Mayville, ND - The Comets Men's Basketball team squared off in a crucial North Star Conference game against the Dakota State Trojans. In a thrilling back and forth game, Mayville State rallied from a nine point deficit in the second half to defeat the Trojans 69-64.

"I think we got out played for the majority of the game. Hats off to Dak State, I thought they were the tougher team for 38 minutes of the game. But in winning time, I thought our guys made championship plays," said head coach Brandon McGruder.

The Trojans jumped out to an early 8-2 lead, but the Comets stormed back with an 11-2 rally of their own to take a slim 11-10 lead five minutes into the game.

Dakota State surged ahead again with seven minutes remaining in the first half with and 8-2 run to lead 29-21.

However, Mayville State turned the tables on the Trojans and finished the half outscoring Dakota 12-4 to head into the locker room with a narrow 35-34 advantage.

Thomas Gieske poured in 12 points in the first half to pace the Comets offense.

The teams traded the lead multiple times at the start of the first half. Dakota State scored 11 consecutive points in a two minute stretch to take a 53-44 lead.

Darren Jones put the Comets on his back with eight straight points and a Keyshaun Bolen jumper put Mayville State back in the lead at 56-55 with six and a half minutes left in the game.

Once again the Trojans grabbed a lead at 64-59 with three minutes left.

Behind a raucous crowd, the Comets took over the game. Juan Carlos Canahuate's jumper put the Comets ahead 65-64 with just under a minute left.

Jones then picked off a Trojan pass and emphatically dunked to put Mayville State up three. Bolen forced another Trojan turnover and John White Jr. calmly sank two free throws to seal the game at 69-64.

Mayville State finished the game with a 10-0 run by forcing three turnovers and five missed shots.

"I thought we were very stagnant offensively but we made the necessary shots when we needed. I told our guys tonight wouldn't come down to X's and O's, it's going to come down to 'hoopers' making plays and we did just that," added McGruder.

Jones poured in 18 points in the second half and finished with a game-high 20. Jones also led the Comets with six rebounds, three steals and three blocked shots. Gieske added 14 points, White Jr. reached double figures with 10 and Canahuate dished out five assists.

The win puts the Comets record at 18-6, 6-3 in conference play. Mayville State will battle the Bellevue Bruins for first place in conference Saturday at the Lewy Lee. Tip off is at 5:00pm.

"Saturday we will need to be a bit more aggressive offensively and initiate defensively. As a college basketball player, this is what you dream of. Playing for 1st place in mid February - at home," said McGruder.