Box Score ST. PAUL, Minn. (WLCSports.com) - The Wisconsin Lutheran College men's basketball team nearly erased a 16-point first-half deficit, but the Northwestern (Minn.) Eagles held on for an 87-82 non-conference win over the Warriors Saturday afternoon inside the Ericksen Center. Senior Andrew Bruggink (Brookfield, Wis.) scored a game- and career-high 32 points to lead three players in double figures for WLC.
- Final Score: Northwestern (Minn.) 87, Wisconsin Lutheran 82
- Records: Wisconsin Lutheran (1-1), Northwestern (Minn.) (1-1)
- Location: Ericksen Center, St. Paul, Minn.
- The Eagles broke a 9-9 tie following a junior Caleb Goldstein (Fond du Lac, Wis.) three-pointer by going on a 10-0 run that culminated at the 11:47 mark of the first half. Another 10-2 run by the hosts gave them a game-high 16-point lead with 9:40 left in the opening half.
- The Warriors trimmed their deficit to nine points, 41-32, at halftime. after Bruggink's layup with six seconds left before the break. WLC went 0-for-4 from the charity stripe in the first half, while UNW was 6-of-8.
- Wisconsin Lutheran came as close as seven points on four different occasions through the first seven minutes of the second half. A 6-0 run capped by a sophomore Drew Bernhagen (Markesan, Wis.) three-pointer brought the visitors within four at 58-54 with 12:37 left in the second half.
- The Eagles proceeded to go on a 9-2 run to build their lead back to 11 points. The Green and White trailed by eight at 74-66 with 4:37 left on the clock, but a pair of three-pointers from sophomore Alex VanCrete (Green Lake, Wis.) brought the Warriors within two with three minutes to play.
- A three-pointer and an and-one gave Northwestern a six-point lead with 0:34 seconds left and the hosts made 6-of-7 free throws down the stretch to seal an 87-82 win over the Warriors.
- Bruggink led all scorers, including three Warriors in double figures, with a career-high 32 points on 14 made field goals. He also grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.
- Bernhagen added a career-high 22 points off the bench behind five three-pointers and 8-of-11 shooting. VanCrete also reached double figures with 10 points in addition to eight rebounds.
- WLC shot 42.9 percent (33-for-77) from the floor for the game, including 40 percent (12-for-30) from three-point range.
- The Green and White were edged on the glass, 46-42, and attempted just nine free throws, making four of them.
- Noah Alm paced four Eagles in double figures with 24 points. Solomon Bach and Tanner Youngberg each posted double-doubles. UNW shot 41 percent (32-for-78) from the floor and made 15 of its 20 free throw tries for 75 percent.
- The Warriors return to the cream city Tuesday for an intra-city exhibition matchup at Milwaukee (1-0). Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. inside the UWM Panther Arena. Links to live coverage will be available at WLCSports.com.
