Box Score Kearney, Neb. – Senior forward Connor Beranek made two free throws with 15 seconds left and junior guard Ty Danielson blocked a shot 12 seconds later to help Nebraska-Kearney edge Northeastern State, 70-69, Saturday evening at the Buckle Court at the Health & Sports Center.
 
UNK (9-7, 6-5) snaps a two-game losing streak with the RiverHawks (4-11, 3-8) dropping to 0-9 on the road.
 
NSU's leading scorer, guard Terry Mohair, missed a driving layup with 51 seconds left and his team ahead 67-66. That led to a runout and a layup by Danielson (York) seven seconds later.
 
Mohair made up for his miss by sinking a jumper in the paint with the shot clock winding down. With just 15 seconds left, the Lopers hurried the ball up the court and saw Beranek get run into by reserve Javon Wallace.
 
Beranek (Ravenna) made both freebies, capping a 30-point, 10-rebound effort. He went 12 of 12 at the line, the fifth time this year he has made every free throw in a game.
 
After a timeout, the RiverHawks again turned to Mohair, who drove baseline. His pass was knocked out of bounds underneath the basket. Another break ensued with the eventual inbounds pass going to senior forward Dakota Caudill.
 
He drove to the bucket and dished the ball to guard Montre Williams. With the clock winding down, his off-balance layup was swatted by Danielson. Neither team could grab the loose ball as it rolled past half court.
 
"We've hit a stretch, for whatever reason, where we're struggling a little bit. But what I will give the guys credit for is stepping up and finding a way to dig one out," said Loper head coach Kevin Lofton. "It was not pretty by any stretch of the imagination."
 
UNK led for most of the game but the RiverHawks closed the first half on a 13-4 run to lead 32-31 at the break. The Lopers again seemed in control, ahead 52-44 with 9:58 left. However, NSU used a 21-10 run to grab its biggest lead of the night at 65-62.
 
"At times, we started to separate from them and you started to think 'hey, here we go," said Lofton. "To their credit, they were able to make some plays and hang around. When it looked bleak at the end, it was our turn to make the plays that turned out to be the difference."
 
Both teams shot below 42% from the field with UNK winning on the glass, 42-34, and sinking 21 of 22 free throws. Getting 36 points from its bench, NSU was 7 of 10 at the line.
 
Besides Beranek, Norfolk senior post Ethan Brozek worked around four fouls to have a double double (12 points & 10 rebounds) with Danielson supplying six rebounds, five points, two assists and two steals. Finally, freshman reserve forward Carter Burns (Ankeny, Ia.) had five points, four defensive rebounds and two assists.
 
NSU had three score in double figures, led by Caudill with 15. He also had a team-high seven rebounds.
 
The Lopers are at NW Missouri State Thursday night.