TOPEKA, Kansas — Minnesota State Moorhead true freshman Carson Johnson continued his penchant for delivering in big postseason moments Sunday night at Lee Arena.

Johnson converted a 4-point play with a shade less than four minutes remaining to help fuel the Dragons to a 70-59 victory against Winona State in the NCAA Division II Central Region men's basketball semifinals before 1,636 fans.

“That seems like a theme for him right now," said Dragons head coach Tim Bergstraser. "That started us going into winning time and putting more pressure on them, too."

The No. 2-seeded Dragons (25-8) have won 13 consecutive games and play for the region championship at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 18, against the top-seeded Washburn University Ichabods (28-3). The region champion advances to the Elite Eight. MSUM last played for the region title in 2015, and made the Elite Eight that season.

“With what we have in our locker room and the quality people we have, I believed we had the opportunity to do something special," said Bergstraser, who has lead the Dragons to three consecutive 25-win seasons.

The 6-foot Johnson scored 18 of his game-high 26 points in the second half. Counting the three games in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference tournament, Johnson has scored at least 23 points in four of five postseason games. Johnson's low postseason point total was 11 in Saturday's Central Region quarterfinal win against Fort Hays State, but he scored six of those in the final 2-1/2 minutes of the second half.

The Dragons had a 12-8 record through 20 games, and are now playing for the region championship. Johnson didn't play in the first 11 games this season. He planned to redshirt, but multiple injuries to key backcourt players JaMir Price and Jacob Beeninga, changed that plan. Beeninga and Price have returned from their various injuries, and each scored 11 points off the bench Sunday against Winona State.

“After everything that has happened this year, it’s a pretty rewarding feeling," Johnson said. "There’s more for us to do.”

Winona State guard Tyler Mason sank an 18-foot jumper to cut the Dragons lead to 57-50 with 4 minutes, 57 seconds remaining in the second half. Moments later, Johnson delivered the big play in a game where neither team shot a high percentage from the floor.

Johnson sank a 3-pointer from the top of the key and was fouled with 3:52 remaining. After he sank the ensuing foul shot, the Dragons built a 61-50 lead.

“It was a pretty big shot, but there were a ton of huge plays from other guys down the stretch," Johnson said.

Johnson finished 8-for-21, but was 5-for-11 from 3-point range and 5-for-5 from the foul line. He was 6-for-11 from the floor and 3-for-5 from 3-point range in the second half.

“I’m really just trying to flush it," Johnson said of his slow shooting start. "I know coach (Bergstraser) has all the faith in me. ... My coaches and teammates keep telling me the entire time, keep shooting it.”

MSUM defeated No. 3 seed Winona State (22-11) for a fourth time this season, winning by double digits in all four games.

“We have just really struggled to score against Moorhead all year," Winona State head coach Todd Eisner said. "They’re length (height) really bothers us.”

The Dragons led by as many as 12 points multiple times in the second half, but Winona State didn't relent. The Warriors used a 12-2 scoring burst to cut the lead to two points. WSU senior guard Jhei-R Jones capped the run with a 17-foot, pull-up jumper that sliced the Dragons lead to 42-40 with 12:44 remaining.

MSUM countered with its own 12-2 run with eight of those points coming from Johnson, including two 3-pointers. Johnson capped that key surge with a 17-foot jumper that gave the Dragons a 54-42 lead with 9:33 remaining.

“Overall, I think we had our chances in the second half," said WSU sophomore guard Luke Haertle, who scored a team-high 23 points. "We just needed to get over that hump. ... Maybe I’d like to see them one more time, but that’s not how it happens.”

The Dragons built a nine-point halftime lead, despite shooting 36% (10 of 28) from the floor in the opening half. Johnson had eight points at halftime on 2-for-10 shooting from the floor with two 3-pointers.

MSUM scored six of the final eight points before halftime. Johnson capped that surge with two foul shots that gave the Dragons a 33-24 edge with 1 second remaining in the first half.

MSUM played from the lead for more than 35 minutes and never trailed in the second half.

“We just have a program of guys who handle the game with poise," Bergstraser said. “I’m glad how we finished (the game) out. ... We’re going to keep enjoying this moment because it’s been a fun ride so far.”

WSU (): Thompson 3-9 2-2 9, Mason 2-5 0-1 5, Jones 4-12 2-3 10, Drew 2-9 0-0 4, Haertle 8-19 6-10 23, Alijosius 1-4 0-0 3, Harmison 0-0 0-0 0, Taylor 0-2 5-6 5. Totals 20-60 15-22 59.

MSUM (): Hastreiter 0-2 0-0 0, Wysocki 2-4 0-0 5, Johnson 8-21 5-5 26, Jennissen 2-3 2-4 6, L. Kinsey 4-7 0-0 8, W. Kinsey 1-1 0-0 3, Price 2-6 7-8 11, J. Beeninga 2-8 6-6 11. Totals 21-52 20-23 70.

Half: MSUM 33, WSU 24. 3-point goals: WSU 4-22 (Haertle 1-6, Jones 0-4, Thompson 1-4, Mason 1-2, Drew 0-2, Taylor 0-1, Alijosius 1-3), MSUM 8-28 (Johnson 5-11, L. Kinsey 0-3, Wysocki 1-3, Hastreiter 0-1, J. Beeninga 1-6, Price 0-3, W. Kinsey 1-1). Total fouls: WSU 17, MSUM 19. Rebounds: WSU 31 (Haertle 9), MSUM 40 (Jennissen 11). Assists: WSU 4 (Jones 2), MSUM 10 (J. Beeninga 3, Price 3). Turnovers: WSU 3, MSUM 9.