APPLETON, Wis. - Ripon's men's basketball team shot 67 percent (20-30) in the second half of Wednesday's game to erase a seven-point halftime deficit, en route to an 80-67 win at Lawrence University. The Red Hawks dominated the paint for much of the day, outscoring the Vikings 48-28 in the lane, while also out-rebounding Lawrence by a 38-25 margin, with 16 of Ripon's 38 rebounds coming on the offensive end.

The two teams traded baskets early, with neither squad leading by more than four in the first nine minutes. Lawrence (7-6, 4-2 MWC) then used a 7-0 run to take an eight-point lead, which would eventually extend to an 11-point advantage with under two minutes left in the half. Ripon (6-6, 3-2 MWC) would score the final four points of the period to cut the lead to seven at halftime.

Lawrence continued to lead in the second half until a 10-0 run gave Ripon a two-point lead with 14 minutes remaining. The Vikings then scored eight consecutive points of their own, and would lead by seven mid-way through the half, but Ripon clawed their way back to tie the game at 63 on a 3-pointer by Trent Jones with under seven minutes left. Tyson Tully would later give the Red Hawks the lead for good on a layup with four and a half minutes to play. Ripon finished the game on a 15-2 run to earn the victory.

Cal Schultz led Ripon with 26 points and nine rebounds, while also recording four assists and four steals. Jones added 16 points, eight rebounds, and three assists, while Ryan Steffes chipped in with 11 points and a career-high six rebounds.

Lawrence was led by 18 points, six rebounds, and three assists from Bryce Denham. Brad Sendell added 11 points, while Mason Materna contributed 10 points and five rebounds.

Ripon will be in action again on Saturday when they'll welcome the MWC's top-scoring team (125.9 ppg) Grinnell College to town. That game will begin at 3 p.m. inside Willmore Center, and can be seen live at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/.