#18 Benedictine Stakes Claim to Third Consecutive NACC Crown

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LISLE, IL - Behind a 50-point showing in the second half, the 18th-ranked Benedictine University men's basketball team claimed a share of a third consecutive Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference title and secured the top seed.

FINAL SCORE
#18 Benedictine 79, Wisconsin Lutheran 58

THE DETAILS
Wisconsin Lutheran controlled the early portion of the game, building an early 7-0 lead
Adam Reynolds brought Benedictine within 11-10 with a free throw at the 13:19 marker of the first
Seven straight from the visitors extended the lead to 22-14 with just 7:51 to go in the first
Benedictine trailed by nine points with 5:55 remaining in the half but ripped off 12 straight to take the lead
Reynolds opened the run with a layup while a three-pointer from Michael Blaszczyk put Benedictine ahead 29-26 with 2:49 left in the half
Benedictine would not trail again despite one of the worst offensive halves of the season
The team shot just 32 percent in the opening 20 minutes
An early 10-2 run in the second keyed by three-pointers from Brayden Olson and Matt Chaltin allowed Benedictine to jump ahead 41-32 with 16:11 to play
Wisconsin Lutheran hung around before a late push enabled Benedictine to pull away
A 9-1 stretch extended the lead to double figures halfway through the second
Tahron Harvey hit a three in the final minute as part of an 8-0 run to give Benedictine the largest lead at 79-56
The win marked the seventh in a row for Benedictine, a season high, and capped a stretch of six games in 13 days
All six victories in the stretch came by 13 or more with the last five by greater than 20

STAT LEADERS
Benedictine rebounded to shoot 62.1 percent in the second half and finish the game at 46 percent
Benedictine made 12 three-pointers and have hit 10 or more in five straight contests
The team held a 42-35 edge on the glass after being outrebounded in the first meeting
Two players tallied double-doubles with five reaching double figures
Blaszczyk again neared a triple-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists
Reynolds and Harvey paced Benedictine with 15 apiece
Reynolds crossed the 500-rebound marker by adding 10 boards
Olson finished with 14 and has scored in double figures in six of the last seven contests
Chaltin picked up 12 for his second straight double-digit showing

UP NEXT
Benedictine (18-4, 16-1 NACC) can win a second straight outright conference title with a win on Wednesday night at Concordia Chicago