Box Score
ST. PAUL – In a bizarre ending, the Northwestern College men's basketball team lost its 2009-10 season opener to Hamline University, 79-78. The Eagles, who held a nine-point lead with seven minutes to play in the game, couldn't hold on as the Pipers rallied around 6-foot-8 Carl Hipp to win their first game of the season.
NWC's nine-point advantage still existed to some degree in the game's final minute. Hipp capitalized on a few Eagles' mistakes in the final 60 seconds, recording blocked a shot and a steal while making a pair of free throws to solidify his team's win.
In just 25 minutes of play, Reid Berens (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) paced Northwestern with 20 points and eight rebounds. Brian Lecheler (Abbotsford, Wis./Abbotsford) (Abbotsford, Wis./Abbotsford) added 15 points to the Eagles' attack, most of which came in the second half, as the junior got hot. Lecheler chipped in seven boards to go with four assists. Eric Garst (Mesa, Ariz./Red Mountain) (Mesa, Ariz./Red Mountain) led the team with eight assists on the night.
Gabe Jefferson (Lincoln, Neb./Lincoln Southeast) (Linoln, Neb./Lincoln Southeast) contributed 11 points and five rebounds while being Northwestern's go-to guy to guard Hipp on defense. Jefferson's 23 minutes were haunted by foul trouble, as the sophomore had four offenses to his name down the stretch in the second half.
Three of NWC Head Coach Tim Grosz's freshmen saw significant playing time, including Robbie Anderstrom (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy) (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy), Lance Westberg (River Falls, Wis./River Falls) (River Falls, Wis./River Falls) and Tom Gisler (Stewartville, Minn./Stewartville) (Stewartville, Minn./Stewartville). Anderstrom, who started his first collegiate game, turned in two points and three rebounds. Westberg drained a three-pointer and grabbed five rebounds in 18 minutes, while Gisler went 2-3 for five points in his Eagles debut.
As a team, Northwestern shot 40.3 percent for the game, three points behind Hamline. The Eagles won the rebounding battle 47-41, but the Pipers' 46.7 success rate from behind the three-point line, including a 6-11 mark in the first half, hurt NWC.
Northwestern, who begins its new season at 0-1, will have the chance to earn its first victory on Friday, Nov. 20, when the Eagles host North Central University as part of the NWC Tip-Off Tournament. Northwestern and North Central will tip off at 8 p.m. in the Ericksen Center.
