WLC Cruises Into Title Game With Blowout Of BenU

MILWAUKEE (WLCSports.com) - All five starters scored in double figures and Wisconsin Lutheran College made 14 three-pointers en route to a 98-73 Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Tournament Semifinal win over fourth-seeded Benedictine on Friday at the Time of Grace Center.

The Warriors (19-7), who came away with their largest margin of victory ever over the Eagles (12-14), advance to Sunday's NACC Tournament Championship game where they will host second-seeded St. Norbert (18-7) at 2 p.m.

WLC exchanged leads with BenU twice, including two ties, within the first three minutes of the game. Back-to-back three-pointers from juniors Jacob Stoltz (Kewaskum, Wis.) and Jacob Hefle (Germantown, Wis.) put Wisconsin Lutheran in front 14-9 at the 15:52 mark of the first half. Stoltz capped a 7-0 scoring run with a three-point play for a 21-12 lead with 12:37 remaining. The Warriors' lead reached 10 points for the first time on a Hefle triple with 10:56 left, but Benedictine netted four in a row to trail by just six at 26-20.

A 15-2 scoring run from WLC pushed its first-half lead to 23 points with 3:10 left until halftime after a pair of free throws from junior Ryan Broeckel (Chilton, Wis.). Wisconsin Lutheran went into the locker room holding a 15-point advantage over the Eagles after shooting 51.4 percent from the floor.

Five straight points combined from Hefle and junior Grayson Goetz (Aurora, Ill.) to start the second half pushed the Warriors' lead to 20 points for the first time in the contest. A 5-0 scoring spurt gave WLC a 65-40 lead three-and-a-half minutes into final period. BenU trimmed its deficit under 20 points three times throughout the second half, coming no closer than 18. Leading 82-63 with 6:36 remaining, Wisconsin Lutheran rattled off an 8-0 scoring run capped by a breakaway dunk from Broeckel for its largest lead of the game.

Broeckel and Goetz scored 19 points apiece to lead the Warriors. Stoltz finished with 17 points, Hefle followed with 16, and senior Simeon Strauss (Chicago, Ill.) added 12. Broeckel added six rebounds and four steals, while Stoltz dished out five assists.

WLC shot 47.9 percent (34-for-71) from the floor, including 42.4 percent from beyond the arc with 14 three-point makes. Wisconsin Lutheran also went 16-for-18 from the charity stripe and committed just seven turnovers.

Marvin Agwonah scored a game-high 22 points to pace three players in double figures for Benedictine, which shot 42.5 percent (31-for-73) for the game.

The top-seeded Warriors will host second-seeded St. Norbert on Sunday at 2 p.m. in the NACC Tournament Championship game. The winner receives the NACC's automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship. Live coverage links will be available at WLCSports.com.