ST. PAUL – A packed house at the Ericksen Center cheered the Northwestern College men's basketball team on to an early lead and the Eagles took over from there in a 79-64 victory over the College of St. Scholastica. NWC led by 10 within the game's first seven minutes and shot 60 percent on the night, allowing the announced Hoops Hysteria crowd of 1,670 to go home happy.

After the Eagles scored six points before the Saints got on the board, Northwestern went up 20-10 on a layup from Lance Westberg (River Falls, Wis./River Falls) (River Falls, Wis./River Falls). The home team's advantage increased to as much as 13 in the first half when Tom Gisler (Stewartville, Minn./Stewartville) (Stewartville, Minn./Stewartville) drained a three-pointer at the 3:23 mark before the Purple and Gold went into the locker room with a 39-28 halftime lead.

St. Scholastica cut Northwestern's advantage to four points midway through the second half after the Eagles had led 50-41 just 67 seconds earlier. After a few minutes had passed, Northwestern received back-to-back baskets from Wade Chitwood (Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell) (Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell) and Gisler before Brian Lecheler (Abbotsford, Wis./Abbotsford)'s (Abbotsford, Wis./Abbotsford) gave his team a double-digit lead yet again on a made layup. The Eagles' edge increased to a game-high 17 points with 2:25 to play when Chitwood made the most of his opportunity in the paint. As they had all game, Northwestern didn't look behind them, ultimately winning 79-64.

The Eagles had nearly equal shooting performances in each half, hovering around the 60 percent mark in each 20-minute segment. NWC's outside shooting didn't hurt either, as the team combined to go 8-17 from downtown with 23 assists on 30 made baskets overall.

On the other side of the court, St. Scholastica's 50 percent performance in the second half couldn't help their 12-for-31 mark in the first as the Saints ended the game at 44 percent and a dismal 26 percent from behind the three-point arc.

Four Northwestern players scored in double figures, including Lecheler, who was 4-5 for 10 points in the first half. The senior ended with 15 points and six assists. Nate Thompson (Fergus Falls, Minn./Hillcrest Lutheran Academy) (Fergus Falls, Minn./Hillcrest Lutheran Academy) paced the Eagles with 18 points, while Chitwood was 7-11 for 16 points. Gisler was one rebound shy of a double-double, going for 10 points and nine boards on the night.

Danny Schmitz was 8-15 for 19 points to lead St. Scholastica, who had three other players earn 10 points in the game.

Now 10-6 overall (4-1 UMAC), Northwestern has won three straight contests and six of its last seven. The Eagles will rest after consecutive games before hosting Martin Luther College and Bethany Lutheran College next Friday and Saturday, Jan. 28-29.