Box Score
Box score
AURORA, Ill. - The Wisconsin Lutheran College
men's basketball team had Northern Athletics Conference unbeaten
Aurora on the ropes, leading in the second half, but the Spartans
used a strong finish to surge past the Warriors 71-59 Tuesday at
Thornton Gymnasium.
The Warriors started strong as they built a 13-6 lead nine
minutes into the game and gave the Spartans, who rank second in the
NAC in scoring, plenty of fits early. Aurora began chipping away
and evened the score at 14-14 with 8:20 remaining in the opening
half.
The Spartans continued their run as they built a 25-18 lead with
4:12 left in the first half, but Wisconsin Lutheran continued to
battle and trimmed the AU lead to 31-28 after the first 20 minutes
of play.
The Warriors shot just 26.5 percent (9-for-34) in the opening
half but did a good job of attacking the basket as they got to the
free throw line 13 times and made nine attempts. The Spartans, who
shot 42.8 percent (14-for-32) before halftime, attempted just one
free throw in the period. Senior Julion Griffin (Milwaukee,
Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) scored nine points in the first half to
lead all scorers.
A Tim Demuth (Franksville, Wis./Racine Lutheran) three-pointer
on the Warriors' first possession of the second half tied the score
at 31-31 as they opened the half on a 9-4 run for a 37-35 lead with
15:40 to play. The Spartans erased that lead as they scored the
next seven points, building their lead to 42-37 with 12:54 on the
clock.
The Aurora lead remained in single-digits until the Spartans'
Mike Bumber hit a three-point shot with 7:35 remaining in the game,
giving AU a 54-43 lead. Wisconsin Lutheran brought its deficit back
to single-digits a couple times, but Aurora came away with the
71-59 victory.
Wisconsin Lutheran improved its shooting after halftime as it
finished the contest shooting 32.3 percent (21-for-65) from the
floor. Aurora finished the game connecting on 47.5 percent
(29-for-61) of its shots. The Warriors controlled the boards as
they outrebounded AU 48-31 thanks in large part to Griffin's
game-high 13 rebounds.
Griffin finished with a double-double as he added 13 points to
go along with 13 boards. Sophomore Kyle Stelse (Jefferson,
Wis./Lakeside Lutheran) scored a team-best 15 points on 7-for-12
shooting off the bench.
Aurora (12-4, 7-0 NAC) was led by Marious Lobdell's game-high 22
points and seven assists. Bumber also added 16 points for the
Spartans.
Wisconsin Lutheran (7-11, 4-5 NAC) will have over a week
off before it resumes play next Wednesday when it hosts Rockford
(5-11, 3-4 NAC) at the Recreation Complex. Tip-off between the
Warriors and Regents is set for 7 p.m. Live audio, stats, and video
will be provided for the game and the links can be found at
wlcsports.com.
