NEW ULM, Minn. --- The Sabercats' first win of the season was put on hold after a road trip to Minnesota, as they fell 62-92 to Bethany Lutheran College before losing a down-to-the-wire faceoff, 74-75 to Martin Luther College. 

The Basics

• Result: Sabercats 74-75 Knights
• Venue: Martin Luther College
• Attendance: 214
• Sabercats: now 0-3, Knights: now 1-2

How it Happened

• 1st Half
  • Throughout the game, the lead changed hands all of 14 times, as the game was never set one way or the other. 
  • The entire first half stayed at least a two-possession game as the two teams went back and forth. 
  • The Sabercats shot well enough from the field (50%) but struggled from beyond the arc, knocking down just one of their nine shots.
  • Zach Terpstra led the Sabercats with nine points, and five other players contributed five or more points in a well-rounded first-half effort.
  • At the end of the first half, the Sabercats came back from a six-point deficit to lead by three points. Micah Shepard was responsible for four of the nine points in the Sabercats' late run. (38-35)
• 2nd Half
  • The game went right down to the wire, but not before Shepard put up 14 points for a game total of 20- just two points shy of a career-high for the junior out of Little Rock.
  • The Sabercats improved from deep but did not shoot as well as they did in the first half. In the half, the Sabercats shot 36.7 percent from the field.
  • The Sabercats began the second half by inching out to their largest lead of the night when Shepard drilled a three-pointer to put the Sabercats up 44-35 with just over 17 minutes on the clock.
  • From then on, the Knights steadily chipped away at that lead, taking the lead back five minutes later at 49-51.
  • The lead was then transient for both teams, as the match came down to the final minute with the Sabercats leading by one.
  • Two turnovers at crucial times significantly influenced the events of the last 60 seconds, as the Knights turned a steal into a three-pointer to go up by two points with 13 seconds on the clock.
  • Micah Shepard answered with a clutch layup with two seconds left, but on the ensuing in-bounds, the Sabercats fouled to give Jeffrey Parker a chance to win the game for the Knights. Parker made no mistake, as he made a decisive free throw and missed his second to give the Sabercats one second to tie the game. 
  • It would not be enough, as the Sabercats could not get the shot off at the end of the scintillating finish. (74-75)   

From Coach Keith

"We are disappointed with the result, but very happy with our effort - we made a lot of improvement since Tuesday. We are improving, and we are moving the ball a lot better as a team. We were looking at a win with 15 seconds left, and had a couple calls that did not go our way. Overall, I'm proud of our guys and we are looking forward to more improvement as the season progresses."

Up Next

• The Sabercats return to action on November 29th when they travel to Lincoln Christian to play at 6:00 PM.