Leavenworth, Kan.—The Spire Men turned a dominant first half and clutch late-game free throws into a 77-72 victory over Friends University Falcons this evening Wednesday, January 28^th at the Ryan Sports Center.

USM seized control late in the first half. Trailing 10-9 after an early 3-pointer from Friends' Cahlese Lee, the Spires responded with a sustained run fueled by interior scoring and defensive stops. Edwards' layup in the closing minute pushed the margin to 36-23, and Walker's finish in the paint at the buzzer sent Saint Mary into halftime up 38-23. The Spires' defense limited the Falcons to 42.4 percent shooting overall and only 23 first-half points while forcing 12 turnovers for the game.

Friends methodically chipped away after the break behind Lee's perimeter shooting and stronger work on the glass. Lee scored a game-high 20 points and hit five 3-pointers on 7-of-17 shooting, highlighted by a deep 3 with 1:19 remaining that cut the deficit to 71-68. Moments later, Collin Maclin scored inside to pull Friends within 72-70, part of his 9-point, 12-rebound performance, and Woolf's two free throws with seven seconds left made it 73-72.

USM's composure at the line in the final seconds made the difference. Smith calmly sank two free throws with six seconds on the clock to restore a three-point cushion, and after a defensive stand, Clark added two more with two seconds remaining to put the game out of reach. The Spires finished 17-of-24 (70.8 percent) at the stripe, narrowly outpacing Friends' 15-of-23 effort.

Kaeden Bonner paced Saint Mary with 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including 2-of-5 from 3-point range, and added 2 assists and 2 steals. Cam Edwards provided a major boost off the bench with 15 points in just 19 minutes, going 6-of-7 from the field and 2-of-3 at the line. Terrius Walker nearly posted a double-double, finishing with 14 points and 9 rebounds as the Spires shot an efficient 50 percent (28-of-56) from the floor.

Statistically, the match up was tight across the board. Saint Mary held a slight edge in shooting efficiency and steals (9-5), while the Falcons owned a 33-29 rebounding advantage led by Maclin's 12 boards. The Spires' balanced scoring and timely defense in key stretches, particularly in building the first-half cushion and executing in the final minute, proved decisive in protecting home court.
The Spires will stay home this Saturday as they host the Coyotes of Kansas Wesleyan University at 7:00 p.m. as USM looks to bolster their current 7^th place standing within the KCAC in this final stretch of regular season.