Box Score

Minneapolis, Minn. (Dec. 6, 2007) – The Northwestern College men's basketball team overcame an early scare to defeat North Central University 78-62 in non-conference action on Thursday evening. The Rams, who suffered a 95-49 defeat to Northwestern in both teams' first game this season, held a 37-36 halftime lead, but the Eagles gained steam in the second half to leave with a 16-point victory.

Daniel Hanson (Plymouth, MN/Maranatha) (Plymouth, Minn./Maranatha Christian Academy) recorded a double-double in the NWC win, tallying a team-high 24 points while bringing down 11 rebounds.

North Central was 5-of-9 (55.6 percent) from beyond the three-point arc in the first half while Northwestern was only 1-for-7. The Eagles capitalized in the second half, shooting 54.5 percent from the floor (and 60.0 from three-point land) on their way to 42 second-half points, while the Rams were the exact opposite. North Central went cold after their hot first half, making only 7 of their 24 second-half shots (29.2 percent) to equal 39.6 percent for the game.

42 of Northwestern's points came in the paint, while the Rams were only able to counter with 22 in the trenches.

Daniel Hanson (Plymouth, MN/Maranatha)'s brother Stephen (Plymouth, Minn./Maranatha Christian Academy) showcased a strong performance in his third game as a starter, scoring 14 points to go with eight rebounds. Dave Zuleger (Wausau, WI/Wausau West) (Wausau, Wis./Wausau West) also had 15 points in the win.

At 4-2 in 2007-08, Northwestern begins Upper Midwest Athletic Conference play on Saturday, when they travel across town to Crown College. Northwestern was voted as the conference's favorite in the preseason coaches' poll, while Crown came in eighth, but the UMAC has already proved its strength from top to bottom in the early part of the season. Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. in St. Bonifacius.