NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team was unable to keep pace with Bethany Lutheran College late in an 86-62 loss on Wednesday.

After a slow start offensively for both teams, the Vikings took control near the midway point of the first half on the way to a 38-28 halftime lead.

The Knights cut the deficit to eight points with 10:38 to play following an Ian Paulsen lay-up and had chances to cut the Vikings' lead down even further, but three consecutive empty possessions allowed BLC to push the lead back into double figures. Following Paulsen's lay-up, the Vikings outscored the Knights 9-2 over the next five minutes, and then built on the lead in the final minutes.

MLC held the Vikings to 46.8 percent shooting from the field, but were outscored 23-6 at the free throw line. The Knights finished the game shooting 39.4 percent.

Paulsen had a big night, scoring a game-high 21 points while adding 10 rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks.

Nate Goelzer also played a key role off the bench. He came into the game with three points on the season, but scored a career-high 13 points on 5-8 shooting (2-3 from beyond the three-point arc) in 24 minutes. 

The Knights fell to 5-13 on the season and 2-8 in league play in defeat. BLC improved to 14-5 overall and 9-1 in UMAC play with the win.

MLC will return to action on Saturday, January 26, when it travels to UW-Superior for a game scheduled to tip off at 4:45 p.m.