River Forest, Ill. – The Dominican University Men's Basketball team returned to the Igini Sports Forum after the holiday break against Lakeland on Saturday.

Results:
Dominican: 69
Lakeland: 70

 How it Happened:
-The Stars fell behind early, but a three-pointer by Senior Dominic Crapia, a fast break layup by Sophomore Frank Paszkowski, and a shot from deep by Freshman Elijah Daugherty knotted the score at 12-12 through seven minutes.
-Lakeland then gained a 17-14 lead, followed by a layup by Sophomore Braydon Murphy and free throws made by Crapia and Paszkowski.
-Dominican turned up the energy down the stretch of the first half, outscoring the Muskies 11-4 in the final six minutes of the half. Daugherty completed a four-point play before the halftime buzzer.
-The Stars took a 32-24 lead into the half. Daugherty led the way at the break with 12 points, followed by Paszkowski's 6.
-To start the second half, the Muskies began to cut into the DU lead, but were matched by a 5-0 run by the Stars.
-Both teams would trade buckets throughout the midpoint of the second half, as Daugherty and Freshman Chase LeFevre fought to preserve the Dominican lead.
-Daugherty continued to fight to get to the line for DU and add insurance at the free-throw line, but Lakeland tied the game at 58-58 with three minutes remaining.
-Paszkowski and Daugherty drew a combined 4 fouls in the final two minutes, and after their free throws, DU led 69-67.
-Lakeland knocked down a game-winning three at the buzzer and defeated the Stars by a final score of 70-69.
-Dominican shot 37.5% from the floor, 23.5% from deep, and 69.7% from the line.

 Shining Stars:
-Freshman Elijah Daugherty dropped a career-high 25 points and paced the Stars in scoring. The Freshman also added 4 rebounds and 2 steals.
-Sophomore Frank Paszkowski notched 14 points, 4 rebounds, a block, and a steal.
-Sophomore Braydon Murphy tallied 13 points and 5 rebounds.
-Sophomore Ismael Nidaye Matheu totaled 6 points and 6 boards.

 Leading the Way:
 Points: Daugherty (25)
 Rebounds: Nidaye Matheu (6)
 Assists: Brown (4)
 Steals: Daugherty (2)
 Blocks: Crapia and Paszkowski (1)
 Minutes: Paszkowski (31)

 What's Next:
 The Dominican University Men's Basketball team moves to 1-11 (1-4 NACC) on the season. The Stars will be back at home on Wednesday, January 7^th, against the Milwaukee School of Engineering. Tip-off against the Raiders is slated for 7:00 p.m.

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