LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Minnesota State men’s basketball team squared off with Kentucky in an exhibition contest Tuesday evening at Rupp Arena which saw the Wildcats claim the 98-67 win.

Minnesota State opens its regular season schedule on Saturday as it travels to Lakeland, Fla. to take on Florida Southern in the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:45 p.m. (CT) at George W. Jenkins Field House.

By the midpoint of the first half, Kentucky held an 18-14 lead. Junior Malcolm Jones led the Maverick offense off the bench in the first 10 minutes as he tallied six points and two steals while shooting 3-of-3 from the field. The game remained close up to the 6:23 media timeout as the Mavericks pulled within two points of the Wildcats at 22-20, behind a pair of three pointers from graduate student Drew Daniel.

UK then finished the half on a 21-3 to take a 43-23 lead into halftime.

Daniel led the Mavericks in the first half with eight points and four rebounds, while Jones tallied six points and two steals. As a team, MSU shot 9-of-32 (.281) from the field in the opening stanza. The Mavericks also hauled in 21 rebounds and forced six Wildcat turnovers.

Jaxson Robinson led all scorers in the first half as he led UK with 15 points and four rebounds. Otega Oweh tallied nine points in the first half as well. As a unit, the Wildcats shot 42.9% from the field in the first half, including an 8-of-24 (.333) showing from downtown.

The first 10 minutes of the second half saw the Wildcats outscore the Mavericks 35-22 as they led 78-45. Freshman Carson Schweim notched seven points in the first 10 minutes of the second half, while senior Harrison Braudis recorded six points.

The final 10 minutes of the second half saw the Mavericks score 22 points compared to 20 of the Wildcats as Kentucky claimed the 98-67 win.

The second half saw the Mavericks shoot 16-of-32 (.500) from the field, including an 8-of-14 (.571). MSU also held a 16-13 advantage in rebounds during the second stanza.

Braudis and Schweim both finished with a team-leading 13 points as both connected on three shots from three-point range. Daniel and Jones each recorded eight points of their own, with Jones also hauling in a team-leading six rebounds.

The Mavericks shot 39.1% from the field, including an 11-of-28 (.393) showing from three. The Mavericks also hauled in 37 rebounds, compared to 39 by the Wildcats. The MSU bench also recorded 30 points.

Robinson led all scorers with 24 points as he connected on 8-of-12 (.750) shots from three-point range. Robinson also led the Wildcats with six rebounds. Oweh finished with 15 points and six assists also.

As a team, Kentucky shot 37-of-69 (.536) from the field, including a 13-of-37 (.351) performance from downtown.

MBB Minnesota State Postgame Press Conference from UK Sports Video on Vimeo.