WHEATON, Ill. – The UW-River Falls men's basketball team opened the Wheaton College Classic with an 80-73 loss versus John Carroll.
The Falcons, now 1-1 overall, will face the loser of Hanover College/No. 24-ranked Wheaton tomorrow at 5 p.m.
UWRF got off to a tough start but battled back. John Carroll led by as many as 15 with a 22-7 lead with under 12 minutes remaining in the first half. Upon a Falcon timeout, UWRF answered on 19-8 run in the next six minutes, including a
Mateo Renta layup that trimmed the Blue Streak's lead to 30-26.
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Logan Jedwabny fastbreak layup put the Falcons down by 37-34 at halftime. UWRF shot 12-of-32 from the field in the first 20 minutes.
While the Falcons improved their shooting numbers to 50 percent from the floor in the second half, John Carroll maintained its lead for the remainder of regulation.
A pair of consecutive baskets by
Rodrick Payne and
Garret Honstrom put the Falcons down 45-44 six minutes into the second half, but that was the closest UWRF would cut into the John Carroll lead.
UWRF held a 38-33 edge in rebounds, led by
Marshall Holland who totaled eight.
Logan Jedwabny led the team with 16 points, followed by 12 each from
Rodrick Payne and
Mason Anderson. Jedwabny and Anderson each tallied four three-pointers.
