ST. PAUL, Minn. - The UW-River Falls men's basketball team fell 82-75 at Hamline University Saturday afternoon.
The loss snaps the Falcons' three-game winning streak and moves UWRF's overall record to 4-4 on the season.
A tight contest featured nine lead changes and seven knotted scores with the Falcons and Pipers going back and forth until the home team took control late in regulation. Hamline shot efficiently from the field at 50 percent, led by a 36-point effort from Bradley Cimperman, who shot 11-of-14.Â
UWRF shot 26-of-60 from the field and 10-of-27 from beyond the arc while the Pipers had the edge in rebounds, 37-30. The Falcons forced 13 Piper turnovers, led by four steals from
Marshall Holland, who also had a team-high five assists.
Zac Johnson led the Falcons with 23 points and six rebounds, followed by a career-high 20 points from
Jack Leifker.
Down by as many as eight over eight minutes into the game trailing 17-8, UWRF put together a 14-2 run in the following few minutes, capped off by a
Jake Reeck triple to give the Falcons a 25-22 lead. Hamline answered though with a pair of three-pointers and didn't let the Falcons retake the lead until the second half, leading 36-35 at the break.
Hamline shot nearly 60 percent from the field in the second half while holding UWRF to a 4-of-16 from from three-point range. Twice, the Falcons earned a four-point lead a few minutes into the second half, but that was the largest advantage they had as the home team regained momentum and held it for the rest of regulation.
The Falcons have an exhibition game at Division I University of St. Thomas next Thursday, Dec. 21.
Â