January 22, 2022 | by Taylor Pill

LEAD

WATERTOWN, Wis. -- Everyone seemed to be in a rhythm today, as the Sabercats picked up an 81-69 win over Finlandia in front of a full house for their first home win of the 2021-22 season.

Jed Mayhak and Caleb Moultrie led Maranatha with 13 points apiece, and the Maranatha starters combined for 58 points in the big home win.

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 81-69 Finlandia
• Venue: Main Gymnasium, Maranatha Baptist University
• Location: Watertown, Wis.
• Attendance: 249
• Records: MBU (2-13), FINU (2-18) 

STORY

The first half was riveting. Both teams came out firing, playing to win, and the Sabercats were looking like a different team from the end of last semester. Maranatha's well-balanced offense kept Finlandia guessing, as the Blue and Gold kept finding the open man for routine looks at the bucket. Jed Mayhak led Maranatha with eight points and two assists, and Dylan Woodward and Aaron Sanders contributed six points apiece.

Floating through �� �� @jedmayhak pic.twitter.com/LBiYxmrWFK

— Maranatha Athletics (@MBUSabercats) January 22, 2022

Halftime hit, and the Sabercats went into the locker room with an earned confidence.

The second half story had more to do with Finlandia's defense than anything else. The Lions switched from their usual zone to a high press, and the Sabercats had a tough time dealing with the pressure. Ethan Cooper spiked the energy in the gymnasium with a quick steal and a bucket for four straight Sabercat points, but the biggest lead Maranatha could maintain was just seven points through the middle stretches of the second half.

Sploosh ��

�� @Josh15Davis pic.twitter.com/WpRdvdCdhl

— Maranatha Athletics (@MBUSabercats) January 22, 2022

Finlandia stayed tight with key three-point shots at key times, and so the Sabercats had to rely on their free-throw shooting and lock-down defense in a tense final few minutes. Crucial steals from Josh Davis and Moultrie kept the ball in Maranatha hands, though, and Aaron Sanders and Moultrie knocked down the free throws in the clutch to lock in Maranatha's first home win of the season and their first win of 2022.

--

Maranatha Starters: 3- Mayhak, 5- Sanders, 15- Davis, 21- Moultrie, 24- Herbster // Finlandia starters: 1- Prestia, 2- Zuchak, 3- Williams, 11- Funches, 44- Jones

SOUND BITE

"We're just extremely excited to see the work we've put in pay off," said Coach Joel Borchardt. "The guys came together and they played for each other and played well. All-around great job by our guys to find opportunities on the offensive side of the ball and to play good defense on the other side. Finlandia brought pressure on us, and our guys did a great job with that and kept them from scoring on the transition. Saw a lot of guys step up and do little things to help us win the game - like Jed [Mayhak] boxing out at the end of the game so we could pick up a huge rebound. Just plays like that the no one will really recognize necessarily but that make a huge difference. Excited to see our guys step up and finish the game out even though Finlandia made a run at it."

STATS

• Moultrie: 13 PTS, 6 REB, 2 STL
• Mayhak: 13 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST
• Sanders: 12 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL
• Davis: 12 PTS, 9 REB, 2 STL
• Malachi Herbster: 8 PTS, 11 REB
• Last time: Until today, Maranatha and Finlandia had never competed in Men's Basketball
• Series: Maranatha now leads the series 1-0

OPPONENTS

• Finlandia competes in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (NCAA DIII)
• Finlandia has a young roster with nine freshmen and just one senior - 14 of the 18 players are underclassmen

NEXT

The Sabercats host Lincoln Christian on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. Details at mbusabercats.com/schedule.