Roseville, Minn. –– The University of Northwestern Men's Basketball team (7-6, 0-3 UMAC) fell to North Central (5-9, 2-1 UMAC) 81-65 on Saturday afternoon. 

The Eagles took the lead right off the tip when Henry Fahnbulleh (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove) scored his first of 21 points on a lay-up. After that, the Rams went on a 9-0 run to take the early 9-2 lead. Northwestern kept it close throughout much of the first half as the Ram lead was mid-single digits for much of the opening twenty minutes. North Central took a ten-point lead with 4:09 left in the half and Northwestern never got it back to single digits. At the half, the Rams were leading 44-30. North Central's defense suffocated Northwestern's offense throughout the contest, making it hard for the Eagles to score.

The Rams scored the first eight points of the second half to extend the lead to 52-30. North Central kept adding on as they made the score 73-52 before Northwestern went on a run. Two baskets from Fahnbulleh, four free throws from Kelton Vincent (Volga, S.D./Sioux Valley), and five points from Jeremiah LaVelle (Otsego, Minn./Maranatha Christian Academy) made the score 76-65 with 1:58 to play as Northwestern tried to claw its way back. The Rams scored the final five points of the contest, though, to make it 81-65.

Fahnbulleh led all players with 21 points and seven boards. Vincent had 13 in 22 minutes off the bench, and LaVelle finished with 11 points in his second career start. Pocernich was the fourth Eagle in double figures with ten points.

Up Next

The Eagles host UW-Superior on Friday, January 12th. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:15 pm.