Box Score
DULUTH, Minn. (Feb. 9, 2008) – The Northwestern College men's basketball team hung on for their fifth straight victory on Saturday, handing the host-Saints from the College of St. Scholastica an 84-80 defeat.
Northwestern shot the lights out in the first half, making 19 of their 31 attempts for 61.3 percent in the initial 20 minutes. Eight of the Eagles' made baskets came from behind the 3-point line, where they made a scorching 72.7 of their attempts in the first half. NWC cooled off slightly in the second half, leveling off at 54.2 percent from the field and 57.1 percent from downtown.
St. Scholastica countered with a 45.9 percent effort, as they made over half of their first-half attempts as well before hitting 36.7 percent of their shots in the second half.
Northwestern outscored the Saints both in the paint (28-18) and in points off the bench (18-11).
The Eagles received an outstanding performance from
Josh Strelecki (Crystal Falls, MI/Forest Park) (Crystal Falls, Mich./Forest Park), as the senior was 9-of-13 from the field and 3-for-4 from long range for a team-high 23 points. Strelecki added five assists and two steals in the win.
Fellow senior
Daniel Hanson (Plymouth, MN/Maranatha) (Plymouth, Minn./Maranatha Christian Academy) added 19 points for Northwestern. Hanson was 6-of-12 from the field and 5-of-8 from behind the 3-point line.
Stephen Hanson (Plymouth, Minn./Maranatha) was 5-for-9 for 12 points in the win.
Andrew Schmitz scored a game-high 25 points for St. Scholastica (8-14, 6-5 UMAC), making 10 of his 17 attempts on the night.
Northwestern (15-7, 10-1 UMAC) will head home for the remainder of their Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) schedule, playing host to Bethany Lutheran and Martin Luther next Friday and Saturday. Friday's game versus the Vikings from Bethany Lutheran should prove to be quite the match-up, as an Eagles win would give them their 18th conference championship. Tip-off in the Ericksen Center is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
