Lakeland University again took care of business at the free throw line down the stretch, withstanding a late dry spell from the field and doing just enough to hold off Silver Lake College 80-77 Wednesday night in a non-conference men's basketball game.
The Muskies made seven of eight from the line and also got enough defensive stops late to survive and win their fifth straight. Lakeland improved to 12-0 all-time against Silver Lake and defeated the Lakers for the 11th straight year, though the margin this time was the closest of any game in series history.
The Muskies (6-2 overall) had another spotty offensive night, shooting 36.8% from the field (28 of 76). Still, they did enough to lead for all but just over two minutes in the early going, though that lead was tenuous much of the way and especially after the Lakers came back from double-digit deficits on two occasions.
In fact, Silver Lake (2-11 overall) quickly sliced a 12-point deficit to two late in the game, when Thomas Bullock's fast break layup made it 71-69 with 4 minutes 34 seconds to play. Lakeland would finish the game with just one field goal in the final 6:30, but still had enough to hold off the visitors from Manitowoc and never surrender the lead.
Eric Nygaard (
Sr.-Plymouth, Wis.) made two free throws to push the lead to 73-69, and
Jequan Pegeese (
So.-Beloit, Wis.) followed another Silver Lake bucket with two more foul shots to make the lead four again.
Don Joachim (
Fr.-Joliet, Ill.) then knifed inside for a layup to push the lead to 77-71 with 2:19 left, though Bullock's three-point play shortly after sliced the lead in half.
Silver Lake had four shots over the next two minutes in a one-possession game, but the Muskies' defense came through.
Shakur Jinad (
Jr.-Chicago, Ill.),
Trenton Nickel (
So.-Kiel, Wis.) and
Garrett Duffin (
Sr.-Princeton, Ill.) grabbed big defensive rebounds, and Duffin finally salted it away with two free throws with 12 seconds left to push the lead to five, enough margin to withstand Patrick Walls banking in a three-pointer as time expired.
Lakeland had to fight off the stubborn Lakers all night, including in the first half when the guests cut a 17-point deficit to six in the final four minutes before halftime. The Muskies went on a 25-7 run to take a 41-24 lead late in the half on Joachim's jumper, but Silver Lake finished the half on a 13-2 run of its own to close within 43-37.
Jinad scored 21 points and added nine rebounds, Duffin also scored 14 with nine boards and Pegeese added 12 points plus five rebounds. Lakeland also received a lift from its bench as Joachim scored 11 points, including 10 in the first half, and Nickel came on in the second half to score four points and added two assists.
Silver Lake outrebounded the Muskies 52-44, a big chunk of which came from Michael Cantre, who scored 19 points and added 21 rebounds. The Lakers shot 38.6% (27 of 70) and also committed 17 turnovers, seven more than Lakeland.
The Muskies are back on the road in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference on Saturday when they travel to face Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago at 4:15 p.m.
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