ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Northwestern Men's Basketball team is rolling. Playing its fifth consecutive MIAC opponent to open the season, Northwestern earned its third straight win Saturday, taking down St. Olaf College, 85-58. A 59% shooting effort from the field, four double-figure scorers and another double-double from sophomore
Soren Anderson (Perham, Minn./Perham) was a recipe for success for
Tim Grosz's squad, which improves to 3-2 on the young season.
The early-goings featured a balanced scoring attack from the Eagles, as five different players contributed to UNW's first 14 points. Freshmen
Caden Stevens (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista) and
Lewis Wolbert (Milaca, Minn./Milaca) scored four and six, respectively, to put Northwestern up, 20-17, and an
AJ Greene (Roseville, Minn./Concordia Academy) three-pointer kept the home team's advantage at three. Anderson and
Japheth Nyamari (Anoka, Minn./Anoka), UNW's two leading scorers this season, teamed up to extend the lead to seven, then another Greene trey pushed it to double figures at 33-23. St. Olaf was able to close the gap, but Northwestern's bigs went to work, as Anderson and Stevens got it back to double digits. An Ole three (their fifth of the half) brought them within seven once again, but Greene beat the buzzer in scintillating fashion to give the hosts a 39-30 lead at halftime. The Eagles shot 62% in the opening half.
After dominating the paint in the first half, it was evident that Grosz's halftime message included a plea to continue getting the ball inside. After early buckets by Greene and Nyamari, UNW's forwards took over. Anderson scored 13 and
Elijah Burns (Grand Prairie, Texas/Roseville Area) seven as part of a 23-11 run that put Northwestern up, 66-45. The hoop appeared to be the size of a hula hoop for the Eagles, as Nyamari, Greene, Wolbert and
Noah Frazell (Waverly, Iowa/Waverly-Shell Rock) joined the scoring efforts in the final minutes. The final bucket of the game was a three from freshman
Mateo Cortes Weiss (Monterrey, N.L., Mexico/Minnehaha Academy), his first career points, to cap off an 85-58 home throttling of St. Olaf.
Anderson's 26 points and 11 rebounds marked his second double-double of the season (and career), with both consisting of 26 points. Greene and Nyamari each scored 12 points and dished out two assists, with the latter adding six rebounds as well. Burns finished with 11 points, while Wolbert and Stevens each scored eight and logged six and four rebounds, respectively. The Eagles only shot eight threes, making three of them, and shot 59% from the field. They out-scored the Oles 46-22 in the paint and out-rebounded them, 34-24.
Northwestern will be back in action on Black Friday for a road tilt with Nebraska Wesleyan. The game is part of a weekend event that will also feature UNW taking on Central College on Saturday in Nebraska. Tip-off in Lincoln is scheduled for 7:00 PM.
