FOND DU LAC, Wis. - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team clawed past the Sabres of Marian University to earn a 72-67 win in overtime Sunday.

The Knights led 28-22 at the half, and held onto that lead until the final minutes of the second half when Marian took a four-point lead. In need of a spark, the Knights scored back-to-back buckets in the paint with Richard Eckmann and Ethan Eisenmann, and then stood tall defensively in the final seconds to force overtime.

In the extra period, MLC quickly built a six-point lead with the help of a pair of field goals by Eisenmann, and then held firm on the defensive end to secure the win.

MLC held the Sabre offense to just 36.4 percent shooting for the day, and also held Marian to just 5-24 from beyond the three-point arc. The Knights shot 41.2 percent on the offensive end, and also outrebounded the Sabres 49-36.

Ian Paulsen stuffed the stat sheet on both ends of the floor, scoring 15 points while grabbubg 11 rebounds and dishing out eight assists. He also recorded four steals and three blocks on the defensive end.

Eisenmann tied Paulsen for the team lead with 15 points on 7-8 shooting from the field, while Eckmann finished with 11 rebounds to go with his nine points.

The Knights improved to 5-6 on the season with the win. Marian fell to 2-7 in defeat.

MLC will return to action in the new year when they travel to St. Scholastica on Wednesday, January 2. That game is scheduled to tip off at 7:15 p.m.