ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Northwestern men's basketball team welcomed Lawrence University to the Ericksen Center for a Tuesday evening non-conference tilt. Despite being a tie game with two minutes remaining, the Eagles couldn't get their final shots to fall while the Vikings connected on eight straight free throw attempts to pull off the 88-80 final.

Northwestern falls to 6-6 on the year, while Lawrence improves to 5-2 this season.
 
The Eagles suffered from cold shooting in the first 10 minutes of action, going down by seven (18-11) before their mid-range game helped lessen the deficit.
 
Johnny Erickson (Minneapolis, Minn./Hope Academy) drew two charges before Solomon Bach (Watertown, S.D./Watertown) scored in the paint to pull UNW within one (30-29) with three minutes remaining. UNW trailed by three (37-34) at the half after shooting just 19% from three-point range (3-for-16), while Lawrence drained 48% of shots from the field.
 
Alm entered intermission with a team-best 13 points and seven boards.
 
The battle continued in second half play when UNW took their first lead (38-37) before the Vikings knocked down back to back shots from beyond the arc to pull back ahead. Kyle Kaemingk (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy) responded with a long ball of his own but UNW would continue to trail by seven or less as time continued to tick.
 
It was a two point game (75-73) with Northwestern trailing at the 4:16 mark after Kaemingk drained two free throw attempts. Noah Alm (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake) connected on a three to tie it up at 80 apiece with under two minutes to play.
 
The Vikings stole back the lead on a pair of free throw makes. They tacked on two more to lead by four with 26 seconds on the clock, Eagle ball. Despite multiple shot attempts, UNW couldn't get one to go – falling to the Vikings, 88-80 in final scoring. Lawrence's last eight points came at the free throw line.

Noah Alm (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake) put together a double-double to lead the Eagles with 26 points and 12 rebounds. Tanner Youngberg (Pocahontas, Iowa/Pocahontas Area) tacked on 17 points and seven boards, while Solomon Bach (Watertown, S.D./Watertown) finished with 12 points on the night. Kyle Kaemingk (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy) had a solid outing, finishing with 10 points and six rebounds before fouling out. Michael Moore (Twinsburg, Ohio/Twinsburg) dished out a team-best six assists.
 
Northwestern will return to action on Saturday, Dec. 21 when they welcome the University of Dubuque in a non-conference contest. Tipoff is slated for 4 p.m.
 
Follow UNW men's basketball online this season at www.unweagles.com or on Twitter and Instagram at @unwmbb.