The Benedictine University men's basketball team came up short in its bid for a season sweep of Aurora, falling 87–78 on the road Wednesday night.
FINAL SCORE
Aurora 87, Benedictine 78
THE DETAILS
Benedictine battled throughout but was unable to overcome key runs by the host Spartans.
- Ryan Sammons gave the Eagles an early 11–9 edge with a three-pointer at the 16:37 mark of the first half.
- Aurora answered with a 9–0 surge to move in front 18–11 with 13:07 remaining in the half.
- The Spartans pushed the lead to eight before Benedictine trimmed the deficit to 34–32 on a three from Nathan LaPlant.
- Aurora opened the second half with six straight points to extend the margin to 40–32 with 18:06 to play.
- After falling behind by 11 following a dunk at the 16:37 mark, Benedictine responded with a 14–0 run, taking the lead on a Ryan Tucker three-pointer with 11:49 remaining.
- The hosts countered with eight unanswered points to reclaim control and lead by nine with 8:59 left.
- Aurora later stretched the advantage to 12, and the Eagles could get no closer than seven down the stretch.
STAT LEADERS
- Benedictine shot 29.7 percent in the first half but improved to 43.7 percent after the break, finishing at 36.2 percent overall.
- Aurora controlled the boards, holding a 47–33 rebounding advantage.
- Five Eagles scored in double figures, led by 18 points from LaPlant off the bench.
- Brandon McCoy added 16 points, Noah Mason contributed 15, and Sammons finished with 14 points and seven assists.
- Tucker also reached double figures with 10 points.
UP NEXT
Benedictine (9–15, 8–9 NACC) closes out the regular season Saturday afternoon at Wisconsin Lutheran.
