Box Score ROSEVILLE, Minn. — Crown Men's Basketball's season ended on Thursday evening as they fell to the Northwestern Eagles 106-85 in St. Paul. The Eagles lit it up from downtown, making 10 of 20 attempts in the first half to take a commanding halftime lead. In the second half, junior Timothy Wendel battled foul trouble after picking up his fourth with 11:08 remaining in the game and fouled out with 2:34 seconds to "MVP" chants from the Crown faithful. The Eagles held a solid lead continuously after the break as they held on to defeat the Storm.
The Storm finish their season with one of their most successful seasons in their NCAA-era history, with 16 regular season wins and 17 total wins. Despite not winning tonight, they remain the only team in the UMAC that have beaten the Eagles this season.
"This group was really special because we play for each other. We wanted it this season; we were hungry for it," said senior guard Keegan Oyugi. "It's about playing with some of your best friends and some of the bonds that were bigger than basketball. I'm blessed to be here and blessed to have the guys around me. I wouldn't have asked for it differently."
Senior guard Josh Volness led the team with 20 points in the contest in his last game for the Storm on 7/12 shooting from the field. Wendel added 17 points with five rebounds in the contest. Junior forward Gunnar Ledin scored 13 points on 4/7 shooting from the field, and Chris Moore led with 12 points off the bench and added seven rebounds to lead the Storm. Junior Kole Jusczak had three points and senior Keegan Oyugi had 11 points to finish out the starting lineup.
The Storm fans showed up in full force, bringing fan buses for a black out and proved once again to be one of the strongest fan bases in the UMAC. With 44 seconds left in the game, the Crown fans gave the seniors a standing ovation as Head Coach Luke Herbert subbed them out for the last time.
Senior forward Logan Strand scored five points off the bench and senior D'Andre Caster had seven points. Junior wing Terry Ledin received his first action after missing the past five contests due to National Guard duty. Senior guard Adam Lechelt also received minutes in the matchup and had an assist in the contest.
Notes: The Eagles ended up shooting 52% in the contest, and 39% from three-point range. The Storm shot 53% and 32% in comparison. The Storm shot much better from range in the second half, making seven second-half shots from downtown.
Crown looks to continue their success of making the playoffs two straight years, both times hosting a playoff game. The Storm are poised to return forward multiple starters including their leading scorer Wendel.
