Box score

The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference standings get tighter and tighter as the season winds down to the four-team postseason UMAC tournament, and the Saints kept pace in the race for one of those coveted spots with a 79-64 victory over host Minn.-Morris on Friday evening.

Andrew Schmitz (Hinckley, Minn./Hinckley-Finlayson HS) had a game-high 23 points to help lead the Saints (9-14, 7-5 UMAC) to a win that keeps them knotted up with Martin Luther College (winners over Crown on Friday) and Morris (12-11, 7-5).

Brady Zubke (Laporte, Minn./Park Rapids Area HS) had a double-double on the evening for the Saints ripping down a game-high 12 rebounds while chipping in with 10 points, while Nate Griff (Milwaukee, Wis./Bay View HS) also reached double-figures in scoring with 13 on the night.

St. Scholastica raced out to a 39-26 lead at the half, grabbing their first lead of the game only 3:24 into the opening half and rolling to their 13 point lead over the remaining 16 minutes.

The two teams played even up in the second half with St. Scholastica out scoring the hosts by only two, but that 13 point margin was never really threatened during the second 20 minutes in the important road win.

The Saints were a nearly identical 14-for-29 and 13-for-27 from the floor in each half and finished the game at 48 percent shooting. Morris improved from 36 percent shooting in the first half to 46 percent in the second but the Saints were able to stiff-arm the Cougars to keep them at a distance.

The win by the Saints and loss by Morris puts three UMAC teams, including Martin Luther, at 7-5 in the conference with two games to play in the regular season.

Northwestern (11-1 UMAC), a winner on Friday night over second place Bethany Lutheran (8-4 UMAC), locked in the top seed for the conference tournament but Bethany's loss allowed the Saints and Martin Luther to pull within one game in the standings.

As it stands after Friday night's action, St. Scholastica, Morris, and Martin Luther are all tied up in a race for the final two spots in the league tournament, and only one game behind second place Bethany Lutheran.

While the Saints would certainly like to win out -- Saturday at Presentation (5-7 UMAC), home on Tuesday versus Northland (1-11 UMAC) -- the Bethany versus Martin Luther game next Tue. night will be heavily anticipated with the tournament seedings not set until the final buzzer sounds in that game, Presentation and Morris' game, and the Saints-Northland match-up.