NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team was unable to overcome the first-place North Central University Rams in a 67-60 defeat on Thursday.

Both teams struggled offensively for much of the night. The Rams shot 35.1 percent overall, while MLC shot 38.6 percent from the field. Both teams also committed 23 turnovers, but the Rams took better advantage of MLC's miscues with a 24-17 edge in points off turnovers.

NCU held a four-point halftime lead (28-24), and then came out of the locker room strong to push the lead into double figures early in the second half.

The Knights battled back, however, cutting the deficit to two (47-45) with just under six minutes to play, but NCU responded with a 9-2 run over the next four minutes to take a nine-point lead. The Rams then shut the door in the final minutes, making 11 of 12 free throws, as well as its only field goal attempt, to finish off the seven-point win.

The Rams entered the game unbeaten in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) play and as the league's premier shooting team from beyond the arc, but the MLC defense was able to take them off their spots for much of the game. The Rams entered the game with at least 14 three-point field goals in five straight games, but finished Thursday's contest 10-27 from downtown.

Jack Heichelbech led MLC with 18 points, while Joey Behm added 16 points and seven rebounds. Jonathan Riebe scored 10 points to lead the MLC bench.

The Knights fell to 1-6 overall and 0-4 in UMAC play in defeat. NCU improved to 7-5 on the season and 5-0 in league play with the win.

MLC will return to action on Saturday, February 20, when it travels to St. Scholastica for a game scheduled to start at 4 p.m.