Box Score

MADISON, Wis. – The Edgewood College men's basketball team captured the Northern Athletics Conference North Division crown in defeating Maranatha Baptist Bible College 89-74 at the Todd Wehr Edgedome in Madison on Thursday night.

The Eagles (13-9, 11-3 NAC) put four players in double figures led by Jeff Barczak's career-high and game-high 22 points. He fell one rebound shy of his second consecutive double-double to lead the Eagles to their first-ever NAC Division title.

The home team got the ball rolling early by using a 13-3 run midway through the first half to jump out to a 16-point lead a little over 10 minutes into the game. Edgewood College shot 55.9 percent (19-of-34) in the first half and led by as many as 21 points in the opening period; a margin they took into the locker room for a 48-27 halftime lead. Ben Wisniewski led all scorers at the break with 11 points going 3-of-4 from 3-point range. The freshman turned in 19 points in all and went 5-of-10 from the field while adding one more 3-pointer.

After a 21-5 run started by Jon Ciche eight minutes into the second half, the lead grew to 35 points. Ciche finished the game with 10 points and 11 rebounds for his second straight double-double performance. As hot as the Eagles seemed to shoot for the first 10 minutes, it was the exact opposite in the final 10. A Zach Moore layup at exactly the 10:00 mark made the score 72-42 and would begin a drought of nearly five minutes without an Eagle basket. Finally, Barczak put an end to it with one of his three dunks on the night. By that time the Eagle lead had been cut to a mere 18 points.

Maranatha Baptist (4-15, 1-13 NAC) put five players in double figures led by Joel Salscheider's 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Brock Rose and Andrew Solarek each chipped in 13 points as the Crusaders fought back to cut the deficit to 15 points with 3:38 left. Maranatha scored 47 points in the second half on 15-of-32 from the field and 7-of-16 from 3-point range. The two sides traded baskets down the stretch and the Eagles picked up their fourth win in a row and seventh win in eight games.

Edgewood College was credited with an impressive 25 assists on 33 made baskets with three Eagles recording four assists apiece. John Schuster added 12 points and four rebounds and was the only Eagle to connect on each of his free throw attempts as he went 2-for-2. Edgewood College managed just 15-of-31 (48.4 percent) from the charity stripe, collectively.

The Eagles will travel to Rockford on Saturday and seek payment for the Regents handing them a home loss in Madison back on Jan. 14. Tip-off is slated for 4:15 p.m. following the women's game.