NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team was unable to come back from a first-half deficit in a 77-60 defeat to Finlandia on Saturday.

For the second night in a row, the Knights fell behind big early, as the Lions raced to a 13-1 lead and held the Knights without a field goal for nearly six minutes to start the game. 

MLC cut the deficit to 24-21 with 6:50 to play in the half, but the Lions finished strong to take a 41-31 lead into the break.

The Knights continued to fight in the second half, pulling within two points (47-45) at the 14:38 mark, and then trailed 54-51 with 9:31 to play in the game, but the Lions put the game away with a 10-0 run over the next three minutes.

MLC was held to just 28.6 percent shooting from the field in the second half, including 2-14 shooting from beyond the three-point arc. The Knights also struggled from the free throw line, making 16 of 29 attempts.

Ian Paulsen led MLC with 11 points and ten rebounds to go with five blocks. Jeffrey Parker added ten points. Luke Rothe led the team with five assists off the bench.

The Knights fell to 1-12 on the season in defeat, while Finlandia improved to 3-9 with the win.

MLC will return to action at North Central on Friday, January 13. That game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m.