MORRIS, Minn. – The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Game of the Week came down to the final few minutes, but the St. Scholastica Saints were able to outlast the University of Minnesota Morris men's basketball team, 78-72. Senior Noah Grove scored 15 points to move into third all-time in points scored in school history with 1,379.

Along with Grove's 15 points, Trey Heinsuis and Nick Peterson each scored 11 points, while Kenneth Riley chipped in 10 points. The Cougars (7-12, 4-6 UMAC) out-rebounded the Saints (10-9, 7-4 UMAC), 45-34, which included 10 rebounds from Jeffrey Halverson.

A back-and-forth contest in the first half, the game remained within nine points over the first 20 minutes of action.

With 9:09 left in the first half, Collin Anderson hit a 3-pointer to give St. Scholastica its largest lead of the first half (24-15). The Cougars then went on a 12-3 run to tie the contest at 27-27 on a layup from James Pendleton with 5:29 to go in the first half. With 24 seconds remaining in the opening half, Jeremy Halverson's 3-pointer was good to make it 43-40 in favor of St. Scholastica.

Coming out of the halftime break, Heinsuis stole the ball from Quinn Fischer, which led to a 3-pointer from Grove to tie things up at 43-43 just 33 seconds into the second half.

St. Scholastica held a 57-53 lead and then used a 13-0 run to extend its lead to 70-53 with 9:31 left in regulation. The Cougars then went on a 19-5 run, which was capped off by a 3-pointer from Jer. Halverson with 1:21 left to cut St. Scholastica's lead to 75-72. The Saints made their final three free throws down the stretch and picked up the 78-72 win.

The Cougars are back in action at home on Wednesday, Jan. 30, against Crown College. The game is slated for a 7:15 p.m. start at Jim Gremmels Court. Prior to the women's game at 5:30 p.m., fans are invited to attend the Dacotah Deck dedication starting at 5 p.m. upstairs at the Cougar Sports Center.