Box Score DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica men's basketball team used stifling defense in the waning moments and hit 5-of-8 free-throws down the stretch to off the North Central University Rams by a score of 72-66 in Friday nights Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) matchup at the Reif Gymnasium.

The opening half saw the Saints grab the early lead only to NCU take it right back at the 15:10 mark.  The Saints would cap an 11-0 run at the 7:54 mark to take a 30-19 lead. 

The Rams would chip away at the lead and get it to four points with 5:44 left in the first half.  The Saints would use a string of free-throws in the final minute to lead 44-33 heading in the break.

The Saints would extend the lead out to as much as 19 points at the 15:06 mark.  However, physical play allowed the Rams to come within six points, 64-58 with 4:05 remaining in the game. 

That would be as close as the Rams would get for the rest of the game as CSS would use stingy defense, along with missed shots by the Rams, to close out the game, winning by a score of 72-66.

NCU (13-10, 8-5 UMAC) was led by Nathan Roeder with 19 points.  Jordan Harrell added 16 points while Luke Chafin chipped in 12 points.

The Rams would finish the game shooting 32-percent from the field, 20-percent from beyond the arc, and 69-percent from the free-throw ling.  NCU did hold a 50-39 rebounding advantage.

CSS was led by Jonah Dahlman (Braham, Minn./Braham HS) with 26 points.  Dahlman also had five rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and two steals.  Brett Tester (Andover, Minn./Andover HS) added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the double-double.  Trevor Morlock (Rogers, Minn./Rogers HS (Minn., Crookston)) added 14 points. 

The Saints finished the game shooting 46-percent from the field, 29-percent from beyond the arc, and 58-percent from the charity stripe.  CSS would have a 38-36 points in the paint advantage. 

Both teams committed 11 turnovers apiece.

St. Scholastica (9-15, 7-6 UMAC) will need to beat UMAC Regular Season Champion, Northwestern College, tomorrow and a Minnesota Morris loss in order to have a shot at a No. 4 seed in the UMAC Tournament.  Tip is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. local time here at the Reif Gymnasium.  Tomorrow will be the final home regular season game for the Saints as well as Senior Day.  The Saints will say farewell to Jonah Dahlman (Braham, Minn./Braham HS), Brett Tester (Andover, Minn./Andover HS), MarShaan Johnson (Minneapolis, Minn./Minneapolis North HS (Minneapolis Comm. & Tech. College)), Pat Franko (Rochester, Minn./Rochester Century HS), and Matt Feuling (Foley, Minn./Foley HS).  Tune into csssaints.com for a live broadcast of the game.