Falcons Make SNC Green With Envy

MEQUON, Wis. – The Falcons cruised in a battle of two of the top teams in the NACC on Wednesday night. The Falcons proved it's not that easy being green when they handed the Green Knights their third-straight loss with an 88-73 victory. The victory soars CUW to 10-9 and 9-5 in NACC play to move into second place.

"I am very proud of our team effort and they played a completely unselfish game tonight," said head coach Shawn Cassidy. "I can't say enough about players like Grant Karsten being ready and making the most of his opportunity."

The Falcons led the game wire to wire on Wednesday night. Senior Brandon Keller (Plymouth, Wis.) started the game with back-to-back layups.

A three-point basket from senior Garrett Hoffmann (Belgium, Wis.) capped off a 12-1 run for the Falcons to push the lead up to 28-15 with 8:00 minutes left in the first half.

Three free throws from junior Grant Karsten (Decatur, Ill.) gave the Falcons a 14-point lead before the Green Knights beat the buzzer to send the Falcons into halftime up 44-33.

The Falcons hosted a block party in the first half with five blocks. Junior Gabe Pruss (North Fond du Lac, Wis.) and Brandon Keller rejected two shots in the half.

The Green Knights did not fade away into the darkness and cut the deficit to eight points on multiple occasions, but that is the closest they get.

CUW ballooned the lead up to 21 points at 88-67 with a free throw from Brandon Keller.

Eight Falcons scored in the second half.

Brandon Keller led all players with 21 points and 11 rebounds in the victory.

Senior Jordan Johnson (Cedarburg, Wis.) stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

Grant Karsten finished with a season-high 17 points, while senior Joey Zietlow posted 12 points and Garrett Hoffmann finished with 10 points.

The Falcons won the rebounding battle with a 38-34 advantage.

CUW had 21 assists in the victory. Senior Jared Jurss (Sheboygan, Wis.) added six from the bench.

This is the first three-game losing streak for St. Norbert since 2009.

The Falcons host Benedictine in another battle of two of the titans in the NACC on Saturday, where CUW will celebrate senior day.