Northwood earned an 86-69 win against No. 8 Findlay on Saturday.
The Timberwolves have won five games in a row to stand 6-2 overall, 2-0 in the GLIAC. The Oilers fall to 4-1 overall, 1-1 in the GLIAC.
Northwood got off to a fast start, scoring the first 10 points of the game to take a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the day. The Timberwolves led by as many as 12 before a late Findlay rally cut the NU margin to 45-40 at the break. Both teams shot well in the half – NU finished at 51.9 percent (14-27) while Findlay connected on 16-29 attempts (55.2 percent). Northwood earned the lead thanks to going 8-14 from 3-point range, compared to Findlay at 1-7.
Findlay cut the lead down to three early in the second half but Northwood controlled the play the rest of the way. The Oilers got no closer than nine points in the final 10 minutes. NU's defense after the break was key, holding the high-powered Findlay offense to 21.2 percent from the floor (7-33) and 11.1 percent from 3-point range (1-11).
Northwood finished at 46.4 percent from the floor (26-56) while Findlay shot 37.1 percent (23-62). The 3-point line was the key to the game, as Northwood went 9-21 overall (42.9 percent) while Findlay finished 3-25 (12.0 percent). Northwood also did a great job defensively on the GLIAC Preseason Player of the Year, Greg Kahling. Kahling entered the game averaging more than 23 points per game, but finished the day with nine points while going 2-16 from the floor.
Four Timberwolves finished the game in double figures, led by Darvin Ham. He finished with 21 points and nine rebounds. Dylan Langkabel and Wes Wilcox each finished with 17 points, while sophomore guard Khalid King added a career-high 16 points.
No. 1 West Liberty 125, Notre Dame (Ohio) 103
SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- C.J. Hester scored his 1,000th career point and Seger Bonifant poured in 28 as No. 1-ranked West Liberty sprinted to a 125-103 win at Notre Dame (Ohio).
Hester became the 44th 1,000-point scorer in school history and turned in a full night's work with 23 points and a season-high 15 rebounds for his 26th career double-double. Keene Cockburn added 13 points and nine boards. Kelvin Goodwin and Devin Hoehnadded 15 and 13 points off the bench, while Harris finished with 12 points and a game-high eight assists.
Tyree Gaiter led all scorers with 29 points for the Falcons. Lawrence DeArmond added 26 points while Jarvis Huntley had 22 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in a losing cause.
No. 3 Drury 92, Central Christian 63
Cameron Adams scored 17 points, Mike Nwelue added a career-high 14 points and Ian Carter had 12 points to lead No. 3 Drury to a 92-63 victory against Central Christian in non-conference men's basketball action Saturday afternoon at the O'Reilly Family Event Center.
The Panthers moved to 7-0 on the season with their school-record 30th consecutive victory.
The Panthers pulled out of a 23-all tie midway through the second half with an 18-2 run that helped Drury build a 45-30 halftime advantage. The lead grew as high as 34 points in the second half cruising to the triumph.
Drury made 60 percent from the field (32 of 53) while limiting Central Christian, an NAIA Division II member from McPherson, Kan., playing the Panthers as an exhibition, to 35 percent (20 of 57).
No. 4 Florida Southern 79, Nova Southeastern 73
Dominic Lane had a career-high 29 points and fourth-ranked Florida Southern survived a late second-half rally here Saturday afternoon by Nova Southeastern to collect a 79-73 victory against the Sharks in the Sunshine State Conference opener for both teams at the NSU Arena.
With the win, the Moccasins improve to 9-0 on the season and 1-0 in the SSC, while NSU falls to 2-6 overall and 0-1 in the SSC. The 9-0 start is the 12th in school history and first since winning 13 straight games to open the 2009-10 season.
No. 6 Metro State 71, Regis 55
DENVER -- No. 6 Metro State pulled away from Regis University for a 71-55 win on the road on Saturday night. The Roadrunners improved to 4-1 overall, while the Rangers fell to 3-3. It was the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opener for both teams.
Brandon Jefferson scored a game-high 26 points, making 14-of-15 at the free throw line and tied a career high by recording six steals to lead Metro State. Mitch McCarron added 16 and Nicholas Kay had 12.
Metro State forced 19 turnovers and committed a season-low five.
No. 7 IUP 56, Seton Hill 54
GREENSBURG, Penn. – An 18-foot jumper by Mathis Keita (Thionville, France/Insep) with 4.8 seconds left gave seventh-ranked IUP a dramatic 56-54 win at Seton Hill in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) men's basketball action on Saturday night.
Keita's bucket broke a 54-54 tie after a 9-0 run by the Griffins. Seton Hill tied the score with 59 seconds left on a layup by Malachi Leonard, capping the run over a 5:40 span.
Seton Hill had a chance to tie or take the lead but after several timeouts by both teams, Cornell Yarde II knocked away the Griffins last effort and secured the Crimson Hawks win.
With the win, IUP improved to 7-0 on the season, including a 3-0 mark in the PSAC West.
Winona State 78, No. 9 Minnesota St.-Mankato 54
MANKATO, Minn. – Playing against a ranked opponent for the first time in his career, Riley Bambenek put together an solid performance, scoring 33 points to lead Winona State to a 78-75 victory against No. 9 Minnesota State-Mankato on Saturday in Mankato.
Bambenek connected on 12 of his 19 field goal attempts, including three from behind the 3-point line, to pace the Warriors in the victory. The freshman also led the Warriors with nine rebounds and four assists.
Winona State has now won its last three games against a Minnesota State team ranked in the nation's top 10.
No. 10 Dixie State 85, Fresno Pacific 80
Lewis Garrett scored 17 points and Dixie State put five players in double figures Saturday in a victory against Fresno Pacific.
The Red Storm got 21 second-chance points to just seven for Fresno Pacific. The Dixie State bench scored 24 point to just two for the Sunbirds.
DeQuan Thomas had 15 points for the winners while Dalton Groskreutz and Kimball Payne added 14 each. Zach Robbins added 10.
Malclom Griffin scored 23 for Fresno Pacific.
