RIPON, Wisconsin – The Ripon men's basketball program led for the final 25 minutes Saturday afternoon and picked up a 74-63 win over Knox inside Weiske Gymnasium.
 
After taking a nine-point lead into halftime, Ripon (4-5, 1-1 MWC) held off a second-half charge by Knox (2-7, 0-3 MWC) for its second consecutive victory over the Prairie Fire.
 
STANDOUT HAWKS

• Senior guard/forward Luke Meinholz scored a team-high 17 points, adding seven rebounds, five steals and two assists.
• Senior guard Cade Tackmier chipped in 13 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
• Senior guard Dominic Galati added 12 points, three assists and two rebounds.
• Senior forward Jayden Fitch scored in double figures for the first time this season, tallying 11 points and four rebounds off the bench. He was perfect from beyond the arc and the free-throw line.

PLAY-BY-PLAY
Saturday's first half was a back-and-forth affair, as the largest lead on either side was three for the first 16+ minutes. After Knox took a 23-22 lead with 5:26 to go in the half, Ripon scored 10 consecutive points, pulling in front for good with under three minutes to go in the stanza. The Red Hawks led by as many as 11 on multiple occasions and took a 38-27 advantage into the break following a pair of free throws from Jarton Davis with 10 seconds remaining.
 
Knox scored the first five points of the second half as Ripon was kept off the board for over two and a half minutes. Six consecutive points for the Prairie Fire brought them within one at 50-49 halfway through the stanza. Moments later, Ripon turned a one-point lead into a seven-point lead, and a triple by Fitch gave Ripon a 63-54 cushion with 5:46 remaining in the game. Knox never got closer than seven the rest of the way as the Red Hawks picked up the well-earned conference victory.
 
KEY STATS

• Both teams had similar shooting performances from the field – Ripon was 26-of-59 (44.1%) while Knox was 21-of-51 (41.2%).
• Ripon shot 16-of-23 from the free throw line, while the Prairie Fire shot 18 free throws and made 13.
• Saturday's game featured four ties and 12 lead changes.
• The Red Hawks had a 20-11 edge in points off turnovers.
• Sean Gallery led all scorers with 19 points for Knox.

UP NEXT
Ripon visits UW-La Crosse at 3 p.m. on Saturday, December 21.
 
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