DULUTH, Minn. – The UW-River Falls men's basketball team improved to 2-1 overall on the year on Wednesday evening, defeating the College of St. Scholastica 77-76 in overtime.

After the home team tied the game up with under 30 seconds left in regulation to force overtime, the Falcons and Saint battled back-and-forth with five lead changes throughout the overtime period. Big free throws by Noah Hanson down the stretch helped seal the non-conference win for UWRF, as his seventh made free throw with 11 seconds left in the game stood as the game-winner. 

Hanson led the Falcons with a season-high 23 points, including four three-pointers. Rodrick Payne followed with a season-high 16 points and Marshall Holland notched a game-high 13 rebounds. Bryce Phillips tallied four assists along with a pair of steals.
 
In the first half, the Falcons shot 40 percent from the field and held a 23-16 advantage in rebounds, led by seven boards in the first 20 minutes from Holland.
 
After the home team opened the night with a lead through the first seven minutes, Dylan Parker gave the Falcons their first lead of the night at 13-12 with 11:51 remaining in the first half.
 
UWRF led by as many as nine, including an 11-2 run that was capped off by a pair of free throws by Holland to give the Falcons a 22-14 lead with just under eight minutes left in the opening half.
 
CSS responded on a 12-9 run to close out the half, trimming the UWRF lead to 31-26 heading into the locker room.
 
The Falcons didn't let the Saints lead despite CSS slowly working their way back into the game, cutting the UWRF lead to two points several times. With just 25 seconds remaining in regulation, a pair of Saints free throws tied the game at 64-64 to force overtime.

UWRF shot 30-for-64 from the field on the night, and 5-for-17 from beyond the arc. The Falcons led 50-38 on points in the paint and led 47-39 in rebounds.

UW-River Falls hosts Augsburg University this Saturday, Nov. 13 for the home opener at Page Arena.