The Bemidji State University men’s basketball team proved its resiliency Friday night that culminated with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by junior guard Christian Pekarek over Wayne State College in a 78-76 win. BSU (9-14, 7-10 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) took the game over WSC (7-16, 5-12 NSIC) to improve to 6-3 in its last nine games.

The Beavers, trailing 76-75 with 5.2 second remaining in the game, were forced to go the full length of the court to set up Pekarek’s game-winning shot. Senior forward Ben Best set up the play while taking the inbound pass and finding Pekarek for the 27-foot shot as time expired.

Bemidji State remained in the game despite giving away a season-high 21 turnovers and facing a 13-point deficit in the first half. The Beavers held the lead four times, for a combined one minute and 28 seconds, at the beginning and late in the second half.

Bemidji State, after taking a 2-0 lead one minute into play, turned the ball over three times over the first three minutes but was able to tie the game at 4-4 off a layup by junior guard Sharif Black. After holding Wayne State to 2-for-5 shooting over the first three minutes, the Wildcats followed with a 14-3 run for their first double-digit lead of the night, 18-7, with 12:22 to go in the first half.

The deciding margin in Bemidji State University men’s basketball’s 78-60 loss Saturday night to Augustana University came over the final 12 minutes of action at the Sioux Falls Arena in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Vikings (17-7, 12-6 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) held the Beavers (9-14, 7-11 NSIC) to just 12 points over the stretch while pulling away with 30 to end the game.

Bemidji State remains on the road during its next weekend while traveling to Minnesota State University Moorhead and Northern State University. The Beavers first take on the Dragons Feb. 10 in Moorhead, Minn., before the final regular season road game of the season against the Wolves Feb. 11 in Aberdeen, S.D.