BEMIDJI, Minn. – A late first-half push from Bemidji State gave the Beavers what they needed to defeat Northern State 86-71 in men’s college basketball Thursday night.

The Wolves and the Beavers traded punches in the first half as they shared the lead twice, and saw six lead changes throughout the first 15 minutes of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference contest. However, in the final five minutes of the half, the Beavers went on a 16-7 run to hold a 39-30 lead going into half.

That momentum carried over into the second half as Bemidji scored seven straight points in two minutes. The Wolves never got the margin under nine the rest of the way.

Nelson Reynolds came off the bench to lead NSU with 15 points. He went 5-for-7 from beyond the 3-point arc for all of his points. Marshawn Smith followed with 14, Akena added 12, and Joshua Book had 10.

The Beavers 1-2 punch of John Pecarich and Henry Shannon III put up 25 and 20 points, respectively.

Northern, 10-15 overall and 10-9 in the conference, is tied for sixth with three other teams in the chase for a spot in the NSIC postseason tournament. The Wolves still hold the possibility of jumping into the top four, but have not guaranteed hosting a play-in game, yet. They will take on Minnesota Duluth Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs are also tied for sixth.

To see a complete box score of Thursday’s game, click on the following link:

https://nsuwolves.com/sports/mens-basketball/stats/2025-26/bemidji-state/boxscore/14128