(Waukesha, Wis.) – The weekend's marquee men's basketball game in the Midwest Conference lived up to its top billing, as No. 16 St. Norbert College edged hosts Carroll University, 74-72, in a thriller.
 
The visitors, undefeated in league play, were pushed like no other time this season, having to rally from an 11 point second half deficit.
 
Carroll led 35-31 at halftime and extended its lead to 44-33 at 15:53 of the second half. The Green Knights then went on a quick 8-0 run to trim the deficit to three points at 14:19.
 
The Pioneers again extended to a sizeable lead, going ahead 49-41 at the 12:36 mark. Once again the defending league champions made a run, this time tying the score at 52-52 with 9:23 to play.
 
A three-pointer from Carroll's Ben Widdes at 2:02 gave the Pioneers a 69-65 lead, sending the packed house into a frenzy. But, the veteran's from St. Norbert held their composure and went on a game-clinching 7-0 run to lead 72-69 with 24 seconds remaining.
 
The Green Knights closed out the game at the free throw line in the closing seconds.
 
Widdes led Carroll with 17 points and four assists while Marcus Johnson added 15 points. Bryan Nagy chipped in with 13 points and eight rebounds.
 
The two teams mirrored each other statistically, except at the free throw line. St. Norbert outscored Carroll 19-7 from the charity stripe, which in the end made a huge difference in the game.