HANCOCK, Mich. – Six players scored in double figures as the University of Northwestern men's basketball team defeated Finlandia University, 85-77, Saturday afternoon inside the Paavo Nurmi Center. With the win, the Eagles improve to 7-1 on the year.

The Eagles, who never trailed in the first half, jumped out to a 5-0 lead and never looked back, owning a 40-34 advantage heading into the locker room. After the Lions took a one-point lead with 11:15 remaining in the second half, the Eagles went on a 7-0 run to reestablish their lead and then held on to secure the victory.

UNW, who shot the ball extremely well, was led by Cody Sprenger (Grey Eagle, Minn./Long Prairie-Grey Eagle)'s game-high 18 points. Will Gisler (Stewartville, Minn./Stewartville) racked up his second double-double in as many days, as the junior scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Michael Carney (Ames, Iowa/Des Moines Christian) drained a trio of threes en route to scoring 15, while Kyle Ooms (Hollandale, MN/Albert Lea High School) (14), Clay Elrod (Elk River, Minn./Elk River) (11) and Porter Morrell (Elk River, Minn./Home School) (10) also tallied double-digit scoring totals.

The Eagles torched the nets Saturday, as they compiled a 54.2 shooting percentage from the field, while shooting a blistering 47.1 percent from long range.

Northwestern will return home to host Crown Friday inside the Ericksen Center. Tip is slated for 5:30 p.m.