New Ulm, MN - The MLC men's basketball team played a makeup game with the Spurgeon College Knights on Thursday evening in the LSC gymnasium. Spurgeon made the trip up from Kansas City, Missouri, and had fallen 78-57 to Northwestern on Wednesday night. On Thursday, both teams played an evenly matched first half with the score being 47-44 with Spurgeon up ahead. However, the (Spurgeon Knights) put together a 17-0 run to begin the second half and used that outburst of scoring to walk away with a 94-80 victory over MLC.

In the first half, both squads traded off the lead as the players were feeling each other out on both ends of the court. There would be 11 lead changes and nine ties in the game's first 20 minutes of action and the biggest lead was seven points by the Spurgeon Knights (30-23) with 7:57 remaining. 

Just when it had appeared that Spurgeon had seized the momentum, the MLC Knights went on a 9-0 run to recapture the lead. In that couple minute stretch, the MLC Knights strung together a top of the key 3-pointer from Nathan Miller and another triple via Micah Kieselhorst in the corner to go up 32-30.

Spurgeon then benefited from multiple MLC turnovers and Michael Berry and Evan Deleon connected on spot up 3-pointers in transition to help their team take a three-point lead into the break.

The 17-0 run for the Spurgeon Knights would be fueled heavily off of their relentless full court pressure. The MLC Knights had difficulty inbounding the ball at times due to the active pursuit from the Spurgeon defenders. 

Point guard Jude Warren was a key cog in the Spurgeon Knights' run and led their up tempo pace of play by pushing the ball off of a defensive rebound. Warren's quick penetration in the paint also paved the way for open Deleon jumpers that created some separation in the score. Warren led Spurgeon with a double-double (18 points, 10 rebounds).

The biggest margin of the second half was 21 points, as Spurgeon led MLC 76-47 at the 12:27 mark, but the MLC Knights wouldn't give up that easily and went on a 24-5 run to make it 81-71 with 4:31 left.

However, Spurgeon managed to take the air out of the building following a couple of Warren buckets and held on to win the game.

Both teams shot over 40 percent from the field, but turnovers would be vital as Spurgeon led the turnover battle 21-9.

Kieselhorst paced the MLC Knights with 21 points and nine rebounds. Thomas Balge chipped in 16 points and Miller scored 14 points with four 3-pointers in the game.

MLC goes to 4-14 overall and has now completed its non conference slate for the season. Up next is a home game against Bethany Lutheran. The Vikings previously defeated MLC 111-83 in a high scoring affair in Mankato. MLC will look to split the season series on Saturday, January 27, at 1:45 p.m.