Box Score
Milwaukee, Wis. – The Cardinal Stritch University Wolves men’s basketball team closed out their regular season on Saturday night with an 80-68 win over the Purdue University – North Central Panthers.
The Wolves opened the night by celebrating a couple of occasions. Head coach Drew Diener was the barer of many gifts as he presented a plaque to Brandon D’Amico (Geneva, Ill.) celebrating his 1,000th career point.
Along with D’Amico, it was senior night on Saturday as the Stritch fans celebrated the last regular season home game for Kody Braddix (Glendale, Ariz.), Nate Lemmens (Rhinelander, Wis.), Milutin Mirjacic (Uzice, Serbia), and Trey Triplett (Lisle, Ill.). Each player was presented with a framed action photo from coach Diener to commemorate their career as Wolves.
After all the pregame presentations wrapped up, the Wolves went to business on the court taking a 14-point lead heading into halftime at 42-28. The offense, which shot 52 percent from the floor, was led by Triplett and Braddix as the pair combined for 21 first half points.
Not only were the Wolves solid offensively in the first half, but they were also solid defensively as they force the visiting Panthers into 10 turnovers with six of them coming by way of the steal by Stritch players.
The second half would play extremely physical as the teams would combine for 28 personal fouls in the half alone. However, the Wolves would outlast the Panthers for the 11-point win.
As they’ve done all year long, the seniors would contribute in a big way to the win. Triplett would lead all players in total points with 22 and also add seven rebounds, Braddix would finish the game with 16 points, Lemmens would add six assists and four steals, while Mirjacic would hall in six rebounds on the night.
The Panthers, who lost their 21st game of the season, were led in scoring by Ryan Sisson (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and his 22 points.
The win not only closes out the regular season for Stritch, but also gives them a 26-4 overall record and a perfect record in conference at 12-0. With action still happening in the CCAC still happening, the Wolves won’t know who they will face in the conference tournament.
However, the Wolves do know they will have a first round by in the tournament and host a semifinals game on Thursday, Feb. 25