Waverly, Iowa - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse men's basketball team, ranked 15th on D3hoops.com, used a second half rally to earn a 83-78 win at Wartburg College (Iowa) Saturday afternoon. The Eagles improve to 7-0 on the season while the Knights drop to 5-1. 

Ethan Anderson's jumper with 12:18 left gave UWL a 15-14 lead, but Jack Molstead's three-pointer gave Wartburg (Iowa) a 17-15 advantage. The Knights took a 21-15 lead before the Eagles later cut it to 25-24 with 5:42 remaining on a Wyatt Cook three-point basket. Wartburg (Iowa) used a 18-6 run to take a 43-30 lead with 2:02 left. UWL cut the lead to 43-32 at halftime on Austin Westra's two free throws with :52 remaining. 

Wartburg (Iowa) took its largest lead at 54-37 with 14:34 left in the game on a Marshun Williams' jumper. Westra's layup and Anderson's two free throws cut the lead to 54-41, but Donovon Smith's dunk and Drew Olson's jumper gave Wartburg (Iowa) a 58-41 advantage with 12:16 remaining.

UWL used a 28-8 run to take a 69-66 lead with 5:35 left after Westra's two free throws and a layup. The Eagles went nine-of-11 from the field and six-of-six at the line in their run. Keagan John's three-point play or Wartburg (Iowa) tied the contest at 69-69. The game was later tied, 72-72, when Anderson's three-point play gave UWL a 75-72 lead with 3:15 remaining. John made two free throws with 1:45 left to make it 75-74, but Westra's layup gave the Eagles a 77-74 advantage with 1:33 remaining. 

Molstead made one-of-two free throws with 1:24 left to cut the deficit to 77-75 when Westra hit a layup for a 79-75 lead with :54 remaining. Cade Daugherty connected on a three-pointer with :50 left for the Knights to cut the lead to 79-78. Ethan Anderson made a pair of free throws with :37 left to make it 81-78 and Davis Roquet (:22 left) and Daugherty (:17) each missed potential game-tying three-point attempts for Wartburg (Iowa). Anderson hit both shots at the charity stripe with :16 left for the final margin.

UWL shot 48.4% from the field Saturday, including 57.1% (16-of-28) in the second half. The Eagles shot 31.3% (five-of-16) from three-point range for the game and 85.7% (18-of-21) at the free throw line. UWL went 16-of-19 (84.2%) at the line in the second half. 

Westra led four players in double figures with a career-high 19 points of the bench for UWL, finishing six-of-nine from the field and seven-of-nine at the line. Seth Anderson had 18 points while Ethan Anderson finished with 15 points and team-high eight rebounds. Henry Noone had 14 points off the bench.

Wartburg (Iowa) shot 48.4% from the field, including 38.5% (10-of-26) from three-point range, and 60.0% (six-of-10) at the line. The Knights shot 58.1% (18-of-31) from the field in the first half and 39.4% (13-of-33) in the second half. 

Molstead led the Knights with 19 points while Codey Hicks and Daugherty each finished with 12. Codey Hicks and John each had six rebounds. 

UWL returns to action Wednesday, December 1 hosting undefeated and fifth-ranked UW-Platteville (7-0) in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) opener at 7 p.m.