Second-Half Struggles Sink Men's Basketball's Tournament Title Hopes

MILWAUKEE (WLCSports.com) - St. Norbert overcame an 11-point first-half deficit and held Wisconsin Lutheran College to 23 points in the second half, as the second-seeded Green Knights defeated the top-seeded Warriors 71-59 on Sunday in the NACC Tournament championship at the Time of Grace Center.

WLC (19-8) doubled-up SNC (19-7) at 12-6 with just over four minutes gone by after senior Trevor Stiede's (Pulaski, Wis.) three-pointer. St. Norbert answered with an 8-0 scoring run to grab a 14-12 lead at the 10:18 mark.

Wisconsin Lutheran came back to take four different leads of five points, before a 6-0 scoring spurt gave them a game-high 11-point lead with 0:22 seconds left after junior Ryan Broeckel's (Chilton, Wis.) layup. A late bucket by the Green Knights sent the Warriors into halftime holding a 36-27 lead.

SNC netted the first five points of the second half and evened the contest at 40-40 with 14:10 remaining in the game. Junior Jacob Stoltz (Kewaskum, Wis.) hit a three for a 43-40 lead, but St. Norbert countered with a 9-0 run for a six-point advantage with 10:17 left. Stiede capped a quick 5-0 spurt with a three to bring WLC within a point with 9:28 remaining, but Wisconsin Lutheran was held without a field goal for the next 4:13 of game time.

A triple from Stoltz at the 5:12 mark had the Warriors within five at 57-52, before five straight from the Green Knights pushed their lead back up to 10. Broeckel brought the deficit down to six at 65-59 with two free throws at the 2:25 mark, but SNC went 6-for-7 from the free throw line the rest of the way to clinch the win.

Broeckel finished with a game-high 22 points, along with seven rebounds, four blocks, and three steals. Senior Simeon Strauss (Chicago, Ill.) added 10 points. The Warriors forced 19 turnovers and converted them into 14 points.

Wisconsin Lutheran shot 31 percent (22-for-71) for the game, including 21.6 percent (8-for-37) in the second half. 

Carter Gebler led St. Norbert with 20 points, while Michael Payant and Jamison Nickolai each posted double-doubles. The Green Knights shot 43.1 percent (22-for-51) for the game, including 50 percent (11-for-22) in the second half.

The Warriors, who won their third NACC championship in the last four seasons, conclude 2022-2023 with a 19-8 overall record and a 14-3 mark in conference play.