MADISON, Wis. – The Edgewood College Eagles men's basketball squad hosted a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) match to remember Saturday. They hosted the Lakeland Muskies in a triple overtime thriller. A steal from
Cade Ellingson on an inbound followed by a
Drew Houtakker putback as time expired sent the Eagles (2-4, 2-0 NACC) home happy with a 99-97 victory over the Muskies (3-3, 1-1).
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The two teams jockeyed for control of the game in the first 10 minutes, but a 7-2 stretch by Edgewood College put them ahead 19-13 with 10:03 left in the frame. The largest lead of the half by either side came for the Eagles at 7:31 with a
Trey Traeder three-pointer for a 26-18 advantage.
- The squads exchanged baskets and defensive stops in roughly equal measure for the remainder of the half, with Edgewood College hitting the locker room ahead 34-29. Edgewood College's bench played a pivotal role with a 14-to-5 advantage in points compared to Lakeland.
- The Muskies forced an early timeout in the second half after closing within 39-36, but four unanswered kept Lakeland at arm's length. After the Muskies clawed their way back within a possession at 50-47 with 10:09 remaining, a
Dawson Hughes three and a
Hunter Hardyman jumper pushed the Eagles lead back to eight.
- The next six minutes saw the visitors mount a furious rally to take the lead with a 13-8 stretch run culminating with 2:28 left in regulation. Lakeland would cling to their possession lead until Ellingson tied it with 33 seconds after burying a three. The teams would head to OT after exchanging turnovers and steals.
- The Muskies and Eagles would exchange a one-point edge for most of the first overtime, with Lakeland holding onto an 80-78 edge late. A Houtakker jumper with a missed free throw would add on another bonus period.
- Lakeland's offense sputtered for the first four minutes of the second overtime as the Eagles took advantage of jumpers and free throws to pull ahead by four late. A three-pointer with 34 seconds left and another one with six ticks on the clock with Edgewood College defenders in Cam Jaeger's face would tack on another five minutes.
- A quick five points left the Eagles in prime position with a 95-90 lead with 3:28 left in third overtime. The Muskies responded in kind to tie things up with 2:43 remaining. Neither team would find points until 12 seconds remained, with Asanjai Hunter sinking a jumper in the paint for a two-point edge. A beautiful finger roll from Ellingson tied the game up with ticks left and he followed it up with a steal of the inbounds. After a missed jumper, Houtakker swooped in with a putback in the paint to send Edgewood College home happy.
- Four from the Eagles scored in double-digits.
Luke Cervelli tallied 19 points and 14 rebounds, while Trey Trader and Ellingson each had 17 points.
- Houtakker had an outstanding afternoon with 22 points and 18 rebounds.
- Rebounds were a critical part of Edgewood College's success. They outrebounded the Muskies 64-to-53 in the victory. They also had a strong blocking day, with eight blocks to Lakeland's four.
- Hunter had a stellar day for the visitors with 27 points and eight rebounds. Cam Jaeger tallied 22 points with eight rebounds, while Isaiah Hammond had the lone double-double for the visitors with a stat line of 14 points and 15 rebounds.
- The two squads had 18 lead changes and 11 tied scores in the dramatic affair
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Edgewood College set a new game high in field goals attempted (88) and rebounds (64)
- The nine blocked shots as a team was tied for ninth on the single game record books and 99 points tied for seventh.
- Houtakker's 22 points and 18 rebounds were both career bests. Houtakker's 18 rebounds is tied for sixth in program history in a game and the most since the 2021-2022 season by any Eagle.
- Ellingson's 6-of-6 free throw shooting ties the program record for free throw percentage (1.000, minimum, six attempts)
- Cervelli set career bests with his 18 points and 14 rebounds for his first career double-double.
- Ellingson, Cervelli, Trader, Houtakker, and
Payton Bowser all set new highs for minutes played.
- Edgewood College holds a 44-30 series lead over Lakeland and has won back-to-back outings.
UP NEXT
The Eagles will hit the route for the first time in their NACC slate this season. They will travel down south to face the Rockford Regents Wednesday. First tip is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. Edgewood College holds a 22-14 lead in the series, though the Regents won the last time the two met.
