Balanced scoring guides No. 16 DWU against Briar Cliff

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – It was a season sweep for the 16^th-ranked Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball team over Briar Cliff University in an 86-76 final. Four DWU players scoring double figures, including a career high from Sawyer Schultz (Emery, S.D.) guided DWU to the Great Plains Athletic Conference victory Wednesday at the Newman Flanagan Center in Sioux City, Iowa.

 Schults got off to a hot start as he knocked down a trey in the opening minutes. Mason Larson (Langford, S.D.) knocked down another 3-point basket to push the DWU lead to eight points. The Tigers (15-4, 11-3 GPAC) held Briar Cliff scoreless for almost five minutes until they notched their first points of the contest.

 Nick Harden (Chicago, Ill.) and Jeffrey Schuch (Dell Rapids, S.D.) converted on consecutive baskets to keep the lead in double figures. Free throws guided DWU through a portion of the first half as Harden and Ace Zorr (Harrisburg, S.D.) made six shots from the charity stripe midway through the half.

 Harden and Koln Oppold (Sioux Falls, S.D.) buried back-to-back shots from beyond the arc to extend the Tiger lead to 16 points with nine minutes left in the half.

 Schultz sparked the offense again five minutes later with another 3-pointer, followed by another shot from downtown with 66 seconds to play in the half. After the Chargers (11-11, 8-9 GPAC) converted the old-fashioned three-point play with under two seconds left, DWU tossed the ball over halfway down the court, as Teegan Evers (Huron, S.D.) dished the ball to Schuch who drained his 3-pointer at the buzzer.

 Briar Cliff chipped away at the DWU lead in the opening minutes of the second frame until they pulled within six points. However, Schultz knocked down a 3-point basket, while Larson made a shot of his own to push the lead back to 11 points.

 With just under 12 minutes to play, the Chargers found their rhythm on the offensive end and made it a three-point game, forcing a DWU timeout.

 After an empty possession out of the timeout, Schultz found himself open from beyond the arc once again, knocking down yet another shot.

 DWU held a double-figure lead for most of the second half until Briar Cliff cut the lead to nine points with less than three minutes to play. The Chargers attempted one final comeback, but free throws for the Tigers helped secure the road victory.

 Harden scored a game-high 26 points, as Schultz poured in a career-high 22 points on 5-of-8 shooting from 3-point range. Larson fell just short of a double-double as he posted 13 points and nine boards, while Schuch added 12 points and eight rebounds.

 The Tigers outrebounded Briar Cliff 40-25 and held the Chargers to just 31.3% shooting from 3-point range. The Blue and Gray shot just shy of 51% from the field and finished 47.8% from beyond the arc.

 DWU closes out its three-game road stand with a GPAC matchup against Hastings College at 4 p.m. on Saturday in Hastings, Neb.