MORRIS, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris men's basketball team defeated the University of Wisconsin-Superior 80–78 in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference play Saturday evening in Morris, Minn.
 
The Cougars improve to 9–9 overall and 4–1 in the UMAC, while the Yellowjackets fall to 5–13 overall and 1–4 in conference play.
 
Carvin Fish opened the scoring after Matt Thompson found him in the post. UW-Superior took its first lead with a three-pointer, but Gustav Gunderson answered with a layup. Thomas Tiernan extended the lead with UMM's first three-pointer, though the Yellowjackets reclaimed the advantage with back-to-back triples. A Fish layup and three-pointer put the Cougars back on top, and Thompson converted a technical free throw before Fish added two more to extend the run. Points from LeRoy Staples-Fairbanks IV and Jase Nelson pushed the lead to seven. Brian LaRoche, Jr. scored through contact for his first points of the game, and Tiernan knocked down his second three-pointer to make it an eight-point advantage. UW-Superior tied the game with under four minutes remaining, but Kaden Pieper answered on the other end. Staples-Fairbanks followed with a driving layup before the Yellowjackets pulled within one on their sixth three-pointer. Thompson responded with his first triple, and Pieper scored the final points of the half to give the Cougars a 37–31 lead at the break.
 
Fish opened the second half with a free throw and followed with a layup on the next possession. Thompson then drained a three-pointer to give the Cougars their largest lead thus far at 10. Pieper and Fish continued the early scoring for UMM before UW-Superior chipped away with a 6–2 run. Pieper ended the rally with his first three of the game, then added a driving layup to push the lead to 11. After a timeout, the Yellowjackets scored four straight points before Roche stopped the run with a three-pointer. Thompson later found Nelson cutting to the basket to maintain the Cougars' advantage.
 
The lead shrank to five with just over eight minutes remaining. After UW-Superior went 2-for-2 at the free-throw line, the Yellowjackets were within one possession. Staples-Fairbanks ended the UMM scoring drought with two free throws, and the teams traded baskets as the Cougars held a narrow edge. Pieper hit his second three-pointer and Fish added a free throw to create some separation. UW-Superior pulled within three in the final three minutes, but Fish made it a five-point game with 1:30 remaining. Fish, Gunderson, and Pieper each converted free throws in the final minute to keep it a two-possession game. With three seconds left, the Yellowjackets hit a three-pointer to pull within one, but Thompson sealed the 80–78 victory with a free throw.
 
Fish led the Cougars with 27 points, shooting 10-for-14 from the field, 2-of-3 from three-point range, and 5-of-10 at the free-throw line. Pieper followed with 18 points, while Thompson reached double figures with 10. Pieper also led the team with three assists.
 
Defensively, Thompson recorded a double-double with a game-high 12 rebounds, while Fish added eight boards. Pieper and Nelson each tallied two steals, and Fish contributed two blocks.
 
The Cougars return to action on Wednesday when they host Bethany Lutheran College at 7:15 p.m.