NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team started strong, but could not hold off the Storm from Crown College in an 81-68 defeat in Saturday's home finale.

The Knights were aggressive from the opening tip and built an early 18-7 advantage, but Crown was able to cut the MLC lead to two points (35-33) at the half.

Crown continued its surge in the second half, shooting 60.0 percent from the field and making 16 of 22 attempts from the free throw line to wear down the Knights and score the win.

The Knights shot 41.0 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from beyond the three-point arc, but struggled with turnovers (17) and were outscored 42-32 in the paint for the game.

Joseph Hirsch led the Knights with 15 points and eight rebounds on Senior Day, while classmate Jacob Price joined him in double figures with 14 points. Seth Veers and Ezra Blumer chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively. 

MLC dropped to 5-18 on the season and 2-10 in UMAC play with the loss. Crown improved with 12-11 overall and 8-4 in league play with the win.

The Knights will return to action on Friday, February 18, when they travel to North Central for a game scheduled to start at 7:15 p.m.