MADISON, Wis. – Lakeland College found it's hard to beat your opponent when they keep scoring three points to your two. The fourth-seeded Edgewood College men's basketball team rode a flurry of three-point shots to a 64-59 victory in the first round of the NACC Men's Basketball Tournament on Saturday at the Edgedome. The Eagles canned 11 three-pointers and held off a late Muskie rally to advance to the semifinal round.
Lakeland College (15-11) made five of their first six shots and appeared to be the hotter team in the early going. Tied a 21-21 the Muskies leaped ahead with jump shots from Tanner Hackl and Kurt Jansen for a 25-21 lead. Trevor Neale answered with a bucket for the Eagles, before the first three-point storm blew through the Edgedome. Tal Diekvoss made three-pointers on back-to-back possessions, and Dylan Heemstra made one of his own for a 32-25 Eagles led. Edgewood College (14-12) would carry a 35-31 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
The Eagles really put the pressure on the Muskies in the second half, opening with a 9-0 run and holding Lakeland scoreless for five minutes. Dylan Rusch connected on his second triple of the night to launch the run. Every time it appeared Lakeland was poised to get back into the game someone hit a clutch three-pointer for the Eagles.
When Lakeland had cut the Eagles lead to 49-43, Rusch responded with another three-pointer. That shot would begin a string of 12 straight points the Eagles scored from behind the arc. Rusch added another before Diekvoss nailed his third of the game, and Joe Klocek put Edgewood College up 61-49 with another connection from the right corner, with 2:30 left to play.
However, the Eagles got sloppy down the stretch, turning the ball over three times in the final 90 seconds which gave Lakeland College some hope. The Muskies closed to within 61-57 on a Hackl three-pointer with 1:14 left to play. Diekvoss made two free throws and Emilio Lopez another to close out the victory.
Edgewood College finished 11-for-19 (57.9 percent) from the three-point line, and strangely just 13-for-33 (39.3 percent) inside the arc. Rusch led all scorers with 14 points, including 4-for-5 from the three-point line. Neale added 12 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Diekvoss buried three three-pointers and finished with 11 points, while Klocek went 3-for-3 from the arc for all nine of his points. Jake Heuer scored seven points and dished out a team-high five assists.
Lakeland College received 13 points from Hackl and 11 off the bench by Zach Van Engen. Jansen socred 10 points as the Muskies ended their season at the hands of the Eagles for the fourth time in the past five seasons. Despite their hot start, shooting 50 percent in the first half, the Muskie went just 6-for-27 (22.2 percent) in the second half.
Edgewood College has now won seven straight NACC Tournament quarterfinal and semifinal games, dating back to the 2011 tournament. The Eagles have played in the NACC Championship game in three of the last four years they have qualified, including one title in 2012. Edgewood College will head south on Tuesday night to face top-seeded Aurora University in a 7:00 p.m. NACC Tournament semifinal. The Eagles have defeated Aurora twice this season, 84-76 in Aurora on December 13 and 96-94 in overtime on Senior Day just last Saturday in the Edgedome.
