WATERTOWN, WI – The Principia men's basketball team traveled up to Wisconsin on Saturday to face the Maranatha Baptist Sabercats. The Panthers came back from down ten late in the game to end their seven game slide on a game-winner in the final seconds by
Nolan Simon.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair with the Panthers leading by a slim margin for the first 13 minutes. The Sabercats grabbed the lead for the next six minutes until a three-pointer by Simon gave the lead back to Principia with a minute left until halftime. Maranatha had the final say and took a 38-36 advantage into the break.
The two teams traded leads for the first eight minutes of the second half with Simon and
Xavier McDowell hitting early threes. The Sabercats took control from there and slowly built a ten point lead with 5:20 remaining. Some big buckets by Simon,
Mikhali Roberts, and
Jai Smith got Principia back in the game, and two clutch free throws by Smith tied the contest at 76 with 37 seconds to go. After a Maranatha miss and important defensive rebound by
Derek Schauman, Simon dribbled the ball up the court for the final possession. As he passed the top of the key, he cut left on a crossover and nailed a 20-foot jumper with a second left to give the Panthers their second win of the season.
Nolan Simon's huge game included 31 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 5 steals, while
Mikhali Roberts earned a big double-double of 24 points and a season-high 18 rebounds. After returning recently from an injury,
Jai Smith had the best game of his season with 9 points off the bench.
The Panthers will play one more home game before the holiday break when they host Williams Baptist University this Tuesday at 5:00 PM in Hay Field House.
