Trailing by 11 points with six minutes and 35 seconds left in the game, the No. 11-ranked Benedictine men’s basketball team used a 15-5 run to erase their deficit and earn a comeback win over Graceland University on Thursday night.
Benedictine (19-6, 12-3 HAAC) used their highest 3-point total since Jan. 11 to earn a 70-66 win over Graceland (14-12, 6-9 HAAC) and move into a two-game lead over the field in the HAAC standings.
The Ravens led by as much as 12 points in the first half before Graceland briefly took a lead in the final 90 seconds of the half.
Leading 30-29 at the half, Benedictine pushed ahead early in the second half by as much as seven points before Graceland battled back to tie the game at 40 points with 14 minutes and 45 seconds left in the game.
The Yellowjackets took over the lead, outscoring the Ravens 16-5 over the next seven minutes before Benedictine started to come back to life.
Brett Fisher connected on one of his team-high six 3-pointers with two mintues and 47 seconds left in the game to push the Ravens up, 60-59 and capped off Benedictine’s 15-5 run that pushed them to the win.
Benedictine never looked back as two points would be all the closer that Graceland would get as Jonathan Anaekwe converted a pair of free throws with 16 seconds remaining to seal the win for the Ravens.
The Ravens finished the game knocking down 50-percent from beyond the arc as they converted 10 of 20. It was the seventh time this season, the Ravens had converted at least 10 3-pointers in a single game.
Defensively, they limited Graceland to just 4 of 16 from beyond the arc. Thursday marked the 12th time in 25 games the Raven defense held their opponent to five 3-pointers or fewer.
Fisher finished with a team high 18 points for the Ravens as he finished 6 of 7 from beyond the arc. Charlie Wallrapp added 17 points, narrowly missing his third straight double-double with 9 rebounds. Steven O’Brien and John Harris Jr. chipped in with 9 points each to round out the Ravens top scorers.
The Ravens hit the road Sunday for a 4 p.m. game in Marshall, Mo., against Missouri Valley College. The game was moved to Sunday due to a schedule conflict at Missouri Valley. The Vikings are hosting one of the NAIA regional wrestling tournaments on Saturday, forcing the game to Sunday.
— BC Sports Information —