Feb. 20, 1999

Northern State (20-6, 9-2 NSIC) took care of business Saturday night, dispatching Minnesota-Morris (2-24, 0-11 NSIC) 70-57 in Morris.

The win, coupled with a Southwest State victory over NSIC-leading Winona State (now 10-1 in the NSIC), sets up a showdown for the conference championship and postseason aspirations Wednesday in the Barnett Center. The Warriors will come to town knowing that a win would earn them the conference title and postseason bid outright, while a loss would result in a share for the title with NSU moving on due to the tiebreaker.
 
Morris kept its upset hopes alive early with a 35-32 lead at halftime, but it was only a matter of time before the Wolves kicked it in to another level and overpowered the Cougars. NSU shot just 35 percent from the field, but that was pure marksmanship compared to UMM's downright dismal 27 percent effort from the field. The Cougars shot just 7-of-38 in the second half (18 percent).

Sophomore guard Jared Miller (Mitchell, S.D.) led Northern with 23 points and five steals. Junior point guard Scott Hanson (Tolna, N.D.) followed with 17 points to go with nine rebounds. Sophomore post Ben Dahl (Cottonwood, Minn.) led the way on the glass with a career-high 11 rebounds to go with six points. Senior forward Kyle Jonson (Coon Rapids, Minn.) rounded out NSU's double-digit scorers with 11 points to go with six rebounds and a game-high five assists in 38 minutes on the floor.