No. 19 Cardinal Stritch Hands Purdue Calumet 70-53 League Setback Saturday

PUC-PeregrinsThe Purdue University Calumet men’s basketball team fell to No. 19 Cardinal Stritch University, 70-53, at the Fitness and Recreation Center Saturday afternoon.

Senior guard Aaron Davis (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) led all Peregrine scorers with 15 points while junior Dayvohn Braxton (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) and senior Kaspars Brencans (Riga, Latvia/Florida Air Academy) each added nine points in the setback.

The Peregrines (9-11, 4-6 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference) took an early lead to start off the game, thanks to 3-point field goals by Davis and Braxton, which gave the Black and Gold an early 8-4 advantage with 17:04 to play in the first half.

Cardinal Stritch (15-7, 9-2) stormed back to take the lead midway through the period, after a strong effort on both sides of the ball gave the Wolves – the 2013 NAIA Division II National Champions – some momentum. Stritch went on an 11-0 run and held the Peregrines scoreless for over a seven minute span, giving the Wolves a 20-10 advantage with just under seven minutes remaining in the half.

Purdue Calumet bounced back to stop the Wolves attack, heading into the locker room trailing by just six points, 29-23, courtesy of buckets from senior Noah Allen (Flora, Ind./Carrol) and Brencans in the final two minutes.

Stritch took control for most of the second half, thanks to a 20-7 run midway through the final stanza, jumping out to a 55-37 lead with just under eight minutes left. The Wolves would hold on to their lead throughout the rest of the period to help seal their seventh-straight victory over the Peregrines.

Purdue Calumet finished the contest 38.0 percent (19 of 50) from the field compared to 50.0 percent (26 of 52) for Stritch, which outscored the Peregrines in the paint, 34-16.

Garrett Borgrud led all scorers for the Wolves with a game-high 18 points on 6 of 11 shooting wile garnering nine rebounds.

Purdue Calumet will return to action Wednesday, Jan. 28, when they travel to Elgin, Ill. to face CCAC foe Judson University. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.