DULUTH, Minn. - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team dropped its first game of 2019 by the score of 64-55 at St. Scholastica on Wednesday.

The Knights held the Saints to 35.7 percent shooting in the first half, but trailed by one point (26-25) at the half after shooting 36.7 percent.

CSS held its lead for most of the second half, but the Knights pulled within one point (46-45) with 6:44 to play following a Jonathan Riebe free throw. 

Trailing 56-53 with 2:05 to play after an Austin DeNoyer jump shot, the Knights were unable to get any closer as the Saints ran off eight straight points to push the lead into double figures and secure the win.

MLC held CSS to 40.7 percent from the field for the game, but the Saints outrebounded the Knights 44-32 and outscored them 23-6 in second chance points. CSS also recovered from a 2-15 shooting performance from beyond the three-point arc in the first half to hit six from downtown in the second half.

DeNoyer led MLC with 17 points. Ian Paulsen added 15 points to go with six rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

MLC fell to 5-7 on the season and 2-3 in UMAC play in defeat. CSS improved to 5-7 overall and 3-2 in league play with the win.

The Knights will return to action when they host Maranatha Baptist on Saturday, January 5. That game is scheduled to tip off at 4 p.m.