Northwestern at Viterbo

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Game Time... The 16th-ranked Red Raiders travel to La Crosse, Wis. to play Viterbo University in a non-conference game on Saturday, Dec. 15 at 3:00 pm. Northwestern has won their last three games to improve to 9-2 overall. The V-Hawks of Viterbo are 4-7 overall, 0-2 in the Midwest Collegiate Conference. This will be the final game for Northwestern until they head west to play in the Holy Names Holiday Classic (Calif.) on Dec. 29-31.

Scouting Report... Viterbo University comes into this weekend's contest with a 4-7 overall record and 0-2 in MCC play. They are 3-2 in their last five games as they have defeated Illinois Tech., Cardinal Stritch and Martin Luther and lost to Waldorf and U. of Wisconsin Stevens Point, the fourth-ranked team in NCAA D-III, 91-83. Head Coach Wayne Wagner, in his ninth season with the V-Hawks, has earned MCC Coach-of-the-Year honors two times during his tenure. He returns three starters and nine letter winners from last year's squad that finished with a 6-8 league record, 11-20 overall. Eric Ambrose, a 6-0 sophomore, leads the squad this season averaging 15 points per game. He is shooting a team-best 46% from beyond the arc and has made 31/67 trifectas this season. Ambrose also has dished out a team-best 27 assists. Cornelius Bardney, a transfer from Minnesota West, is averaging 14.3 points and five rebounds per contest. Scott Buschman is the third and final V-Hawk player who is averaging double figures with 11 points per game. The 6-7 sophomore leads the team with 10 boards per game. Senior Drew Knutson (6.8ppg) and Ryan Ambrose (5.4ppg) round out the starting lineup. Greg Jefferies is the top reserve for Viterbo averaging 6.4 ppg. Jefferies and Ryan Ambrose combined for 25 three pointers this season.

Last Time Out... The Viterbo University men’s basketball team dug themselves out of a big hole but were unable to overcome it as they suffered a 91-83 loss to #4 UW-Stevens Point tonight. After falling behind by as many as 21 points midway through the second half, Viterbo University made a late surge to get themselves back into the game. Trailing 85-70 with 1:07 remaining, the V-Hawks went on a 15-4 run to cut their deficit to six with 10 seconds left. Viterbo was led by Cornelius Bardney and sophomore Eric Ambrose. Bardney scored 25 of his career high 31 points in the second half while Ambrose scored 13 of his 20 points in the final four minutes. Scott Buschman recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 14 points and a game high 15 rebounds.

Northwestern defeated Mount Marty, 71-63, for their third straight GPAC win. Trailing by 10 (24-14) with over nine minutes left in the first half, the Red Raiders went on an 18-8 over a six minute span to tie the game at 32. Northwestern then scored the final 10 points of the first half and the first four points of the second half to take their biggest lead, 46-32, with 17 minutes left. Curt Schilling led three NWC players in double figures with 20 points. Chad Schuiteman scored 14 and grabbed 12 rebounds while Andrew Stimson added 11, including 3/4 from beyond the arc. Schuiteman and Kale Wiertzema dished out four assists.

Last Meeting...Northwestern defeated Viterbo last year in Orange City, 85-66, behind 15 points by both Chad Schuiteman and Curt Schilling. Ben Brown and Travis Van Regenmorter added 11 and 10 points off the bench. Eric Ambrose led the V-Hawks with 13 points while Drew Knutson added 10.

Red Raider Notes... Northwestern is led by the senior tandem of Curt Schilling and Chad Schuiteman. Schilling, a 6-4 forward/guard, leads NWC with 21 ppg and is shooting 54% (29/54) from beyond the arc. He is also averaging 3.7 rebounds per game and ranks 10th all-time in scoring at Northwestern with 1,650 points. Schuiteman, a 6-5 forward, averages 15.3 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. He is fifth all-time in points (1,859), third in rebounds (1,229) and sixth in assists (457). Kale Wiertzema, a junior guard, averages 13.4 points per game and is second with 42 assists. Senior Mark DeYounge ranks fourth on the team with 9.5 points per game and is shooting 35% from beyond the arc. The 6-5 forward has scored 819 points in his career. Point guard Andrew Stimson averages 7.3 points and is second on the team with 15 three pointers. Ben Brown (5.3ppg), Josh Van Es (5.2ppg) and Ryan Hoogeveen (3.8ppg) are the top reserves for the Red Raiders.

Next up... Northwestern will next play in California on Dec. 29-31 as they will play at the Holy Names Classic.