Lawrence University men’s basketball coach Joel DePagter will appear on Clubhouse Live on Tuesday. The show, hosted by Brett Christopherson and Ricardo Arguello of the Appleton Post-Crescent, begins at 6:30 p.m. inside The Clubhouse at the Radisson Paper Valley Hotel in downtown Appleton. DePagter and the hosts will talk college basketball and look ahead to the upcoming NCAA Tournament. If you can make it to the show in person, The Clubhouse features an all-you-can-eat taco bar for $7.
Category: Men’s Basketball
Three Vikings named to all-conference squad
Three Lawrence University basketball players have been chosen for the All-Midwest Conference team in a vote by league coaches.
Senior center Erik Borrensen (West Bend, Wis./Living Word Lutheran) was chosen for the second team, and senior guard Jon Mays (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) and junior guard Tyler Crisman (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln Way East) both received honorable mention.
Lawrence’s three all-conference picks tied Illinois College for the most selections to the squad.
Borresen, who was chosen for the all-conference team for the first time, was the only player in the conference to average a double-double. In 18 league games, Borresen was sixth in the conference in scoring at 15.6 points per game and was first in rebounding at 11.7 per game.
Borresen, who shot 50.7 percent from the floor during conference play, also was third in the league at 1.5 blocks per game.
On the season, Borresen averaged 15.5 points, 10.9 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. He had a league-best 13 double-doubles on the season.
Mays, who also was honored for the first time, finished third in the league in scoring at 18.2 points per game. He also was 10th in the conference in rebounding at 5.3 per game. Mays also finished fifth in the league in free throw percentage at 80 percent.
On the season, Mays led the Vikings in scoring at 16.4 points per game and also pulled down 5.1 rebounds per contest. Mays, who led the team in free throw shooting at 80.3 percent, hit 41 3-pointers on the season.
Mays also had a team season high for points when he scored 38 in Lawrence’s 85-65 win over Carroll University on Jan. 29.
Crisman also was chosen for the all-conference team for the first time. He finished seventh in the conference in scoring at 15.2 points per game.
One of the top 3-point shooters in the conference, Crisman was second in the league at 2.8 3-pointers made per game. He finished third in 3-point shooting at 45.5 percent in league play. Crisman also averaged 2.7 assists per game, which ranked 11th in the conference.
On the season, Crisman was third on the team in scoring at 15.4 points per game. He also averaged 2.6 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game.
Crisman, who shot 48 percent from the floor, led the team in 3-point shooting at 45 percent, which ranks him 13th in the nation. Crisman hit a team-high 68 3-pointers this season, which ranks second in Lawrence season history to the 75 John Dekker made in 2009-10.
Lawrence finished the season with an 11-12 record and was fifth in the Midwest Conference with a 10-8 mark.
Green Knights pull away in second half to down Lawrence
DE PERE, Wis. – The St. Norbert College men’s basketball team used a surge late in the second half to pull away from Lawrence University and post a 66-55 Midwest Conference victory on Saturday at Schuldes Sports Center.
The 24th-ranked Green Knights went on an 11-0 run to push their lead to double digits and secure the victory.
John Taylor scored 18 points to lead St. Norbert (18-5, 14-4 MWC). David Wipperfurth added 13 points and Chris Peterson had 11 for the Green Knights.
Jon Mays paced Lawrence (11-12, 10-8) with 17 points. Tyler Crisman and Max Burgess added 11 points apiece for the Vikings.
Crisman hit a 3-pointer with 9:05 left in the game to trim St. Norbert’s lead to 44-39, but the Vikings missed their next five shots from the floor.
That gave St. Norbert an opening, and the Green Knights took advantage. St. Norbert make its next five shots from the floor and scored 11 consecutive points to take a 55-39 lead with 4:15 remaining.
Lawrence didn’t get closer than 10 points the rest of the way.
Lawrence men face must-win situation Saturday at St. Norbert
The Lawrence University men’s basketball team faces a must-win situation when it travels to No. 24 St. Norbert College on Saturday. The Vikings need a win and an Illinois College loss to gain a berth in the four-team Midwest Conference Tournament. The game tips off at 4 p.m at Schuldes Sports Center.
Ripon rallies in final minutes to edge Lawrence
The Ripon College men’s basketball team rallied in the final two minutes and pulled out a 63-60 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University on Wednesday night at Alexander Gymnasium.
Scott Gillespie paced Ripon (13-9, 11-6 MWC) with 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Aris Wurtz added 16 points for the Red Hawks.
Erik Borresen led Lawrence (11-11, 10-7) with a double-double of 21 points and 11 rebounds. Chris Siebert added 12 points and Tyler Crisman had 11 for the Vikings.
Lawrence led 58-54 after Jon Mays’ layup with 2:26 left, but Ripon got a big 3-pointer from Brad Brooks to trim the lead to 58-57 with 2:11 remaining.
After a miss by the Vikings, Gillespie was fouled and converted both free throws with 1:35 left to give Ripon a 59-58 lead.
Siebert countered for Lawrence and hit a jumper with 1:21 left to put the Vikings up 60-59. Wurtz answered for Ripon by hitting a short jumper with 1:05 remaining to give Ripon a 61-60 edge.
The Vikings then turned the ball over, and Lawrence was forced to foul Gillespie with 14 seconds left. He made both free throws to give Ripon a 63-60 lead.
Mays attempted a 3-pointer with five seconds left, but it was off the mark. Ripon grabbed the rebound and were able to dribble out the remaining few seconds.
Lawrence men face Ripon in final home game of season
The Lawrence University men’s basketball team takes on Ripon College on Wednesday at Alexander Gymnasium in a key Midwest Conference game. The final home game of the season has implications for both the Vikings and Red Hawks in terms of who will make the four-team Midwest Conference Tournament later this month. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
Crisman picks up MWC Player of the Week award
Lawrence University men’s basketball standout Tyler Crisman has been named the Midwest Conference Player of the Week.
Crisman (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln Way East) earned the honor after pouring in a career-high 30 points in Lawrence’s 72-64 victory at Beloit College this past Saturday.
A junior guard, Crisman was 10-for-17 from the floor and 7-for-8 from the foul line against the Bucs. The 30 points topped his previous career high of 29, which he set against Ripon College earlier this month. Crisman also picked up three rebounds and three against Beloit.
The victory was critical for the Vikings and moved Lawrence into a four-way tie for second place in the Midwest Conference at 10-6.
Crisman, who was honored as the Player of the Week for the first time in his career, improved his scoring average to 15.9 points per game. He is shooting 47.3 percent from the floor, including 44.4 percent from 3-point range.
Lawrence returns to action on Wednesday when it hosts Ripon at Alexander Gymnasium.
Vikings rally to topple Beloit
BELOIT, Wis. — Tyler Crisman poured in 30 points and Erik Borresen had a double-double to rally the Lawrence University men’s basketball team to a 72-64 Midwest Conference victory over Beloit College on Saturday at Flood Arena.
Lawrence (11-10, 10-6 MWC) rallied from a six-point deficit midway through the second half to sweep the season series from Beloit (9-12, 8-8). The win moved Lawrence into a four-way tie for second place in the conference and all but eliminated the Bucs from any chance of making the MWC Tournament.
Crisman’s 30-point game was a career high, eclipsing the 29-point night he had at Ripon College last week. The junior guard hit on 10-of-17 shots from the floor and was 7-for-8 from the foul line. Borresen added 17 points and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds for the Vikings.
David Bremner paced the Bucs with 16 points.
Lawrence trailed 51-45 with before Jon Mays buried a 3-pointer with 9:58 left in the game to kick off a 20-6 scoring run. Mays hit another 3-pointer with 7:46 left that tied the game at 53-53.
Crisman followed with a jumper and Chris Siebert had a layup that gave Lawrence the lead for good at 57-53 with 6:20 left.
The teams traded baskets before the Vikings got a hoop from Borresen and a pair of free throws from Crisman to go ahead 65-57 with 1:42 remaining.
Michael Horton trimmed the lead to 65-60 on a 3-pointer, but the Bucs were then forced to foul. Lawrence went 7-for-10 from the foul line in the final 1:29 to seal the victory.
The Vikings return to Alexander Gymnasium on Wednesday for their final home game of the season. The Vikings host Ripon in another key MWC contest.
Lawrence men face critical game Saturday at Beloit
The Lawrence University men’s basketball team continues its battle for a berth in the Midwest Conference Tournament when it travels to Beloit College on Saturday. Lawrence is tied for fourth place heading into the game, and the Bucs only trail the Vikings by one game in the standings. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. at Flood Arena.
Cold-shooting Vikings fall at Illinois College
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – A cold-shooting Lawrence University men’s basketball team fell 79-60 at Illinois College in a Midwest Conference game on Saturday.
Lawrence hit on only 23 of 57 shots from the floor, including 6 of 24 from 3-point range. Illinois College shot a solid 47.5 percent from the field, including 45.8 percent (11-24) from beyond the arc.
Nathan Kohler did most of the damage for Illinois College (13-6, 9-5 MWC) by scoring 31 points. He was 12-for-17 from the field, including 7-for-9 from 3-point range.
Tyler Crisman and Erik Borresen scored 15 points apiece for Lawrence (10-10, 9-6). Jon Mays added 10 points for the Vikings.
The Blueboys built a 10-point lead at 21-11 midway through the first half and led 37-29 at the break.
Lawrence came out strong in the second half, cutting the lead to four points on two occasions, the final time at 47-43 on Borresen’s three-point play with 15:29 left.
Kohler then scored the game’s next eight points, which included a pair of 3-pointers, to give Illinois College a 55-43 lead with 14:09 left.
Lawrence never got closer than 11 points after that, and Illinois College would lead by as many as 21 points.
Lawrence returns to action on Feb. 12 when it travels to Beloit College.