Marian Falls in Battle for First in NACC

FOND DU LAC – Marian University men’s basketball (11-8, 9-3 NACC) led by 13 with 10:19 left to play but Wisconsin Lutheran battled back to defeat the Sabres 72-65.

• Wisconsin Lutheran led for the opening part of the first half and was ahead 15-11 with 10:44 on the clock.
• The Sabres then made their first big run of the game using a 14-2 run to take a 25-17 lead with 4:24 until the break.
• A three-pointer in the final minute from the Warriors trimmed the Marian lead to 31-26.
• Marian continued to maintain a slim lead until a 14-3 run saw Marian take a 51-38 advantage with 10:19 left to play forcing a WLC timeout.
• The timeout proved to be a momentum shifter as WLC was able to score 19 unanswered points and go up 57-51 with 5:39 to play.
• The Sabres were able to battle back and trim the deficit down to one at 61-60 but a quick five unanswered points from WLC put the game away down the stretch.
• Marian went 24-of-60 (.400) from the field in the game and 12-of-26 (.462) from beyond the arc.
• WLC 26-of-56 (.464) from the field and 6-of-17 (.353) on three-pointers. The Warriors shot 15-of-28 (.536) from the field in the second half.
• The Sabres were outscored in the paint by a 38-20 margin.
• Marian now sits in third in the NACC standings sitting a half game behind St. Norbert in second and one and a half games behind WLC in first.