PLYMOUTH, Wis. – The Lakeland University men's basketball team ran into a red-hot shooting opponent as the University of Northwestern (Minn.) torched the nets in defeating the Muskies 105-72 Saturday afternoon at the Moose & Dona Woltzen Gymnasium.

Northwestern shot over 60% for the game, hit 13 of 22 three-point attempts and blew open a close game early with a big run to finish the first half. Lakeland was foiled in its bid for a second win in two days and dropped to 6-5 overall after falling in its final non-conference game of the season and final game before a Christmas and holiday break.

A close game early on got away from the Muskies quickly as the Eagles (7-3 overall), members of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference, finished the first half on a 32-6 run over the final 6 minutes, 6 seconds. Northwestern made 13 of 15 shots in that stretch led by Noah Alm, who scored 22 of his game-high 25 points in the opening 20 minutes.

Alm hit 8 of 11 shots in the opening half, including 6 of 7 from three-point range. He scored 17 points in the guests' run with five three-pointers in that stretch, three coming on consecutive possessions.

While Northwestern was rolling, Lakeland sputtered, missing 10 of its final 13 shots to finish the first half. The half concluded with Alm running the clock down on the final possession, stepping back and draining his sixth three of the half just before the buzzer to give the Eagles a 57-31 lead.

The Eagles finished shooting 66.7% in the first half (22 of 33), the Muskies shot 35.1% (13 of 37) in the opening half, and not much changed in the second half. Lakeland could only get as close as 20 on two occasions midway through the half as Northwestern never cooled off, making 57.6% of its shots (19 of 33) over the final 20 minutes.

The game's start gave little indication of a blowout on the horizon, as the teams went back and forth early. The Eagles led by six briefly when Alm made a three for an 11-5 lead in the early minutes, but the Muskies closed right back up and the first 14 minutes saw nine lead changes and four ties, the final one at 25-25 after a tip-in by Isaiah Hammond (Fr.-Milwaukee, Wis.).

Hammond provided a bright spot for Lakeland with 18 points, making 8 of 12 shots. Kai Buliox (So.-Milwaukee, Wis.) also added 13 points and Jequan Pegeese (Sr.-Beloit, Wis.) scored nine points and added five assists. Greg Barber (Sr.-Miami, Fla.) also grabbed a team-high eight rebounds to go with seven points.

The Muskies finished shooting 39.0% (30 of 77) including 9 of 30 from three-point range (30.0%). Northwestern finished making 41 of 66 shots (62.1%) including 59.1% from three. Five players scored in double figures including Alm and Kyle Kaemingk, who added 22 points, and the Eagles also outrebounded Lakeland 43-32.

The Muskies now are off for the holidays and don't return to play until 2022, with their next game Jan. 5 on the road at Concordia University Chicago in River Forest, Ill.