MINNEAPOLIS – Wednesday evening was the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference's (UMAC) opening night of competition in basketball, and the Yellowjacket men took on the preseason favorite in North Central. Both squads faced a strong non-conference slate leading up to UMAC play, and Wednesday the Rams emerged victorious with a 78-72 win.
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Game Notes
- The Rams took an early lead and didn't look back in the first half. After both teams executed consecutive three pointers, the Rams converted two steal-and-scores to hold the lead the rest of the half.
- Rocco Paulson (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East) logged consecutive layups at 11-7, and later the trio of Landen Thomer (Mosinee, Wis./Mosinee), Andrew Beers (Slinger, Wis./Slinger) and Caiden Lecce (Kenosha, Wis./St. Joseph Catholic) all provided the offensive push.
- Down by just three at 20-17, a barrage of Rams points gave them a 14-point edge midway through. Superior would chip away with offensive output from Paulson, Lecce and Eddie Mittermeyer (Cadott, Wis./McDonnell Central Catholic), and they'd trail by just five at the break, 41-36.
- The 'Jackets tied things up at the 13:13 mark of the second half, as Thomer leveled the scoring with a steal-and-score at 52-52. From there a few Yellowjacket miscues gave the Rams an opportunity to build on their lead, as they took an 11-point advantage past the midway point of the half.
- Gage Braiedy (Mora, Minn./Mora) and Hayden Quimby (Menasha, Wis./Xavier) checked in and produced some offense for the Yellowjackets before NCU responded shortly after, as they held on to snap their seven-game skid with a 78-72 win.
- Thomer led on both sides of the court, grabbing 14 rebounds while scoring 15 points with two assists and steals. Paulson and Lecce had 14 and 13 points, respectively.
- All five North Central starters finished the game with at least 10 points, with Carrington McNeal leading with 19.
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Superior returns home for another tough matchup Saturday, playing host to Bethany Lutheran. The opening tip is set for 4:45 p.m. inside the Mertz.
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