A slow start from the Briar Cliff men's basketball team was too much to overcome, as Dakota Wesleyan held the lead from start to finish. The Chargers fall to 11-11 overall and 8-9 in the GPAC after falling 86-76 to the Tigers in the Newman Flanagan Center Wednesday.
 
"Our guys really battled for 40 minutes tonight after a rough start," said head coach Mark Svagera. "We settled in a little bit and gave ourselves a chance."
 
Dakota Wesleyan jumped out to an early 17-4 lead seven minutes into the contest. The Chargers outscored DWU 29-27 over the final 13 minutes of the first half but trailed by 11 (44-33) at halftime. Nick Harden led the Tigers in the opening half with 14 points, while Conner Groves and Ethan Freidel paced the Cliff with eight points apiece.
 
"You look at the halftime score and we're down 11 after they hit a three at the buzzer. I felt like a lot of ways it could have been 18-to-20 point deficit," said Svagera.  "We battled back and to cut it to 3 there in the second half is a credit to the guys for sticking with it and not folding which could have very easily happened."
 
Briar Cliff began to chip away at the Tiger lead with an 8-3 run to start the second half, trailing by six (47-41). Back-to-back treys from Groves and Jaden Kleinhesselink followed by a pull-up jumper from Quinn Vesey cut the deficit to just three points, 57-54 with 11:33 remaining.
 
A DWU timeout ended the Charger run with the Tigers outscoring BC 15-5 over the next five minutes to push the lead back to double digits. Five quick BC points off two Tiger turnovers brought the game within eight points with 2:50 left. DWU would ice the game from the free throw line, converting seven-of-eight in the final 2:30 of regulation.
 
Kleinhesselink scored 21 points, had seven rebounds, and tallied four steals. Groves added 18 points and six boards. Vesey chipped in 17 points for the Cliff going 4-for-8 from the 3-point line. Quinten Vasa dished out a team-high six assists while grabbing six rebounds. BC held the advantage in steals (11-3) and points off turnovers (22-8).
 
BC held the advantage in steals (11-3) and points off turnovers (22-8). DWU held the edge in rebounds (40-25), field goal percentage (50%-43%), and second chance points (13-6).
 
Nick Harden had a game-high 26 points for the Tigers, going 10-of-12 from the free throw line and 7-for-13 from the field. Sawyer Schultz had 22 points making 5-of-8 3-point attempts. Mason Larson nearly missed a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds.
 
"Right now, we are a little frustrated because we feel we are really close to breaking through and playing really well," said Svagera. "We need to find a way to make that happen over the next few weeks, as we draw a close to the regular season."
 
Briar Cliff will look ahead to a matchup with Jamestown next Wednesday in the Newman Flanagan Center. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.