MORRIS, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris men's basketball team's season came to an end at the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Championship on a Bethany Lutheran College buzzer-beater, falling 76-75 Saturday afternoon in Morris, Minn.
 
The Cougars end their season with a 14-13 record.
 
Baskets were traded early, with Gustav Gunderson and Kaden Pieper scoring for the Cougars. A layup from Matt Thompson gave Minnesota Morris its first lead at 6-4. A Pieper layup followed by a Thompson three-pointer pushed the edge to six. The Vikings pulled within one, but LeRoy Staples-Fairbanks IV went on a five-point run with a layup and three-pointer. Brian LaRoche Jr. and Jase Nelson each added a three-pointer. The Cougars gained a double-digit lead after Carvin Fish went 2-for-2 at the free-throw line. In the final minutes, Staples-Fairbanks hit another three and Fish added more free throws to give Minnesota Morris a 41-32 advantage at halftime.
 
Fish started the scoring in the second half with a layup in the opening minute. Thomas Tiernan pushed the lead to 12 with another three-pointer. After the Vikings scored five in a row, Fish added four to maintain the double-digit edge. Points continued to be traded until the 10-minute mark, when Gunderson converted from three to put UMM up 63-52. Bethany Lutheran then went on a 13-point run to take the lead for the first time since the opening minutes of the game.
 
With just over four minutes left, Pieper swung the lead back to Minnesota Morris with a three-pointer. After a BLC layup put the Vikings up by one, Pieper answered with another triple. Two free throws by Thompson gave the Cougars a four-point lead with 1:27 left. Thompson then banked in a jumper to push the lead to five with 45 seconds remaining. After two free throws and a layup, the Vikings were within one with seven seconds remaining. BLC fouled, and Minnesota Morris missed the front end of a one-and-one. The Vikings took the ball down the court, and as time expired, Brady Ingersoll connected to give Bethany Lutheran the 76-75 victory.
 
Eight Cougars scored in the conference championship, with four reaching double figures. Thompson led the team with 17 points, Fish added 16, Pieper had 14, and Staples-Fairbanks came off the bench to score 12. As a team, UMM shot 45.3 percent from the field, 36.0 percent from three, and went 8-of-10 at the free-throw line. Tiernan had a team-high three assists.
 
Defensively, Fish recorded a double-double with 10 rebounds as the Cougars out-rebounded the Vikings 43-41. Pieper followed with seven rebounds, and Thompson grabbed six. Thompson had a game-high four steals, while Fish and LaRoche Jr. each recorded a block.