The frontcourt duo of Kyle Boerhave and Quinten Vasa led the Briar Cliff men's basketball team to an 83-80 win over Ottawa Friday afternoon in the Newman Flanagan Center. The two combined to score 39 points on 70.0% shooting from the floor. 
 
"That's a really gritty win for our guys today in a back-and-forth contest," said head coach Mark Svagera. "In close games with a couple really good teams, it comes down to execution. Our guys executed our late game situational basketball at a high level for the most part today."
 
The Chargers were hot from deep to start the contest, knocking down five triples in the first 10 minutes of action. A trey from Vasa at the midway point of the first half, followed by a steal from Vasa which led to a Matthew Stilwill layup gave BC a 23-16 lead. Over the final four minutes of the half, Boerhave scored eight of the Chargers 12 points as they took a 40-37 lead at half.
 
Boerhave (11), Conner Groves (10) and Vasa (9) led the Cliff in scoring in the opening half, while Ottawa's Perry Carroll led all players with 17 points. 
 
The Braves took their largest lead of the contest at the 13-minute mark of the second half, but back-to-back treys from Nick Hoyt put the Cliff back on top. A couple minutes later, Ottawa took a three-point lead again, and this time Sammy Green knocked down two straight 3-pointers to give BC a 63-60 lead. 
 
Boerhave and Vasa closed out the last eight minutes of the game scoring 12 of the Chargers final 18 points. The Chargers converted 10-of-13 attempts from the charity stripe over the final four minutes to secure the 83-80 win.
 
Boerhave recorded 22 points and seven rebounds on 9-for-12 shooting. Vasa added 17 points and went 5-for-8 from the field with two treys. Groves chipped in 15 points and went 7-for-8 from the free throw line. Quinn Vesey added nine points and had a game high 10 rebounds. 
 
"We had some great performances from Boerhave and Vasa, and they were really good for us with both scoring inside and out," said Svagera. "At times our defense got a little shaky, but we came up with some really big shots and had guys make big plays when we needed them."
 
BC had the advantage in rebounding 35-26, committed less turnovers 12-15 and scored more points off turnovers 20-10.
 
Carroll had a game high 25 points on 10-of-13 shooting to lead the Braves. Ty Bland added 19 points off the bench.
 
"That's a great way to go into Christmas break," said Svagera. "I'm proud of the way our guys have fought and the resiliency they have played with. We are really looking forward to moving into the second half of the season."
 
Up next for the Cliff is Waldorf on December 29 for the Holiday Classic in the Newman Flanagan Center. Tip is set for 7:30 p.m. between the Chargers and Warriors.