Justin Ward (Sr.-Wisconsin Dells, Wis.) scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half and the Lakeland College men's basketball team pulled away late to defeat Benedictine (Ill.) University 98-84 Saturday afternoon in Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference game at Woltzen Gymnasium.

Both teams shot better than 50% from the field, but the Muskies won a fast-paced shootout on the strength of a late 22-8 run and a season-high 14 three-pointers in the game. Lakeland also committed just eight turnovers in fighting off a game Benedictine squad to improve to 7-2 overall and 4-1 in the NACC.

The trio of Ward, Joey Burris (Jr.-Kiel, Wis.) and James Oshkeshequoam (Sr.-Keshena, Wis.) combined for 67 points, with each carrying the team for separate spells. Burris and Oshkeshequoam scored 15 points each in the first half, helping Lakeland to a 48-41 halftime lead.

Ward was mostly silent in the first half, scoring just two points and going out early with two fouls. The 6-foot-9 forward asserted himself in the second half and especially late against the undersized but determined Eagles (3-6 overall, 2-3 NACC).

Ward scored 10 points early in the second half, including a pair of fast break dunks. He then scored 10 consecutive points for Lakeland late, including a pair of three-point plays, giving the Muskies an 80-71 lead just two minutes after Benedictine had cut the lead to two at 70-68.

Burris scored 23 points and Oshkeshequoam added 22, and both hit five three-pointers as part of a lethal three-point shooting attack. Lakeland hit 14 of 25 from behind the arc (56.0%), and the team shot 52.5% from the field as a whole (31 of 59).

The Muskies needed it all against a Benedictine team playing without leading scorer Tim McGinty, a 6-8 forward who averages nearly 18 points per game. Without McGinty, the Eagles went with a small lineup, with no starters taller than 6-2, and gave the Muskies all they could handle for 35 minutes.

Benedictine matched Lakeland shooting, hitting 52.4% from the floor (33 of 63) as well as 12 of 24 three-point tries. The Eagles also out-rebounded the Muskies 38-30, and Michael Blaszczyk scored 22 points in the first half and 27 for the game.

The Eagles also rebounded from a nine-point deficit early in the second half, scoring 13 straight points to lead 56-52 with 16:00 to play. Benedictine held the lead for most of the next five minutes, but the Muskies finally took the lead back for good on a three-pointer by Brandon Hagenow (So.-Sussex, Wis.) that made it 65-64 with 11:10 to play.

Hagenow added 10 points and five assists, while Stan McKenzie (Sr.-Racine, Wis.) scored six points and dished out a team-high six assists. Burris also finished with six steals as the Muskies forced 18 Eagle turnovers.

Lakeland next hits the road Wednesday to face Milwaukee School of Engineering at 7 p.m. in Milwaukee.