PhotosNORTHFIELD, Minn. - UW-River Falls had five players in double figures, led by Jon Christensesn's 20 points, as the Falcons edged No. 15 St. Olaf 80-77 in a non-conference men's basketball game on Saturday afternoon.
The UW-River Falls win offset a 28-point performance by the Oles'
Riley Aeikens. Aeikens went 9-for-17 from the field, 4-for-8 from three and added eight rebounds.
Justin Pahl added 17 points and
Ben Figini 15 and seven rebounds.
Pahl missed game-tying 25-foot three-pointer at the buzzer after the Falcons' Garret Pearson missed a free throw. Pearson had 16 points while Jack Herum, CJ Lweis and Brenna Witt each had 10.
St. Olaf led by five at the half, 36-31, but UW-River Falls scored the first five points of the second half. The Falcons led by as many as 12, with 1:13 left, before St. Olaf used an 11-3 run to get within a basket. The Falcons shot a blistering 58.3 percent from the floor in the second half.
The loss comes 10 days after St. Olaf rallied to get within a score of No. 9 UW-Stevens Point, but a game-tying three as the buzzer by Aeikens hit the front rim.
The Oles will host Augsburg College on Tuesday in the MIAC opener for both schools.
