One for the Books

ASHLAND, Wis. -- Thanks to some committed team defense and a career-high 29 points from Jonathan Book, MBU picked up a 75-66 win at Northland College this afternoon.

It was Book's first career double-double as well, as the senior logged 12 rebounds and six assists in a noteworthy afternoon.

• Result: Maranatha 75-66 Northland 
• Venue: Kendrigan Center, Northland College
• Location: Ashland, Wis.
• Attendance: 141
• Records: MBU (3-3), NC (2-4)

The first half consisted of momentum shifts on both a small scale and a large scale. After the two teams traded buckets in the opening minutes, the Sabercats went on a 10-3 run towards the middle of a tight first half to try to open the game up. 

But the Sabercats' nine-point lead was cut down to a single point entering halftime, as the Jacks grabbed the momentum back and knocked down a couple of three-pointers to help their cause. Throughout the opening 20 minutes, the Sabercats made it hard for the Jacks by limiting the hosts to shooting just 27.8 percent from the floor and 21.1 percent from downtown. At the other end, Book caused problems for Northland, posting 14 points in the opening half.

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Benny Larry, Jr. knocked down a couple of free throws in the opening minutes of the second half, and Northland briefly had the lead for the first time since the game had developed. But it was then that the Sabercats took off.

A layup from Rob Sonnenberg was the start of an 18-1 run for Maranatha - a run that proved to be the turning point in retrospect. While the Sabercats rushed the Jacks into missing shots, the Blue and Gold took their chances at the other end of the gymnasium, running out to 50 points before Northland could solve their problems. Maranatha did a serviceable job of throwing off Northland's rhythm, as the hosts looked to be reacting to MBU instead of calling the shots.

As the game came to a close, the Sabercats prevented Northland from changing it. The only scare the Jacks gave the Sabercats was when they fought back to within eight points with just over two minutes left. But five unanswered points from Book removed all doubt, as the Sabercats put the finishing touches on their nine-point win. At the end of the day, Northland had only held the lead for 51 seconds.

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MBU Starters: 3-Book, 11-Medina, 15-Lerma, 22-Sonnenberg, 35-Gill // NC Starters: 00-Galland, 1-Arqueros, Jr., 2-Larry, Jr., 12-Britten, 14-Moe

"I want to credit our guys for being able to bounce back after a tough loss at North Central," said Coach Keith Salscheider after the game. "Our guys had a lot of character and a lot of discipline, and they gave their best effort today, and that was great to see. Everyone that played was a vital contributor to our game today. Coach Scott [Sorenson] has done a phenomenal job with the program and he is one of the better coaches in the midwest at the DIII level, so we were fortunate to catch them on an off night."

• Book: 29 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists
• Sonnenberg: 13 points 
• MBU: shot 45.6 percent from the floor and held Northland to 28 percent
• Last year: Maranatha lost at home, 52-55
• Series: Northland leads the series, 12-6

• The Jacks are members of the NCAA DIII, participating in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference
• This season, Northland has had non-conference games against NCAA DII opponents Southwest Minnesota State and Bemidji State
• NC had an 8-8 UMAC record last year and went 12-13 overall

The Sabercats will have a week off before hosting Emmaus Bible College next Saturday at 3:00 p.m. Follow at mbusabercats.com/composite.