LISLE, Ill. – The Wisconsin Lutheran College men's basketball team dropped a close contest to Benedictine Saturday afternoon at the Dan and Ada Rice Center, 55-52.
The Warriors took a 52-51 lead when Eric Reed (Fond du Lac, Wis./Winnebago Lutheran) knocked down a jumper with 2:56 remaining in the game. That would be the last scoring of the game for Wisconsin Lutheran as Benedictine closed out the game by scoring four straight points to escape with the three-point win. Nate Bauer's (Lake Mills, Wis./Lakeside Lutheran) game-tying three-point attempt fell short as time expired.
The opening half saw both teams struggle offensively as the host Eagles took a 21-16 lead into the break. The five-point lead was their largest of the half as neither team led by more than two points until 38 seconds remaining.
Both teams struggled shooting from the floor in the first half as Wisconsin Lutheran shot just 21.9 percent (7-for-32) from the floor, including 0-for-12 from three-point range compared to Benedictine's 30 percent (9-for-30).
Benedictine quickly pushed its lead to a game-high seven points to start the second half, but the Warriors answered and took a 46-45 lead with 6:55 to play in the game. The final 6:55 was a back-and-forth affair that featured five lead changes and one tie.
Both teams shot the ball better in the second half as the host Eagles made 56.5 percent (13-for-23) of their shots, while WLC knocked down 39.4 percent (13-for-33) of its attempts.
Bauer and Alex Merbach (Kaukauna, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) each scored 13 points for the Warriors. Julion Griffin (Milwaukee, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) pulled down a team-best eight rebounds. Kyle Bicker scored 13 points to lead the Eagles (4-8, 3-2 NAC), while Mark Pace grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds.
Wisconsin Lutheran (2-11, 1-4 NAC) returns to the court Wednesday night when it hosts NAC North Division co-leader Edgewood (10-3, 4-1 NAC). Tip-off between the Warriors and Eagles is set for 7 p.m. at the Recreation Complex. Fans unable to attend the game can follow the action via Live Audio, Stats and Video at wlcsports.com.