HANCOCK, Mich. - The UW-Eau Claire men's basketball team swept the season series with the Finlandia Lions, winning this afternoon by a score of 79-69 at Paavo Nurmi Center.

With the win, the Blugolds improve to 14-9 overall and remain at 7-7 in the WIAC. The loss drops Finlandia to 7-13 on the season. Eau Claire dominates the all-time series between the two teams, with a 12-1 overall record.

Although the Blugolds had a tough day from the floor shooting just 34.7 percent from the field, they managed to shoot 22 for 30 from the free throw line while the Lions found the charity stripe just 15 times total.

Finlandia opened the game with a quick score to make it 2-0. The Blugolds answered shortly after with a Geoff Probst (Jr.-Moose Lake, Minn.) three pointer to take the lead. The lead would continue to change hands throughout the first half, but Eau Claire would grab hold of control late and take a 36-29 lead into halftime.

The Blugolds took little time to put the game away for good in the second half. Dominating on both sides of the ball, Eau Claire built its lead to as many as 27 down the stretch. Finlandia's last-ditch effort to make a comeback fell by the wayside as the Blugolds walked away with the 10 point victory.

Three Blugolds reached double-digits today in the win. Ryan Shea (So.-Duluth, Minn./East) led the way with 17 points and eight rebounds. Josh Prince (Fr.-Cadott, Wis./Chippewa Falls) and Colin Boone (Jr.-Eau Claire, Wis./Memorial) chipped in with 12 and 11 points, respectively. Along with nine points, Probst pulled down a game-high 11 boards.

Eau Claire returns to Zorn Arena for the final home game of the regular season against fourth-ranked UW-Platteville on Wednesday. The game will also serve as senior night and is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

Eau Claire-Finlandia Box Score

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