Winona, MN - The Martin Luther College men's basketball team took on Saint Mary's (MN) on the road for their second game of the season on Tuesday evening. The Knights trailed the Cardinals 42-36 at halftime and overcame that deficit in the second half to go up by as many as 12 points (68-56) with seven minutes remaining, but ultimately fell to Saint Mary's down the stretch
92-83 in overtime.
Saint Mary's built up their lead in the first half by breaking down the MLC zone for good looks and as a result shot 51.6 percent from the field, including 7-of-16 from beyond the arc. The Knights out shot the Cardinals in the first half shooting 53.6 percent from the floor, but ramped those percentages up even more in the second half, going 62.5 percent in the final 20 minutes to hold a double-digit lead. Additionally, the MLC defense made it harder for Saint Mary's offensively, as the Cardinals were limited to just 33.3 percent shooting.
Both teams went on big scoring runs and that was the story of the second half, as MLC started it off with a 28-9 run in the middle of the second half that was countered by a 21-9 run from Saint Mary's to bring the game into extra time.
In the overtime period, the Cardinals struck quickly with a pair of 3-pointers that swung the momentum in their favor as Saint Mary's outscored MLC 15-6 to secure the win over the Knights.
Saint Mary's scored 32 of their 92 points off of MLC turnovers and that played a deciding factor in the outcome.
MLC had five players in double figures and received valuable minutes from each of their seven-man rotation.
Adam Loberger led the Knights in scoring with 19 points and hit a couple of free throws late in regulation to send the game into overtime.
Ethan Kjenstad made some big shots during the Knights second half run and finished with 17 points on 50 percent shooting.
Benjamin Pearson picked up a double-double in his second collegiate game (12 points, 11 rebounds), while
Luke Fix scored 11 points and
Trey Lauber added 10 points off the bench.
MLC (0-2) will host Maranatha Baptist on Saturday, November 16, at 1 p.m.
