The Lake Forest College men's basketball team won 59-52 at St. Norbert College on Saturday to remain undefeated in Midwest Conference play after four league contests. Sophomore guard James Stack shot 4-for-6 from three-point range and led the Foresters with 16 points.
Stack was one of three Lake Forest players to score in double figures. Junior point guard Jeff Beck was next on the squad with 14 points and he added a game-high three assists. Senior forward Nate Bateman finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, a steal, and a blocked shot. Senior post player Travis Clark was held to a season-low eight points but led all players in the contest with nine rebounds and three blocked shots.
Lake Forest shot nearly 46 percent from the field while limiting the Green Knights to just 33 percent. The visitors also knocked down nine of 18 three-pointers and six of eight free throws. St. Norbert shot 4-for-17 from beyond the arc and 10-for-15 from the line. The Foresters out-rebounded the home team 35-33 but committed 14 turnovers to the Knights' eight.
A jumper by Clark and a three-pointer by Stack gave the Foresters an early 5-0 edge and they led throughout the contest. The margin reached 13 points before St. Norbert scored the final six points of the opening period, making the halftime score 33-26.
A traditional three-point play by St. Norbert with 11:28 to play trimmed the Forester lead to just two points but the home team would get no closer. The difference was three (46-43) with 6:22 remaining when Stack connected for his fourth three-pointer of the game to double the Lake Forest lead. Clark then blocked a three-point attempt, grabbed the ball, and fired it to Bateman for a dunk. Beck finished off the 7-0 run and extended the lead to 10 points on a basket with 3:24 on the clock. Stack made an acrobatic layup with two minutes left and Beck and Bateman each made a pair of free throws in the final 90 seconds to help preserve the victory.
After falling in the season opener, the Foresters have now won seven straight contests. St. Norbert is now 5-3 overall and 3-2 in MWC play.
Lake Forest's next game will be its final non-conference contest of the regular season on Wednesday, January 4. The Foresters will host the University of St. Francis that night at 7:00.
