RAPID CITY, S.D. --- The South Dakota Mines men's basketball team rode a great performance on both sides of the ball in the second half to a 60-51 victory over MSU Billings to wrap up the non-conference slate.

In the first half, the Hardrocker had trouble holding on to the ball, turning the ball over 14 times, however, they were kept in it by the three-ball, hitting 6 of 13 overall, and ended the half with a 6-0 run thanks to three's by Brevin Walter and Alejandro Rama to head into the locker room trailing 33-28.

Early in the second half, the turnovers would continue for South Dakota Mines as MSU Billings would start the half on a 5-0 run until Markel Allums converted an and-1. Allums would continue to make plays, feeding Keagen Smith for a layup, cutting the lead back to 5. Just under the 12-minute mark, Rama hit a three, cutting the deficit to 45-41. Still down 4 with 7:58 to play, Kolton Frugoli would get a defender up in the air, drawing a foul on a three-point attempt. He would hit two of three, then later another Rama three would pull the deficit to 49-48. With just over 3 minutes to play, Kolten Mortensen hit a big three to give the Hardrockers a 53-51 lead, their first since being up 7-5. Moments later, Walter hit a three, extending the lead to 56-51. Later, with under a minute to go, it became a free throw game. The Hardrockers hit three free throws to pick up the victory, 60-51.

About South Dakota Mines
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 11 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.