The University of Wisconsin Superior opened up its second season of Upper Midwest Athletic Conference competition on Friday night, falling 92-81 against the University of Northwestern in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The Yellowjackets and Eagles went back-and-forth throughout much of the first half. After UW-Superior (1-5, 0-1 UMAC) opened up an early 11-7 lead, Northwestern (2-2, 1-0 UMAC) scored the next eight points. The Yellowjackets would tie the score at 15-all and then 20-all and eventually re-take the lead at 28-27, pushing the advantage back out to four at 33-29 with 3:51 reamining before the break. Northwestern would scratch back a two-point late in the half, but freshman guard Kevin Gutter (Baton Rouge, La./Tara H.S.) laid-in a score in the closing seconds to send the teams to the locker room knotted up once again at 41-41.

After trading points to start the second half, the Eagles scored nine straight points to open up an 11-point lead at 63-52 with 13:56 remaining. Northwestern continued to build on their lead, extending it out to as many as 21 points with five minutes remaining. UW-Superior closed on a run of its own to cut the lead back down to 11 as the Eagles downed the Yellowjackets 92-81. After shooting 55.17 percent in the first half, UW-Superior would shoot just 40.54 percent (15-of-37) in the second half.

Freshman forward Rafael Monteiro (São Paulo, Brazil/Santa Marcelina College) once again earned a double-double for the Yellowjackets, finishing with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Shaq Coleman (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East H.S.) had a team-high 22 points for UW-Superior while junior Nate Kalien (Chippewa Falls, Wis./Chippewa Falls H.S.) added 16. Porter Morrell scored a game-high 36 points for Northwestern, while Peter Maring had 11 rebounds to lead the Eagles.

UP NEXT
The Yellowjackets will continue conference play tomorrow on the road as UW-Superior takes on North Central University in Minneapolis. Opening tip is set for 4:00 p.m. following the women's contest.