Box Score

ST. PAUL – After going into the locker room with a two-point deficit, he Northwestern College men's basketball team recovered to outscore Presentation College 43-22 in the second half before earning a 76-57 victory. The win was the Eagles' ninth straight, setting up a showdown between NWC and second place-University of Minnesota, Morris on Saturday afternoon in the Ericksen Center.

Neither Northwestern nor Presentation was able to establish much of a lead early in the game. Just when the Eagles would go up by three on a shot from behind the arc by Gabe Jefferson (Lincoln, Neb./Lincoln Southeast) (Lincoln, Neb./Southeast), Presentation would answer with a trey of its own. The Saints' Josh Muellner capped of an and-one play with a free throw at the 9:32 mark of the first half to tie the game for the sixth time before Tom Gisler (Stewartville, Minn./Stewartville) (Stewartville, Minn./Stewartville) and Ellis Libby (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) responded with back-to-back three-pointers to give the home team a six-point advantage. Nate Thompson (Fergus Falls, Minn./Hillcrest Lutheran Academy) (Fergus Falls, Minn./Hillcrest Lutheran Academy) drained a three to boost the Eagles' lead to eight before Presentation went on a 10-0 run to close the half with a 35-33 lead.

NWC came out in the second half with intensity, quickly taking the lead back and then some. With 12:49 left in the game, the Purple and Gold had out-scored their opponents 16-3 in the period to own a 49-38 advantage. After Presentation made one of two attempts at the line, the Eagles were at it again, scoring three straight baskets to lead by 18. The Saints cut the margin to 13 within the final three minutes before the final score was settled at 76-57.

After a 40-percent shooting performance in the first half, Northwestern recovered in the second period to finish 31-66 (47 percent) for the game. On the other side of the court, Presentation was 23-58 for just under 40 percent. The Eagles posted 26 assists compared to just nine turnovers while earning 18 second-chance points, compared to 10- for the visitors. NWC also out-rebounded the Saints 41-31.

Brian Lecheler (Abbotsford, Wis./Abbotsford) (Abbotsford, Wis./Abbotsford) was one of three Eagles to score in double figures with 14 points on 6-8 shooting, adding seven assists in the process. Gisler added 13 points, while Wade Chitwood (Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell) (Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell) finished with 12 points on the night. Thompson was the team's leading rebounder with nine, while Jefferson's stat line read nine points and seven boards.

Josh Muellner earned his stripes under the hoop for Presentation (6-16, 3-8 UMAC), scoring a team-high 21 points. Michael Babcock finished with 11 points, while Channing Coffey, the UMAC's leading scorer and rebounder, was held to just eight points and five rebounds in the game.

Now 16-6 overall and 10-1 in UMAC play, the Eagles could earn at the conference title with a win on Saturday over Minnesota-Morris, who lost to Crown College on Friday night. That task won't be easy though, as the Cougars, the league coaches' preseason favorite, are the lone UMAC team to beat NWC this season. Emotions will be on high for senior day at the Ericksen Center as the two teams tip off at 5 p.m.