MINNEAPOLIS-- Men's basketball earned 76-71 victory over The College of St. Scholastica on Saturday night. The Rams trailed late but got key plays from several players to earn the win that puts North Central alone in first place in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference standings at the midway point of the schedule.

North Central (8-7, 7-1 UMAC) and St. Scholastica (Duluth, Minn.) took the court on Saturday with sole possession of first place on the line and the game lived up to the standards of a first place tilt. NCU led for large stretches beginning with sophomore Joel Cline (Green Bay, Wis./Southwest) scoring the Rams first ten points. With less than two minutes left in the half the Saints led by five before a three pointer by freshman Jared High (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo) tied things up at 35-35 heading to halftime.

In the final twenty minutes the game swung back and forth with each team trading runs. St. Scholastica led 61-55 with seven minutes remaining and that would be the largest difference in the game. The Rams slowly chopped away and retook the lead, 64-63, with three minutes to go on a lay-up by Joel Cline. Eventually the Rams surged out to a six point lead and then ran out the clock, going 6-6 at the free throwline to seal the win.

KEY SEQUENCE OF THE GAME

With the game locked at 64-64 with 2:34 left, senior Cody Martin (Burnsville, Minn./Burnsville) hit a three pointer to give NCU an edge. He then got a defensive rebound and hit another three point shot to push the advantage to 70-64 with 2:04 left.

St. Scholastica got to within 70-67 after they stole an inbounding pass and got a lay-up but Martin then stepped to the free throw line and drained a pair of free throws with 42 seconds left. Senior Josh High (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo) and Jared High also calmly hit a pair of free throws as the Rams went 6-6 at the line in the final 40 seconds to seal the win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Despite shooting a season worst .286 (8-28) from three point land the Rams went 18-22 at the line (.818), a season best
• The Rams were pounded 45-35 on the glass but overcame that disadvantage by committing just six turnovers with 14 assists on 25 field goals
• 76 points ties the lowest winning point total of the season for NCU who also defeated the University of Northwestern 76-72
• Jared High was the third Ram in double-figures with 15 points

KEY PERFORMANCES

Early in the game Joel Cline was a force, scoring 13 points in the first 7 minutes and going to halftime with 17 points and 7 boards. He finished with a game high 24 points as part of a double-double that included 15 points, 2 blocks with just 1 turnover.

Late in the game senior leadership showed up when needed as Cody Martin canned a huge pair of three pointers on a night where the Rams were uncharacteristically cold from beyond the arc. He finished with 15 points, 5 assists and 2 steals with just 1 turnover. Martin currently leads the UMAC in assists per game this season in conference play.

UP NEXT

North Central travels to Faith Baptist Bible College (Ankeny, Iowa) on Tuesday for an NCCAA regional game. The Rams and Eagles are set for a 6:30 p.m. tip-off.