LIVONIA, Mich. - The Madonna University men's basketball team (13-3, 9-1 WHAC) earned a 76-68 victory over visiting Cleary University (1-14, 1-9 WHAC) on Saturday afternoon. It was the first matchup on the hardwood between the two schools. 

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The teams traded baskets to begin the contest with Madonna holding a 9-7 lead. A 10-2 run by the Crusaders was capped off by Ahmoni Weston free throws and made the score 19-9. It seemed like Madonna was on their way to another blowout win, as they led by as many as 22 points in the first half. The Cougars went into the halftime break trailing the Crusaders 42-26. Offensively Madonna was led by Brendan Young's 15 points in the opening 20 minutes, while Ryan Nunn and Sho-Ron Graham each had seven. 

A three-pointer by Young opened the scoring in the second half, making the score 45-26 in favor of Madonna. Cleary responded with a 12-2 run to cut the 19 point deficit to just eight with 15:03 remaining. It became a five point game a minute later following a layup and one for the Cougars. Madonna tried their best to put the game away, going ahead by double-digits with 11:18 to go following a three-pointer by Weston. The Cougars however continued to mount a comeback, but eventually fell short as the Crusaders hung on for the eight point home win. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 

• Young followed up his LTU performance with another strong showing, posting 26 points and 10 rebounds. 
• Nunn added 12 points while Sho-Ron Graham had 10. 
• Isaac Anderson pulled down a game high 11 rebounds.
• Madonna as a team finished 23-of-55 from the field. 
• Case Conley led the Cougars with 16 points. 

UP NEXT:

Madonna travels to Aquinas College for a Wednesday night showdown at 7:30 PM.

CONNECT WITH THE CRUSADERS: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
SUBSCRIBE/DOWNLOAD TEAM SCHEDULES: Download Center
DOWNLOAD THE NEW MOBILE APP: Google Play | iOS