Notables
- The Saints now hold a series record of 32-4 over Crown College
- James Brown of Crown College scored his 1,000th point in the defeat
- Peterson went 5-for-6 from three-point range just one night after Stark's 8-for-12 performance
DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica men's basketball team finished its weekend strong, knocking off the Crown College Storm by a score of 93-55 on Saturday at the Reif Gymnasium.
First Half
The Saints, who've been starting games off slow as of late, didn't show any signs of a lull in the first half of Saturday's game. The teams traded quick baskets back-and-forth after the tip, but St. Scholastica soon found its groove both offensively and defensively, taking over the game early and leading by a score of 17-9 after six minutes of play.
The Saints continued to put the pedal to the medal, punishing the Storm in the paint, as well as on the perimeter. A large part of St. Scholastica's scoring in the first half was by senior forward Andrew Laughlin (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Central HS), who had 12 points in the first half, with 10 of those points coming within the paint. Connor Gray (Superior, Wis./Superior HS) also had a solid first half, scoring four of his own inside the paint. To go along with the great play down low, the Saints were also making a statement at the three-point line. They hit six 3-pointers in the first half, with Brandon Newman (Barnum, Minn./Barnum HS) having two of the six.
There was a special moment for the Storm in the first half when James Brown hit his third three-pointer on the game, which put him above the 1,000 point total in his collegiate career. The game was paused briefly to recognize the accomplishment, then play continued until the score at the break was 53-27 in favor of the Saints.
Second Half
The second half of the game proved to be a bit closer, as the Saints only outscored the Storm in the second half by a score of 40-28. Laughlin got rolling early yet again as the second half started, scoring seven of the first 12 points for the Saints. Crown tried to answer with a bucket from Seth Moan and a three-pointer from Tom Messner, but the momentum quickly went away when the Marc Peterson (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) show began.
Peterson, who had already knocked down one three-pointer in the first half, checked into the game in the second half and didn't leave before knocking down four more. Peterson hit his first three of the second half to extend the Saints lead to 72-39. After a few possessions of trading baskets back-and-forth, Peterson came down and hit another three, followed by a Beau Howard (Brainerd, Minn./Pine River-Backus HS (Hibbing CC)) three to all but seal the deal for the Saints. As if that wasn't enough, Peterson decided to tickle the nylon two more times, ending his night with 15 points, all from three-point territory.
Top Performers
Crown College was led by Austin VanDerHeyden, who was the lone member of the Storm to reach double-digits with 10 points and eight rebounds. Brown also had a decent night for himself, scoring nine points and hauling in six boards.
St. Scholastica was led by Laughlin, who poured in a team-high 19 points. Not too far behind was Peterson with 15. Jake Naslund (Barnum, Minn./Barnum HS) had a well-rounded game, recording 12 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. Julius Johnson (Minneapolis, Minn./Henry Sibley HS) led the Saints in the assists column with six.
Up Next
The Saints have a big conference game at home against their border rival, the University of Wisconsin-Superior next Saturday. The game is slated to start at 3 p.m. There will be an alumni game earlier in the day at 11 a.m.
