APPLETON, Wis. -- The Lawrence University men's basketball team came within a whisker of knocking off UW-Eau Claire Tuesday night, but the Blugolds hung on for a 103-96 nonconference overtime victory at Alexander Gymnasium.
    Lawrence star guard Brad Sendell poured in a career-high 35 points and hit a 3-pointer with just over a second left to force the overtime. Sendell went 14-for-23 from the floor, including 3-for-7 on 3-pointers, and added six rebounds and five assists. Sendell eclipsed his previous career high of 34, set against Grinnell College on Jan. 4, 2020.
    Matthew Kaznikov added 15 points for the Vikings as he went 5-for-10 from beyond the arc. Lawrence's Adnan Sarancic added 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor, including 2-for-2 on 3-pointers, and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds. Brandon Danowski had 12 points, five assists and three rebounds for the Vikings, and Jake Fisher came off the bench to score 10 points as he went 4-for-5 from the floor.
    The Vikings shot a sizzling 65.5 percent from the floor in the first half, including 62.5 percent (10-16) from beyond the arc. Lawrence finished the game at 55.9 percent from the floor and shot 50 percent (14-28) on 3-pointers.
    Michael Casper led the Blugolds (8-4) with 25 points, and Eau Claire shot 52.1 percent from the floor for the game.
    Lawrence (4-5) led for most of the contest, but the Blugolds chipped away at the advantage and took the lead at 65-64 with 8:40 left in the second half. Eau Claire would build that advantage to nine at 80-71 with 1:34 remaining in regulation.
    Danowski hit a driving layup and then buried a 3-pointer with 42 seconds left to cut the lead to 80-76. After Casper missed a free throw, the Vikings got another layup from Danowski to trim the margin to 80-78. Casper and Danowski continued to trade points, with Casper making four three throws sandwiched around a pair of driving layups from Danowski, the second one cutting the lead to 84-82 with eight seconds remaining.
    Casper went to the line again with seven seconds left and missed the first free throw before making the second to give the Blugolds an 85-82 lead. The Vikings put the ball in Sendell's hands and he drained a 3-pointer from just under 30 feet to tie the game at 85-85 with 1.4 seconds remaining. The Blugolds got off a shot just before the buzzer but it was off the mark, and the game went to overtime.
    Eau Claire caught a huge break on the first possession when Casper hit a 3-pointer and Lawrence was whistled for a foul under the basket. Brock Voigt hit the ensuing free throws, and the Blugolds were up 90-85 with just 17 seconds into OT.
    Eau Claire would push the lead to nine at 97-88, but the Vikings battled back again. Sendell scored on a conventional three-point play and then followed with a 3-pointer to trim the margin to 97-94 with 1:03 left. 
    Carter Brooks countered with a jumper for Eau Claire, and the Vikings were forced to foul. The Blugolds went 4-for-4 from the foul line in the final 15 seconds to seal the victory.
    Lawrence came out firing from beyond the arc, and the Vikings built a 35-23 lead with 7:34 left in the opening half. Eau Claire trimmed the lead all the way back to 41-37, but Lawrence finished the first half on a 9-0 run. Baskets from Sarancic, Kaznikov, Elliot Jung and Sendell gave Lawrence a 50-37 advantage at the half.
    Sarancic scored 14 points in the opening half and Kaznikov and Sendell had 12 points apiece before the break.
    Lawrence returns to action on Friday when the Vikings travel to Lakeland University.