Box Score Box Score

DULUTH, Minn. – The St. Scholastica men's basketball team fell in its home finale Saturday night to the Northwestern Eagles 76-68 at Reif Gym at the Burns Wellness Commons.

The Eagles, first place in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC), improve their record to 16-6 overall and 11-1 in the UMAC. CSS falls to 8-15 (5-7 UMAC).

Northwestern started the game on a 6-0 run as the Saints, who never led throughout the game, didn't score their first basket until the 16:50 mark of the first half, as #Logan Schultz# (Jr.- Perham, Minn.) put in a layup. The Eagles got its largest lead of the first half at 27-16, as the Saints tried to close the gap in the waning minutes of the half. A three-pointer by #Chris Hamers# (Jr.- Onamia, Minn.), and a Schultz lay-up closed the Eagle lead to six, but Northwestern was able to counter offensively with a couple of fast breaks to put the lead back to 10.

The Saints managed to cut the Eagle lead back down to three, as #Derek Anderson# (Jr.- Cook, Minn.) hit a jumper, #Danny Schmitz# (Jr. Hinckley, Minn./Hinckley-Finlayson) made a lay-up, and Hamers drove hard to the rim, getting the basket and drawing an Eagle foul. His free throw cut the lead to three at 33-30. The Eagles had a 35-30 lead at the half.

A back-and-forth second half saw the Saints hang close, but they could never get even. The closest the Saints got was two, as Hamers hit a three to make the game 45-43 five minutes into the half. The Eagles had their largest lead of the second half, at 11, with just under six minutes to go, and the Saints closed the gap to four with a pair of #Brett Tester# (Fr.- Andover, Minn.) jumpers and another Hamers jumper, making the game 72-68 with just under 30 seconds to go. That was the closest the Saints got, as a set of Eagle free throws iced the Saints, giving Northwestern a 76-68 win.

CSS had three players score in double figures, led by Hamers' 22. Schmitz had 21, and Tester chipped in 13. Tester did his part on the boards as well, leading CSS with six rebounds. Northwestern's Reid Berens had the game-high 24 points.

The Saints will conclude their regular season next weekend when they travel to Bethany Lutheran on Friday and Martin Luther on Saturday. Friday's game against Bethany Lutheran will start at approximately 7:30 p.m., following the women's game.