ST. LOUIS (blugolds.com) — The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's basketball team wrapped up the Lopata Classic with a 78-71 defeat to Babson College on Saturday at Washington University in St. Louis. The Blugolds erased a 14-point deficit, but a late run by the Beavers sunk UW-Eau Claire's chances.
UW-Eau Claire (1-3) faced a double-figure deficit for the second straight game, but unlike in their tournament-opening loss to Hanover on Friday, the Blugolds were able to rally against Babson (2-2). The Beavers — who sat just outside the Top 25 in d3hoops.com's national preseason poll — led by 14 in the first half, but UW-Eau Claire clawed back into it to tie the game at 63 with 5:29 remaining in the second half. However, Babson immediately went on an 8-1 run and never looked back, holding on for the win.
Despite falling into a double-digit deficit before halftime, the Blugolds got out to a strong start across the first eight-plus minutes of the game. A 7-0 run put UW-Eau Claire ahead 14-8 with 11:46 left until halftime. However, the Beavers went on a 12-2 spurt in the late stages of the first half to go ahead by 14, and eventually led 42-30 at halftime.
The Blugolds slowly whittled away at that deficit throughout the second half, and eventually tied the game on a jumper by
Carter Huschka (Sr. - Farmington, Minn.) to make it 63-63 at the 5:29 mark. But Babson answered with two quick layups and a jumper to retake the lead, and the Blugolds couldn't fully bounce back. They cut the lead to 71-69 with 2:12 left, but Babson ended the game on a 7-0 to see out its victory.
Huschka had a team-high 18 points for the Blugolds and added six rebounds.
Cade Hall (Sr. - Mauston, Wis.) had 12 points and three assists.
Michael Casper (Sr. - Merrill, Wis.) and
Carter Lichtsinn (So. - Olathe, Kan./Olathe West) had 11 points apiece.
Drew Maloney (Jr. - St. Charles, Minn.) grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
UW-Eau Claire shot 50% from the field and 32% from 3-point range. Babson shot 52% overall and 42% from 3.
The Blugolds' next game is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 25. They travel to take on Milwaukee School of Engineering in a road game that tips off at 1 p.m.
