Notables
-BLC sweeps the season series
-CSS has shot 39 percent from the floor in both losses to BLC
-Seventh time this season CSS has shot below 40 percent from the field (0-7)
-CSS was 9-for-16 from the free throw line in the second half
DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica men's basketball team had a five-game win streak snapped Friday night with a 88-79 loss to Bethany Lutheran College in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) play at the Reif Gymnasium.
CSS Opens Up First Half Lead
The opening 14 minutes of the game featured eight ties in a back-and-forth contest. The Saints then opened up a lead thanks to an 11-2 run. On the back side of the run was a thunderous dunk by
Kory Deadrick (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) followed by a 3-pointer by
Collin Anderson (Eagan, Minn./Eagan HS) to make it 39-30.
Another Anderson 3-pointer extended the lead to 42-32 with under three minutes to go. CSS led by 11 with 1:44 to go, but the Vikings closed the half scoring the final five points to make the halftime score 46-40 Saints.
The Saints got 22 of their 46 points from their bench in the half. CSS also scored 10 points off of Bethany turnovers.
Second Half Struggles
The Saints were able to maintain the lead, but the Vikings kept getting closer and closer in the first five minutes of the second half. The Vikings finally regained the lead on a 3-pointer with 14:52 remaining.
St. Scholastica responded with a 3-pointer by
Joe Stark (Hayward, Wis./Hayward HS) to go back up by two. However, the Saints then missed shots on their next five possessions, while the Vikings went on a 9-0 run to take a 65-58 lead with 11 minutes to go.
The Saints got back within one following a
Brandon Newman (Barnum, Minn./Barnum HS) 3-pointer with nine minutes left, but Bethany had an answer. CSS had it down to two with five minutes remaining and had a chance to tie or take the lead on a couple of possessions, but were not successful.
The Vikings held off the Saints in the final five minutes to sweep the season series 88-79.
Top Performances for CSS
Deadrick and Anderson each led the Saints with 17 points.
Zach Dahlman (Braham, Minn./Braham HS) added 11 points.
Dylan Zimmerman (Elmdale, Minn./Upsala HS) grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Top Performances for the Opponent
Brandyn Frelix had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Vikings (11-9, 8-4 UMAC). Jarred Merchant also scored 17 points and Neil Eichten added 14 points.
Up Next
The Saints (12-9, 8-4 UMAC) will face Martin Luther College tomorrow at the Reif Gymnasium in their regular season home finale. CSS will honor its seniors. Coverage of the game can be found at
www.csssaints.com/coverage.aspx
