftime buzzer following an offensive rebound to make it 37-28 at the break. The Bluejays surged to open the second half, and both teams then proceeded to go more or less toe to toe the rest of the way up until overtime. At that point, Minnesota West was able to go up by as many as 13 before ultimately winning by seven.
The Bluejays finish the season with a 6-21 overall record and a 4-10 mark in MCAC South play. Ridgewater, which was led by Noah Wilts’ 24 points, is 13-13 and 6-8.
