MINNEAPOLIS, Minn -- North Central traveled to Mankato Friday night for their second Upper Midwest Athletic Conference  game and was defeated by Bethany Lutheran College by a score of 91-77. 

North Central (5-5, 0-2) came out of the gates strong and traded baskets with the Vikings over the opening minutes. Despite missing several close shots inside the paint, the Rams found themselves tied at 14 with 12 minutes to play in the half.

The Vikings soon caught fire from deep (7-11 in 1st half) and opened up a 12 point lead with under three minutes to play and went into the break with a 43-34 lead. 

The second half began and Bethany picked up right where they left off from deep. The lead grew to 15 before the Rams finally began to find a rhythm around the 10 minute mark which sparked a quick timeout by the Vikings.

The lead was cut to as little as five but Bethany found themselves in the bonus at the seven minute mark and were able to extend the lead all they way to 81-60. The Rams never recovered and Vikings cruised to a 91-77 victory.

North Central was led by senior Bryce Burkman (Winsted, Minn./Maple Grove) who finished with 20 points (9-15 FG) and 9 rebounds. Luke Chafin (Dayton, Ohio/Troy Christian) added 17 points, a team-high 5 assists, and 3 boards. In just 14 minutes of action, senior captian Ben Peters (Faribault, Minn./Bethany Academy) chipped in with a season-high 10 points and 5 rebounds.

The Rams will look to capture that first conference win when they return to action Saturday afternoon when they match-up with Martin Luther College (New Ulm, Minn.) Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.