AURORA, Ill. (SabreAthletics.com) – Sam Koslowski led the Marian University men's basketball team with 24 points in its first 100-point game since 1990, but it wasn't enough as host Aurora University won the battle of the Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference's best and handed the Sabres their first conference loss with a 106-101 victory inside Thornton Gymnasium, this evening, Dec. 20.
Both teams shot better than 56 percent as the Sabres went 34-for-60 (56.7 percent) and the Spartans turned in a remarkable 61.7 percent (37-for-60) performance from the field. The first half witnessed 10 lead changes, but the Spartans pulled away with a 10-point halftime lead. Aurora led by as many as 17 points in the second half and hung on despite a Marian run that cut the deficit to 102-101 in the waning seconds. Aurora's Scott Laskowski registered 26 points in 26 minutes off the bench to lead all scorers and six Spartans in double figures. Drew Binversie added 20 points for the Sabres, followed by 13 apiece by Cody Veleke and Josh Creed, who recorded a career-high in 21 minutes off the bench. Marian dropped to 7-4 overall, 6-1 in the NACC after falling for the first time in seven games. Aurora improved to 9-3 (6-1 NACC) to move into a first-place tie in the league standings. The Spartans shot nearly 70 percent in the first half as they went a blistering 23-for-33 from the field, including 6-for-7 from beyond the arc. All 10 lead changes occurred in the first half, the final one following a 28-27 Marian lead thanks to back-to-back three's by Brad Koth with 8:58 remaining. AU's Tyler Hall would answer with a made jumper to spark a 14-4 run to make the score 41-32 with 4:56 remaining in the opening stanza. The Spartan lead would reach as many as 12 points before a pair of made free throws by Creed settled the first half to a 55-45 score. The Sabres came into the game allowing just 64.8 points per NACC contest and nearly saw Aurora reach that mark in the first 20 minutes. Marian would cut the deficit to five points nearly six minutes into the second half before Aurora went on a run that pushed the advantage to 17 points at 86-69 on a Laskowski three at the 7:23 mark. Every Marian basket seemed to have an Aurora answer until the final four minutes of play when the Sabres cut the deficit to single digits. Then, trailing 99-90 with just 1:30 remaining, Koslowski sparked a comeback after converting all three free throws on a foul behind the arc. Koslowski would get three more on a dial from long-distance to make it 100-96, followed by a Binversie three-point play, and all the sudden it was a one point game with 33 seconds left. The Spartans would hit all six of their free throws from then on to seal the win. Aurora won the points in the paint battle with a 42-32 advantage and received a balanced effort with six players in double figures. Brandon Smith added 19 points, while Tyler Hall chipped in 17. Marian senior Jeff Harris made his first start of the season and scored nine points. Sophomore Alex Stecker made his season debut following injury to dish out two assists in nine minutes of action. The Sabres were outrebounded, 33-23, in the game that saw far fewer rebounding opportunities from the 38.2 they were averaging entering the night. The 101-point output for Marian was the most since a 106-86 thumping of Cardinal Stritch in the Lake Michigan Conference semifinal all the way back on Feb. 22, 1990. The Sabres allowed more than 100 points for the first time since Nov. 30, 2000 in a 102-73 loss to Barat College (Ill.). Both teams will meet once more in the regular season come Feb. 8, in Fond du Lac. Marian will have the next two weeks to regroup before jumping back into conference play with a home game against Benedictine Saturday, Jan. 4. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. FOND DU LAC, Wis. (SabreAthletics.com) – The road to a 6-0 Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference start was an easy one as the Marian University men's basketball team turned 19 Concordia University Chicago turnovers into 25 points en route to a 76-51 rout inside Sadoff Gymnasium, this afternoon, Dec. 14. Senior Jeff Harris scored 13 points to eclipse 1,000 for his career.
The Sabres got off to a slow start, but the offense was soon invigorated into an 11-0 run into a 20-point halftime lead and never looked back. Led by 17 points from senior Sam Koslowski, the Sabres put three players in double figures. The Marian bench came up big as well, outscoring the Cougars, 44-16, in the win. Marian won for the sixth straight time to improve to 7-3 overall, 6-0 in the NACC, while Concordia Chicago fell to 2-6 (0-5 NACC) with the loss. The Cougars scored four of the game's first six points out of the gate to take a brief two-point lead before Koslowski and Elan Solvik spearheaded an 11-0 run to give Marian a 13-4 advantage at the 15:30 mark of the first half. The Sabres would keep their feet on the gas with a 12-2 run later in the half before eventually taking a 36-16 lead into the break. The final bucket for the Sabres came from Harris with 51 seconds remaining and equaled 1,000 career points to become the 16th Sabre in history to eclipse the career milestone. Fellow senior Cody Veleke reached the mark earlier this year and Koslowski will also have the chance to do so as he's just 169 points away. Marian shot just 38.6 percent (14-for-36) in the opening period, but outscored Concordia Chicago 20-2 off turnovers and 15-2 in bench points. The Cougars would cut the deficit to 10 points, 40-30, by the 15:20 mark in the second half. The 13-4 spurt was aided by a wide foul discrepancy that saw Marian pick up its seventh team foul just five minutes into the half. However, that margin would tighten quickly and the lead grew at a comparable rate following a 17-5 run over the next four minutes that equaled Marian's largest lead of the game at 22 points, 57-35. The Sabres shot 42.6 percent (29-for-68) compared to 44.7 percent (21-for-47) for the Cougars. Marian won the rebounding battle, 37-36, as well as, points in the paint, 34-28. Brad Koth put in 22 quality minutes off the bench with 10 points, four rebounds and four assists, while Montrell Hobbs and Josh Creed chipped in seven and six points, respectively. Elan Solvik led Marian with six rebounds to go along with eight points. The all-around team effort allowed the Sabres not to have to rely heavily on Veleke, who turned in just four points on 2-of-5 shooting in just 19 minutes. Marian will look to keep its success streak alive as it heads to Aurora to take on the second-place Spartans (7-3, 5-1 NACC) next Friday, Dec. 20. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. FOND DU LAC, Wis. (SabreAthletics.com) – A near-perfect first half saw the Marian University men's basketball team take a commanding 20-point lead into the locker room and it never looked back, defeating visiting Edgewood College, 72-60, to move to 5-0 in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference inside Sadoff Gymnasium, this evening, Dec. 11.
Marian went 19-for-32 (59.4 percent) from the field, while closing the first half on a 12-0 run to take a 42-22 lead into the break. Edgewood was held to just 29.6 percent shooting and the Sabres turned eight first-half Eagle turnovers into 11 points en route to the win. Senior Cody Veleke led a balanced scoring effort with a game-high 13 points, while 13 Sabres cracked the scoring column in all. Edgewood put nine players in the scoring column, led by Jake Heuer's 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting. The Sabres beat the Eagles for the fourth straight time and matched their best conference start since 2007-08 as they improved to 6-3 overall, 5-0 in the NACC with the win. Meanwhile, the Eagles dropped to 5-3 (3-2 NACC) with the loss. The lead reached 24 points by the 10:34 mark in the second half before both coaches went to their benches. The Sabres ended up shooting a season-best 51 percent (25-of-49) from the field and held the Eagles to just 37.7 percent (23-for-61) shooting. Edgewood jumped out to an 8-4 advantage early on, taking advantage of some gaps in the Sabre defense. However, Marian would work out the kinks to make an 11-2 run to take a 15-10 lead near the midway point in the opening stanza. Sam Koslowski started the run with a three-pointer from the wing for three of his seven points, while Montrell Hobbs, Elan Solvik and Veleke also got into the mix. Hobbs once again provided a spark off the bench with eight points and five rebounds in 14 minutes. Marian would push the lead to double digits before Edgewood cut the deficit back to eight, 30-22, with 3:37 to go. From that point on, it was all Sabres as a 12-0 run to close the half would spell Edgewood's doom on this night. Three's by Jeff Harris and Veleke highlighted the run that had the Sabres riding high heading into the break. All of Harris' five points on the night came in the first half and he now remains just seven points away from reaching 1,000 for his career. He will have a chance to reach that mark at home as Marian hosts Concordia University Chicago this Saturday, Dec. 14. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. inside Sadoff Gymnasium. Live video and stats links can be found at SabreAthletics.com. ROCKFORD, Ill. (SabreAthletics.com) – A dominating first half set the tone and Elan Solvik's 22 points were fit to outlast a high-powered offense as the Marian University men's basketball team staved off Rockford University, 78-70, to remain unbeaten in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference.
The Sabres jumped out to a 16-point first-half lead before Rockford cut the deficit to as little as four points midway through the second half, but they never trailed in the final 20 minutes. Solvik set a career-high with 22 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-3 from the arc and 10-for-14 from the free throw line to lead three Sabres in double figures. Sam Koslowski and Cody Veleke added 14 points apiece, while Jeff Harris chipped in seven points to lead a bench that outscored the Regents 22-7. Montrell Hobbs pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds in 22 minutes off the bench as well. Scott Suchy scored a team-high 21 points to lead three Regents in double figures. The Marian defense held Rockford to 36.9 percent from the field and a season-low point total, while out-rebounding the hosts, 45-39, en route to the win. The Sabres improved to 5-3 overall, 4-0 in the NACC with the win, while the Regents dropped to 6-2 (3-2 NACC) with the loss. Marian led by as many as 16 points near the end of the first half as Rockford struggled, going 8-for-27 (29.6 percent) from the field on the way to a 38-25 halftime deficit. Three Marian starters dealt with foul trouble in the first half and the depth of the squad once again proved its worth as they outscored Rockford 20-5 in the opening 20 minutes. Harris led the way with seven in 11 minutes and sits just 12 points shy of 1,000 for his career. Hobbs pulled down nine boards to give Marian an 11-rebound advantage going into halftime. In the second half, the Regents found their stroke and cut the deficit to four points at 52-48 following an 11-2 run midway through the second half. The Sabres would respond behind Solvik, who knocked down a three-pointer and added a pair of free throws to quickly build the lead back to nine points. A Koslowski three would follow and, all the sudden, the advantage was back to double digits. Rockford wouldn't get closer than six points the rest of the way. Marian will return home for two league match-ups next week, beginning with Edgewood College (5-2, 3-1 NACC) Wednesday, Dec. 11, at 7 p.m. MILWAUKEE, Wis. (SabreAthletics.com) – It needed overtime to do it, but the Marian University men's basketball team went on to win its Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference road opener with an 84-82 victory over host Wisconsin Lutheran College inside the Recreation Complex, this evening, Dec. 5.
After overcoming a 10-point first-half deficit and scoring on their first four overtime possessions, the Sabres won their third straight game, moved to 3-0 in the conference, and ended the night as the last remaining league unbeaten. Senior Cody Veleke became the 15th member of the 1,000-point club at Marian with a season-high 24 points in 35 minutes. The Oakfield native added a season-high 11 rebounds to record his first double-double of the season as well. Marian put four scorers in double figures as Sam Koslowski also eclipsed a season-high with 21 points, while Elan Solvik and Drew Binversie tallied 13 points apiece. The Sabres improved to 4-3 overall, 3-0 in the NACC with the win, while the Warriors dropped to 3-3 (1-2 NACC) with the loss. Wisconsin Lutheran came out firing on all cylinders after racing out to 16-6 lead less than four minutes into the game. Marian slowly battled back, pulling within two points on three separate occasions, capped by two Koslowski free throws at the end of the first half to bring the halftime score to 37-35. The Sabres quickly gained their first lead since the opening minute with Veleke was left all alone in the left corner and knocked down a three-pointer to make it 44-41 with 17:23 left. Marian then matched their largest lead of the game when Montrell Hobbs hit a jumper from the right wing with 14:26 left in the second, forcing WLC to take a timeout. It proved to be an effective one as the Warriors responded with an 11-2 run capped by a Kyle Stelse jumper to take a 56-55 lead. For the remainder of regulation, the Sabres and Warriors would trade leads seven more times. Trailing 64-61 with 3:28 left in the second half, Binversie brought the Sabres back. The sophomore from Valders sank two free throws before knocking down a jumper to score four consecutive points and give the Sabres a 65-64 lead with 1:02 left in regulation. After a WLC turnover, Veleke was fouled and split a pair of free throws to make it a two-point lead. WLC's Jake Jarnigo then hit a fall away jumper to tie the game at 66-66 with 20 seconds left. Koslowski would get a three-pointer away from the left wing with one second left, but it hit off the iron and the game went to overtime. The Warriors entered the night as the league-leaders in rebounding margin, besting their opponents by an average of 5.8 rebounds per night through their first five games. The Sabres, who held the league's second best average at 5.0 more than doubled that number with a plus-13 rebounding margin tonight, using 17 offensive rebounds to dominate the Warriors, 43-30, on the glass. Those 17 offensive caroms led to a 16-8 advantage in second-chance points. In the extra session, the Sabres would net eight second-chance points, six of those coming on three of the first four possessions to give the Sabres a 75-69 lead at the 2:21 mark. Trying to will his team from behind, Jarnigo – who scored a team-high 22 points – hit fall away jumper after fall away jumper to keep the game close, but Marian free throws sealed the deal down the stretch. Jarnigo led four Warriors in double figures as Stelse added 15 points followed by 14 and 12 by Brett Lubbe and Taylor Chladek, respectively. The Sabres shot 44.1 percent (30-for-68) from the field compared to 46.7 percent (28-for-60) for the Warriors. Marian netted 22 points off 13 WLC turnovers and outscored their counterparts 42-26 in the paint. Alone in first place in the conference, the Sabres will head to Rockford University, which defeated previously unbeaten Aurora University tonight, this Saturday, Dec. 6. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. FOND DU LAC, Wis. (SabreAthletics.com) – A 24-9 advantage from its bench and a solid effort down the stretch led the Marian University men's basketball team to a 62-53 home win over MSOE and moved the Sabres to 2-0 in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference for the first time since the 2007-08 season.
Seniors Sam Koslowski and Cody Veleke led the way for Marian with 14 and 12 points, respectively. Elan Solvik set a career-high with a game-high 11 rebounds to go with his seven points, while Montrell Hobbs once again turned in a double digit effort off the bench with 10 points and six rebounds. Austin Stueck scored 12 of his game-high 18 points in the first half to become the lone Raider in double figures. MSOE shot just 38.8 percent (19-for-49) in the contest, while the Sabres registered a steady 44 percent (22-of-50) from the field. Eight second-half turnovers resulted in 11 Sabre points. Marian improved to 3-3 overall, 2-0 in the NACC with the win, while MSOE suffered its first loss, falling to 3-1 (1-1 NACC). Trailing 35-28 early in the second half, the Sabres embarked on a 12-0 run that turned the tide of the game. Back-to-back three's by Koslowski and Drew Binversie started the run, followed by contributions from Solvik, Hobbs and James Bartelt. The Sabres would fall behind once more when MSOE grabbed a 50-47 advantage with 7:49 left. However, an 8-0 Marian run would ensue and the Sabres regained momentum and the lead, one they would not relinquish. Marian trailed by three heading into halftime as Stueck's 12 points paced the Raiders to a 29-26 lead at the break. Hobbs led the Sabres with eight first half points and five rebounds, giving the hosts a tremendous boost with one of their leaders, Mike Keller, battling foul trouble. Marian outscored MSOE, 32-24, in the paint and finished with a 39-26 edge in rebounds. The Sabres will continue its busy week with their first league road test at Wisconsin Lutheran College Thursday, Dec. 5. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. |
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