Aurora U. upsets Benedictine

Aurora University earned a date in the Northern Athletics Conference tournament championship game by defeating top-seeded Benedictine University 74-72 in a semifinal matchup.

The victory improved the Spartans, the NAC's No. 5-seed, to 15-12 overall, while the Eagles fell to 19-8 in having their 10-game win streak snapped.

The win was the first over BU this season by Aurora, as the Eagles took both regular-season matchups.

Aurora will host Wisconsin Lutheran College, the No. 7 seed, tonight for the NAC's tournament title, as well as an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III playoffs.

Benedictine had a chance to break the game open in the first half, leading by 12 points with 1:04 left in the opening period. Aurora cut that to seven by the intermission - 36-29 - and took the lead by the 16:38 mark of the second period on Lance Robinson's jumper to give his team a 42-41 advantage. Robinson scored 15 of his points in the second half.

The Spartans were led by Chad Trudo's 33 point effort. Trudo hit 10 of 20 from the floor and was 10 of 12 from the free-throw line.

Cameron Snelling paced Benedictine with 18 points and 9 rebounds.