Simpson suffers road loss to Luther

DECORAH, Iowa – Tyler Wedemeier came off the bench to score a game-high 22 points as Luther beat the Simpson men's basketball team 74-63 on Saturday afternoon.

Wedemeier went 8 for 14 from the field and had 14 rebounds for the Norse (16-5, 10-3 Iowa Conference), who snapped a two-game losing streak. Wedemeier led a Luther bench which outscored Simpson's 36-6.

Dane Larson added 17 points and seven assists.

Zack Barragan scored 18 to pace the Storm (9-11, 6-6), who led for most of the first half before a jumper by John Androus gave Luther a 28-27 lead with 1:50 left.

Cornelius Mosby added 15 points and Chad Boston finished with nine and 10 rebounds.

The lead changed hands seven times to start the second half before a pair of free throws by Larson gave Luther a 49-48 lead, sparking a 16-5 run. Larson scored nine points during the stretch, which gave Luther a 63-53 lead with five minutes left.

Simpson cut the lead to seven, but the comeback bid was hurt by a Luther possession which lasted over one minute thanks to three-straight offensive rebounds. Wedemeier ended the possession by going 1 of 2 from the free throw line, resulting in a 65-57 at the 2:08 mark.

Simpson shot 40 percent for the game to Luther's 36 and out-rebounded the Norse 48-42. But Luther scored 16 points off 15 Simpson turnovers.

The Storm return home to host Buena Vista on Wednesday, Feb. 8 at Cowles Fieldhouse. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.