NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team lost its home finale 79-67 against Northland on Saturday.

The Knights trailed by two at the half, but started the second half on a 14-3 run to take a 42-33 lead with 15:13 to play in the game.

Northland would respond with an 11-2 run of its own to tie the game, and the teams traded the lead back and forth until the Lumberjacks finally took the lead for good with 6:16 to play.

The Lumberjacks used strong bench play and the free throw line to pull away down the stretch. Northland's bench outscored the Knights' reserves 42-6, and also outscored MLC at the free throw line 18-3 in the second half. 

Senior Michael Paulsen played a strong game in the final home game of his career, scoring 21 points on 7-14 shooting. He also had three steals and two assists.

Todd Brassow was the focus of the Lumberjacks' defensive game plan and finished with 15 points and eight rebounds. T.J. Babinec added ten points.

MLC fell to 1-20 overall and 1-11 in conference play. Northland improved to 8-14 on the season and 6-8 in league play in defeat.

The Knights will return to action on Friday, February 12, at Northwestern. That game is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.