Box Score (PDF)

THE RUNDOWN
SAN ANTONIO – Midwestern State was held to 31.6 percent shooting from the floor and a season-low 54 points in a 61-54 defeat at St. Mary's Monday evening with Will Ferguson scoring 14 points to lead the Rattlers to a season sweep over the Mustangs inside Bill Greehey Arena.
 
Midwestern State's (12-6) shooting woes began from the opening tip with the Mustangs missing their first six shots of the game before a three-pointer for B.J. Jenkins fell through for a 4-3 contest with 16:08 remaining in the first half. The Mustangs grabbed their lone lead of the game at the 14:57 mark following a layup for Shawn Nottingham for a 5-4 advantage before St. Mary's (8-11) went ahead for good less than a minute later.
 
Despite an off shooting night for the Maroon and Gold, MSU stayed close to the Rattlers the entire first half and tied the game at 16-all with 5:12 to play in the first after a free throw for Magnus Richards.
 
After trailing by two at the half, the Mustangs pulled even with St. Mary's on a number of occasions early on in the second period but were unable to move in front.
 
A three-pointer for Skyler Brooks and a dunk by Dimitri Peterson helped the Rattlers grab an eight-point advantage at 40-32 midway through the second half before taking a double-digit lead on a Brooks layup with 11:56 to play.
 
The Rattlers stretched their lead to as many as 14 with 7:18 remaining as the Mustangs were limited to just one basket in a six-minute stretch before Pat Smith buried back-to-back threes to pull MSU to 54-47 with 3:10 to play.
 
The Mustangs came as close as five in the final minutes on a Brandon Neel jumper with 2:48 remaining but were unable to come within striking distance with the Rattlers coming away with the 61-54 victory.

NOTES
- St. Mary's earned the season sweep over Midwestern State for the first time since the 1994-95 season after defeating the Mustangs, 72-70, in the Patterson Auto Family Classic at D.L. Ligon Coliseum on Nov. 19, 2016
- The Rattlers earned back-to-back wins over MSU for the first time since 2001
- Igor Ibaka posted his 10th double-double of the season with a team-high 15 points and 11 rebounds
- Bradon Neel added 14 points and three assists for his 12th-straight double-digit scoring outing
- Pat Smith also reached double figures with 10 points and three steals, scoring nine of his 10 points in the final 3:33
- MSU's 31.6 percent shooting was its second-lowest of the season (27.4% at Tarleton State)
- St. Mary's shot 43.8 percent from the floor
- The Mustangs forced an opponent-high 25 turnovers while committing their third most of the season with 21 miscues

STAT OF THE GAME
54 – Midwestern State's 54 points were the fewest for the team since scoring 49 against Angelo State in the NCAA South Central Regional semifinals on Mar. 15, 2015

UP NEXT 
Midwestern State returns to Lone Star Conference play against rivals Texas A&M-Commerce Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and Tarleton State Saturday afternoon at 4.