MINNEAPOLIS – University of Northwestern Men's Basketball traveled to North Central University on Saturday afternoon for a conference away game. UNW entered the game 4-3 in the UMAC, just one game behind the 5-2 Rams. The Eagles rose to the occasion to take an 81-79 victory over NCU on the road, tying the Rams for third place in the conference standings at 5-3 with six games remaining.
 
The Eagles and Rams had a tremendous half of shooting in the first 20 minutes. Northwestern shot 68.2 percent (15-22) from the field and 60.0 percent (3-5) from three-point range while North Central made 57.1 percent of their shots (16-28) while hitting 75.0 percent (6-8) of their attempts from beyond the arc. While both teams shot well, the Eagles earned 18 trips to the line to the Rams' five and made 15 of their free-throws to work their way to a 48-41 lead at the half.
 
Both team's shooting cooled down after halftime. The Eagles shot 33.3 percent (10-30) from the field in the second half. The Rams' efficiency dropped as well, though only to 45.7 percent (16-35) from the floor. While North Central had more success from the floor in the final 20 minutes, UNW's defense adjusted after the Rams went 6-or-8 from long range in the opening half to hold the Rams to 0-for-7 shooting from three in the second.
 
The Rams took a 53-52 lead early in the second half; their first lead since being up 11-10 early in the contest. The Eagles prevented the Rams from getting ahead by more than five, rallying to retake the lead up 60-59 with 10:02 remaining.
 
Kyle Kaemingk (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy) made layup with 4:42 remaining to put the Eagles up by seven points at 73-66. North Central kept up the fight and tied the game at 75-75. Kaemingk then proceeded to hit a jumper in traffic and a three-pointer right after to put UNW up by five points with 1:09 remaining.

The Rams rallied to cut the Eagles' lead to 81-79 with 15 seconds on the clock, and stole an inbound for a chance at a final shot. Northwestern's defense forced a tough three from Micah Filer, who had a 39-point game, in the final second that just missed, securing the conference road win for the Eagles over the Rams.
 
Kaemingk led the Eagles with 27 points on 9-for-16 shooting. Caleb Hoilien (Minneapolis, Minn./Hope Academy) followed with 19 points, making 13-of-15 from the free-throw line. Henry Fahnbulleh (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove) had a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double for the Eagles.
 
Up next, Northwestern will travel to Morris to take on the University of Minnesota Morris Cougars in a road conference battle at 5:30 P.M. on Friday, February 3. The Eagles will next play at home on February 10.