MINNEAPOLIS – Junior guard Xavier Patterson (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) poured in a career-high 29 points on 10-for-17 shooting – including a perfect 4-of-4 from 3-point range – lifting the UW-Superior men's basketball team to a 75-70 road Upper Midwest Athletic Conference victory over North Central at Clark-Danielson Gymnasium on Saturday. 
 
The Yellowjackets led virtually the entire day, improving to 6-9 overall on the season and 3-2 in the UMAC with their third win away from home. Patterson added a career-high-tying eight rebounds for UWS, which also placed junior Eli Vogel (Appleton, Wis./Appleton West) and sophomore J'Vaun Walker (Rosharon, Texas/Manvel) in double figures with 15 and 14 points, respectively.
 
Superior shot over 51 percent in the first half, connecting on 16-of-31 attempts from the field, helping itself to a 39-37 halftime advantage. UWS led by as many as 11 in the first half when Enrique Sanchez (Madrid, Spain/IES María Guerrero) hit a jumper in the paint for a 28-17 edge midway through the period. North Central rallied to knot the game at 32-32 with less than six minutes remaining before the half, but the 'Jackets rattled off five consecutive points, capped with a Vogel triple, to regain momentum.
 
The Rams whittled the deficit to two at the break before Patterson went off in the second. He scored 19 points, going 6-for-9 with two treys, in the final 20 minutes.
 
A 3-pointer from North Central's Justin Castro gave his team its only lead of the contest at 47-45 with 17:46 on the clock before UWS used an 11-2 run to take control. Patterson closed the stretch with a 3 to make it 56-49 with 13:12 to play.
 
NCU (9-8, 4-3 UMAC) got to within 65-63 with six minutes left and then shaved the deficit to 71-70 on a Thomas Cameron 3-pointer four minutes later. Superior, though, knocked down 4-for-6 from the free-throw line to secure the win.
 
The 'Jackets return to action hosting Crown Wednesday at Mertz Mortorelli Gymnasium. Game time is set for 7:15 p.m.