WAYNE, NEB. – Matt Cartwright scored 21 points and Jake Kettner added 14 but the University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball Team (11-14, 7-12 NSIC) fell to Wayne State (14-11, 11-8 NSIC), 76-63, in the regular season finale at Rice Auditorium.

With the loss, the Cougars ended the 2021-22 season at 7-12 in the NSIC, including 5-9 in the South Division for seventh place. USF, which finished 11-14 overall, played the final two games shorthanded and without starters Chase Grinde and Noah Puetz. USF, which won the earlier matchup in Sioux Falls against Wayne State, 81-79, split the season series with the Wildcats
The game tonight was the final for three seniors, including Cartwright, Austin Slater and Marko Coudreau.

Slater, a senior from Andover, Minn., finished his career with 125 games played (fifth all-time at USF), with 688 rebounds (11^th all-time) and 610 points along with 51 blocks and 44 steals. He had two points and seven rebounds in the final against WSC.

Coudreau, a senior from Marseille, France, had two points, a rebound and two assists against WSC. He finished his career with 154 career points and 67 rebounds.

Cartwright, a senior from Sioux Falls, S.D., had a game-high 21 points as he made 7-of-15 field goals including 3-of-9 from three-point range with four rebounds and a steal. He finished with 56 double-digit scoring games with 23 games of 20 points including 12 at USF this year. Cartwright played in 94 career games (Augustan and USF) and totaled 1,253 career points, including 436 this year. Cartwright finished the regular season second in the NSIC with 19.0 points per game. He also had 70 three-pointers this year (10^th all-time for a season at USF) and 214 in his career while also grabbing 283 rebounds and 60 steals.

Aside from the seniors, sophomore Jake Kettner was the other USF player in double digits as he hit 6-of-10 field goals. He also grabbed seven rebounds, which was one off his career-high, and had three steals. Sophomore guard Jack Thompson had seven points and three assists while Austin Olson added seven points and Jack Cartwright, six.

By shooting 63.3 percent in the first half (19-of-30 field goals, 3-of-8 from three-point range), WSC jumped out to a 48-29 lead at halftime and despite being outscored, 34-28, in the second half, picked up the win.

For the night, the Cougars hit 22-of-47 field goals for 46.8 percent, including 7-of-19 from three-point range for 36.8 percent. USF, which won the rebound battle, 29-28, hit 12-of-16 free throws. WSC, which advances to the NSIC Tournament as the No. 3 seed in the NSIC South, had five players in double digits, including 18 from Justin Eagan's. Nate Mohr added 12 points for the Wildcats, which made 30-of-56 field goals on the night for 53.6 percent. They were also 5-of-15 from three-point range and 11-of-17 from the foul line.

A couple keys to the game was WSC's inside scoring and ability to turn USF turnovers into points. The Wildcats had a 42-to-26 margin of points in the paint and also had a 29-to-8 advantage in points off turnovers as USF had a season-high 18 turnovers.

Scoring Summary
In the opening half, things look promising for USF early as the Cougars opened a 10-3 lead after a jumper by Luke Healy with 14:25 to play. WSC responded with an 11-to-0 run to take a 14-10 lead at the 11:20 mark. USF hung close on the road with WSC and drew within 18-16 with 8:55 to play after Kettner hit a jumper.

Later, WSC broke from a 24-19 lead by going on a 7-3 run to lead 31-22 at the 5:02 mark. With the momentum with WSC, the Wildcats pushed the lead out with a 17-7 run to close the half and lead at 48-29.

USF made a couple of runs at WSC in the second half and drew within 57-48 with 11:09 after Cartwright hit a pair of three pointers to key a 19-9 run to open the half. However, WSC answered with a triple from Eagan's and a jumper by Mohr to reopen the lead to 62-48 with 9:48 to play. They moved the lead to 73-50 after an 11-2 run over the next four minutes.

In the final five minutes, USF close with 13 by outscoring WSC, 13-3, as Jack Cartwright hit a pair of three-pointers. Still, the late run fell short as the Cougars were out of time and their season over.