Box Score
Box score
ROCKFORD, Ill. - The Wisconsin Lutheran College
men's basketball team was edged by Rockford 72-67 in a Northern
Athletics Conference game Tuesday night at the Seaver Center.
The Warriors and Regents were tied 65-65 until the hosts pulled
ahead courtesy of a three-point play from Tory Minnifield. Rockford
would add two free throws by Sam Chones with 43 seconds left to
take a 70-65 lead.
WLC cut the lead to three points on a Julion Griffin (Milwaukee,
Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) layup with 33 seconds remaining. Rockford
would miss the front end of a bonus free throw situation and
the Warriors got the ball back with 28 seconds on the clock.
Wisconsin Lutheran had a two chances to tie, but missed a pair of
three pointers with under nine seconds to play and Rockford hit two
free throws to secure the 72-67 victory.
The opening half of the contest featured plenty of offense as
each team shot better than 50 percent from the floor. Wisconsin
Lutheran connected on 53.6 percent (15-for-28) of its first-half
shots, while Rockford countered with 60 percent (15-for-25)
first-half shooting as the two teams were tied at 33-33 heading
into the locker room.
The Warriors made the first surge of the second half as they
scored the first six points to take a 39-33 lead. Rockford would
answer back tying the game at 44-44 with 14:35 remaining in the
contest.
The two teams were again tied at 49-49 before the host Regents
rattled off eight straight points, taking a 57-49 advantage with
11:44 left in the game. Rockford's lead was at six with 5:19 to go
but Wisconsin Lutheran battled back with a 6-0 run of its own to
tie the score at 65-65. Minnifield, however, converted a key
three-point play with one minute left and Rockford held on for the
five-point win.
Sophomore Brett Lubbe (Las Vegas, Nev./Faith Lutheran) poured in
a career-high 18 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds as he
finished with his first career double-double. Lubbe connected on
7-of-8 shots from the floor and finished a perfect 4-for-4 from the
charity stripe. Senior Tim Demuth (Franksville, Wis./Racine
Lutheran) and Griffin added 13 and 11 points, respectively. The
Warriors shot 46.4 percent (26-for-56) from the floor, but
committed 21 turnovers.
Rockford (2-4, 2-0 NAC) was led by Scott Suchy's game-high 21
points. Minnifield added 18, while Grant Olsen and Sam Chones
chipped in with 17 and 10 points, respectively. The Regents shot a
comparable 49.2 percent (29-for-59) from the floor for the
game.
Wisconsin Lutheran (1-7, 0-3 NAC) returns home to the Recreation
Complex Saturday when it hosts Concordia Chicago (0-6, 0-2 NAC) at
4:15 p.m. Fans can follow Saturday's action live via audio, stats,
and video on wlcsports.com.
