Courtesy of Adam Hussman/MLC SID

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Northwestern 87, MLC 67

ST. PAUL — The Martin Luther College men’s basketball team had a chance to sweep the season series against Northwestern on Saturday on the road. However, the Eagles did not allow that to happen as they defeated the Knights 87-67.

Turnovers and free throws played a big role in Northwestern’s victory over MLC. The Eagles played sound on the offensive end of the court and didn’t turn the ball over much with just six total turnovers and only one in the first half. Northwestern also converted on 19-of-24 free throw attempts.

MLC also limited their miscues with only nine turnovers for themselves, but they did not get to the line as frequently as Northwestern, only attempting seven free throws in the contest.

The Eagles took charge of the game with a 46-31 lead at halftime and didn’t let up in the second half. The Knights would only get as close as 20 points towards the conclusion of the game.

Elijah Burns had a double-double for Northwestern with 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Soren Anderson secured 17 boards.

Three freshmen reached double figures for MLC’s side as Benjamin Vasold led the squad with 15 points. Meanwhile, Adam Loberger finished with 11, and Benjamin Pearson added 10 points.

MLC (6-12, 2-6) has one final nonconference opponent on Monday, February 3, versus Oak Hills Christian College. The Knights will play that game at 5:30 p.m.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Northwestern 88, MLC 64

ST. PAUL — The Martin Luther College women’s basketball team edged out Northwestern 72-68 in the first meeting between the two schools at home a couple of weeks ago. On Saturday, the Eagles caught fire from the floor and as a result split the season series with the Knights, beating MLC 88-64.

MLC kept up with the high-scoring pace of the game by scoring 15 points in the opening period, but the Eagles still maintained the lead after putting up 22 points.

The Knights made it 33-27 with just under 1:45 to go in the second quarter, but Northwestern strung together an 8-0 run to close out the half up 41-27. That 8-0 run would carry over into the second half as well with the Eagles pushing it to 16 unanswered points which saw them go ahead 49-27.

As a team, Northwestern shot over 52 percent from 3-point territory and nearly 54 percent from the floor overall. The Eagles got it going offensively from their entire starting unit with all five players reaching double figures.

MLC would have difficulty shooting from the outside but got a great effort from Emma Dorn (16 points, 10 rebounds), who recorded her third double-double performance of the season. Mya Morris notched 15 points and senior Grace Kieselhorst chipped in 12 points in only 18 minutes of playing time.

Despite the loss, MLC (13-6, 6-2) has a good chance to avenge their only other UMAC loss on Wednesday, February 5, when they host Bethany Lutheran College for a 7:15 game.