Men’s Basketball

RIPON, Wis. — The Ripon College men’s basketball team missed just seven shots from the floor in the second half and rallied for a 95-81 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University on Wednesday at the Storzer Center.

Ripon (10-5, 7-3 MWC) went 22-for-29 (75.9 percent) from the floor in the second half to rally from a 45-33 halftime deficit. Kyle Loughrin hit 13-of-18 shots from the floor on his way to a game-high 31 points for the Red Hawks.

Sophomore forward Trace Sonnleitner came off the bench to score a career-high 19 points for Lawrence (6-8, 4-5), which shot 56.1 percent from the floor for the game. Chris Siebert added 18 points for the Vikings, Jamie Nikitas had 15 points and Ryan DePouw picked up 14.

Lawrence jumped out to an early 10-points lead and led by as many as 15 points in the first half. Ripon cut the margin to six points late in the first half, but the Vikings got 3-pointers from Siebert and Tyler Mazur to push the lead back to 12 at the half.

Ripon’s hot shooting in the second half allowed it to erase Lawrence’s lead in less than eight minutes. Ripon tied the game at 57-57 at the 12:46 mark, and the Red Hawks slowly built a lead to as many as seven points over the next five minutes.

Lawrence trimmed the margin to four points with just under five minutes left, but Ripon then put the game away at the foul line. Ripon went 8-for-8 from the line in the final 2:23 to seal the win.

Ripon had an enormous advantage at the line, going 19-for-23. Lawrence shot only five free throws during the game.

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APPLETON, Wis. — Six players scored in double figures as the Lawrence University men’s basketball team rolled to a 111-94 Midwest Conference victory over Grinnell College on Saturday at Alexander Gymnasium.

Chris Siebert posted a double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds to lead Lawrence (6-7, 4-4 MWC). Ryan DePouw also had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and he added four assists.

Jamie Nikitas picked up 22 points for the Vikings, and Tyler Mazur had 18. Chase Nelson chipped in with 14 points, and Brian Gryszkiewicz had 12 points and five assists.

The nation’s scoring leader, Grinnell’s Jack Taylor, led the Pioneers (11-3, 6-3) with 31 points. Aaron Levin added 17 points, and Luke Yaeger had 16 for Grinnell.

Lawrence jumped to an early lead, using an 11-4 run to build a 20-10 advantage with 13:39 left. Grinnell trimmed the lead back to three at 33-30, but the Vikings then took control.

Lawrence outscored the Pioneers 26-13 over the final 4:45 of the first half to grab a 67-48 lead at the break. Mazur scored 10 points during that stretch and Nikitas had five for the Vikings.

The Vikings then stretched that lead over the first seven minutes of the second half. After Yeager made a 3-pointer to start the half for Grinnell, Lawrence went on a 22-6 run and led 89-57 with 12:35 remaining. Nelson scored eight points during that run, including a dunk, and Siebert scored six during that stretch.

Grinnell, which stopped its signature pressing defense in the final seven minutes, never got closer than the final margin of 17 points.

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LAKE FOREST, Ill. — The Lake Forest College men’s basketball team pulled away late and hung on to defeat Lawrence University 83-76 in a Midwest Conference game on Tuesday.

Jim Schick led Lake Forest (4-9, 3-5 MWC) with 19 points, and James Stack had 18 points.

Ryan DePouw led three Lawrence players in double figures with 18 points. Jamie Nikitas added 17 points and a game-high nine rebounds for the Vikings (5-7, 3-4), and Brian Gryszkiewicz had 16 points and a game-high six assists.

The Foresters led 36-32 at the half and put on a quick scoring surge to take command early in the second half. A 7-0 burst gave Lake Forest a 50-39 lead with 16:08 remaining.

The Vikings still trailed by double digits when they went on a 16-6 run, capped by Nikitas’ 3-pointer with 6:05 left, to cut the lead to 62-61.

The Foresters answered with a 3-pointer from Stack and a layup from Brian Madson to push the lead back to 67-61. Lawrence never got closer than four points after that as Lake Forest went 12-for-12 from the foul line in the final 1:28 to seal the victory.

Box score

APPLETON, Wis. — Tyler Ketz hit a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left to lift the Ripon College men’s basketball team to a 69-66 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University on Saturday at Alexander Gymnasium.

Kyle Loughrin led Ripon (8-4, 5-2 MWC) with 25 points, and Ketz finished with 19 points. Ty Sabin added 12 points for the Red Hawks.

Chris Siebert paced Lawrence (5-6, 3-3) with 24 points, and Tyler Mazur came off the bench to score 16 points. Ryan DePouw added nine points and a team-high seven rebounds.

The game, which featured six ties and nine lead changes, was tied at 36 at the half. Neither team led by more than four points in the second half, but Lawrence led 64-61 with 2:25 left on Jamie Nikitas’ layup.

Loughrin countered with a layup for Ripon, and after Mazur missed a 3-pointer, the Red Hawks took a 65-64 lead on Loughrin’s layup with 1:21 remaining.

Siebert came back with a layup with 1:04 left that gave Lawrence a 66-65 edge. Loughrin drove into the lane and was falling to the court when his pass found Ketz in the corner. Ketz hit the 3-pointer with 30 seconds left to give Ripon a 68-66 lead.

Siebert went to the basket on the ensuing possession and had his layup blocked. Siebert got the rebound but had the ball stripped by Ketz, who was fouled with four seconds left. He made one free throw to put Ripon up 69-66 but missed the second.

Lawrence grabbed the rebound and called a timeout with 2.5 seconds left. The Red Hawks fouled Nikitas, who missed the first free throw. Ripon grabbed the rebound and ran out the clock.

Lawrence returns to action on Tuesday when it travels to Lake Forest College.

Box score

DE PERE, Wis. — The No. 14 St. Norbert College men’s basketball team used a scoring surge late in the first half to build a double-digit lead and then maintained that advantage in an 81-68 Midwest Conference win over Lawrence University on Saturday at Schuldes Sports Center.

St. Norbert (9-1, 5-0 MWC) went on a 13-2 run over the final 3:36 of the first half to build a 41-30 lead at the break. Lawrence (5-5, 3-2) closed to within eight points early in the second half, but the Green Knights were able to keep the Vikings at arm’s length the rest of the way.

St. Norbert led by as many as 15 points until the final minute. Lawrence couldn’t get closer than 12 points in the final 10 minutes of the game as the teams traded baskets consistently during the second half.

UW-Green Bay transfer Kam Cerroni hit seven 3-pointers on his way to a game-high 23 points. The Green Knights went 11-for-19 (57.9 percent) from beyond the arc in the game.

Jamie Nikitas paced Lawrence with 22 points. The sophomore guard went 6-for-10 from the floor, including 4-for-5 from 3-point range. Junior forward Ryan DePouw added 16 points, and Chris Siebert had 14 points for the Vikings.

Austin Elliott added 15 points for St. Norbert, and Andrew Schwoerer had 11 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

Box score

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Lawrence University men’s basketball team gave No. 12 UW-Whitewater all it could handle for 30-plus minutes Friday night before the Warhawks finally pulled away for a 73-56 nonconference victory at the Cruzin Classic.

Whitewater (7-2) used a balanced attack to pick up the win, and the Warhawks had four players score in double figures. Eric Bryson paced the Warhawks with 16 points, Quardell Young had 15 and KJ Evans added 14.

Ryan DePouw led Lawrence (5-4) and all scorers with 17 points. Jamie Nikitas and Chris Siebert both added 14 points, and Nikitas had a game-high eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.

The teams traded the lead throughout the first half, and Lawrence trailed 32-31 after a DePouw 3-pointer with 3:15 left in the first half. The Warhawks then scored the final eight points of the first half to lead 40-32 at the break.

Whitewater’s lead hovered between five and 12 points through the first 10 minutes of the second half. The Warhawks were up 58-46 when the Vikings got back-to-back layups from Nikitas and Tyler Mazur to cut the margin to eight.

Whitewater countered with a layup from Young and a 3-pointer from Bryson to finally take control for good with 6:20 left. Lawrence didn’t get closer than 11 points the rest of the way.

The Vikings now take a break for the holidays and do not return to action until they travel to St. Norbert College on Jan. 4. 

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