MADISON, Wis. – The Edgewood College men’s basketball team suffered its first home loss of the season on Tuesday, as the Eagles (5-3) fell to Clarke College (7-2) by a final score of 72-58 from the Todd Wehr Edgedome.

Following 13 lead changes and seven ties in the first half, the Crusaders held a 37-34 lead at halftime and never trailed the rest of the way. Clarke’s 6-foot-6 junior Chris Kilburg picked up his fifth personal foul just forty seconds into the second period. However, the Crusaders managed to begin the period with a 7-0 run to extend their lead to double digits, 44-34.

The rally forced Edgewood College head coach Steve Larson to take a timeout, while Larson went to his bench to replace all five of the team’s starters. With Larson’s starters out of the game for roughly the next four minutes, the Eagles were able to cut their opponent’s lead down to six points, but that was as close as the Eagles could get.

Junior Seth Cooper* (Madison, Wis.) scored 16 of his game-high 21 points in the first half to lead the Eagles. Senior Greg Blaska (DeForest, Wis.) posted 13 points and three blocked shots. Junior Kyle Scott (Burlington, Wis.) provided a spark off of the bench with nine points on a perfect 4-of-4 shooting effort.

Senior David Michalkiewicz* (Menasha, Wis.) left the game in the second half due to injury, while freshman Charlie Averkamp (New Berlin, Wis.), the team's leading scorer and rebounder, did not suit up due to an injury suffered at Lakeland College on Dec. 11.

Clarke College was able to convert 19 points out of 20 Eagle turnovers. Hiraman Byrd had a team-high 19 points and eight rebounds to lead the Crusaders. Joemi Byrd and Chris Kolle added 17 and 13 points, respectively. Grant Cirks dished out nine assists.

Edgewood College will have some time off before its next game. The Eagles will host Eureka College at the Edgedome on Dec. 28 as part of the LMC-NIIC Challenge. Edgewood will then host Benedictine University on Dec. 29. Both games are scheduled to start at 7 p.m.