ST. PAUL, Minn. – If there's one thing about the University of Northwestern and Bethany Lutheran College Men's Basketball rivalry, it's that it always delivers. Such was the case Friday night in the Ericksen Center, as the two traditional UMAC powers battled into the final minute before Bethany Lutheran closed out a 77-70 win at the free throw line, ending Northwestern's five-game winning streak. With the win, the Vikings clinched the UMAC regular season title for the second consecutive season.
Despite the final score, it was the Eagles who were hot out of the gates, scoring on their first three possessions of the game via
Jeremiah LaVelle (Otsego, Minn./Maranatha Christian Academy),
Micah Pocernich (Cromwell, Minn./Cromwell-Wright) and
Japheth Nyamari (Anoka, Minn./Anoka), to take a 6-2 lead.
Henry Fahnbulleh (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove) rebounded his own miss and finished the put-back to break a 6-6 tie, then Nyamari canned a three-pointer off an assist from Pocernich to stretch the lead to five. Pocernich and
Caleb Hoilien (Minneapolis, Minn./Hope Academy) drilled back-to-back threes to give UNW a 17-11 edge, which were soon followed by an
Andrew Koehler (Scandia, Minn./Chisago Lakes) jump hook and a 3-0
Elijah Burns (Grand Prairie, Texas/Roseville Area) run.
Hoilien hit another jumper to give Northwestern a 24-14 lead thanks to an 18-6 run that had the Ericksen Center—blanketed in white as part of a white-out—on fire. Fahnbulleh scored UNW's next four points to keep BLC an arm's length away at 28-19, and LaVelle scored the four after that; but a 9-0 Vikings run put them ahead for the first time in the game at 34-32.
Kelton Vincent (Volga, S.D./Sioux Valley) buried a three in the final minute to give Northwestern the slight edge at halftime, 35-34.
Bethany stayed hot to open the second half, scoring the first five points to regain the lead by four. The Eagles, however, did not back down. Pocernich made a three and a free throw to even the score at 39, then a Hoilien offensive rebound and put-back put UNW back in front. Pocernich scored again on the next possession to extend the lead to three at 43-40. A Koehler layup kept the lead at three, but BLC hit consecutive threes to go back in front.
Ryan Schneider (Longmont, Colo./Longmont) cut the lead to one with a layup, then Pocernich and Vincent hit back-to-back jumpers to put the Eagles ahead once again, 51-48. A Vikings three briefly tied the game, but the Eagles rattled off a 9-2 run to build a 60-53 cushion, thanks to two impressive inside finishes by Burns, one by Koehler and a three from LaVelle.
The UMAC front-runners proved their position, however, going on a 10-2 run to steal the lead back at 63-62. Koehler provided a much-needed bucket off the window with the shot clock about to expire to put the Eagles ahead for a brief moment, but Bethany responded with a three-pointer and two free throws. With 2:08 to go, LaVelle clutched up and buried a three of his own to trim the lead to 68-67, and with 1:41 left, Pocernich made a free throw to draw even. The Vikings went back in front 10 seconds later, got the necessary stops and made free throws to close out the 9-2 run, the win and the conference championship.
Pocernich and LaVelle led the offensive effort for UNW once again. Pocernich finished with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists, while LaVelle tallied 14 points and four boards. Koehler and Fahnbulleh each scored eight points, with the latter adding nine rebounds. Hoilien finished with seven points and six boards, Burns scored seven, and Vincent pulled down six rebounds. The Eagles struggled outside the paint, shooting just 28% from three and only attempting eight free throws, of which they made five.
The loss keeps Northwestern on the outside looking into the UMAC playoff picture for the time being, as it currently sits in a tie for fifth place with Minnesota Morris at 5-6 (13-9 overall), trailing the 7-4 trio of Crown, Wisconsin-Superior and North Central by two games. UNW's next game will be a chance for redemption, as the Eagles will welcome Martin Luther to the Ericksen Center on Saturday afternoon as part of the university's Hoops Hysteria festivities. Northwestern fell to MLC on the opening night of conference play by a 77-70 score. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:45 PM, following the conclusion of the women's game.
