The Benedictine Men’s Basketball team battled back from as much as a 10-point deficit on Wednesday night to lead by as much as seven points over Missouri Valley College before the Vikings held off the second-half surge to earn a 66-60 win.
Benedictine (12-9, 6-9 Heart) trailed by three at the half and outscored Missouri Valley (12-11, 7-8 Heart) 17-7 over the first seven minutes of the second half to build their lead before the Vikings were able to pull back ahead and hold on for the win.
Missouri Valley started off the game strong offensively, pushing ahead by as much as seven points inside the first four minutes of play.
Benedictine pulled back within three points on an old-fashion 3-point play from Christian Hatterle only to have the momentum taken back as the Vikings held the Ravens scoreless the next six minutes to build their 10-point lead.
The Ravens answered with a seven-point run that pull them within their three-point halftime deficit and set the stage for the second half.
Counting the offensive run to end the first half, Benedictine outscored Missouri Valley 24-7 over a 14-minute span extending into the second half and looked poised to rebound from their two-game road skid last week.
Benedictine held the lead until Brody Gronewold hit a 3-pointer for the Vikings with just over four minutes left in the game to put Missouri Valley back in front 57-55.
The Vikings outscored the Ravens 9-5 over the final four minutes of the game to hang on for the win.
In a game that saw just 31 combined fouls, the Ravens went 9 for 9 from the charity stripe while Missouri Valley converted on 9 of 14.
The Vikings finished the night hitting 43.9 percent from the floor and 46.7 percent from beyond the arc, which included a 60-percent second-half effort.
Benedictine finished the game at 38.2 percent from the floor after hitting 40.6 from the floor in the second half with a 6 for 15 effort from beyond the arc.
Hatterle finished with a career high 17 points off six field goals and a 6-for-6 effort at the charity stripe while Jake Schannuth added 14 points.
Benedictine returns to the road on Saturday as they travel to Springfield, Mo., for a 4 p.m. game against Evangel University. Benedictine earned a 83-72 win over the Crusaders in Atchison during the first match up of the season on Jan. 2.
— BC Athletics —