Buena Vista got a game-high 21 points from senior Nick Clark, and led by as many as eight points early in the second half, but Luther hung around all night long and finished with the game's final five points en route to a 79-74 victory over the Beavers on Wednesday night.

Luther led 68-63 with under 6:00 to play before three straight buckets by the Beavers put them back in front at 69-68 with 4:05 to go.  Luther tied things at 69-69 before a three-point play from Bobby Ivey put BVU in front 72-69 with 3:22 left.

As they did all game long, the Norse were able to get a clutch basket when they needed it most, and they went on to make two straight jumpers, including an and-one on the later, to regain the lead at 74-72 with under 3:00 left.

Clark, however, brought the ball back down court and drove the lane for a game-tying layup and 2:31 to play.  Luther had a chance to regain the lead after Clark was called for a foul at the other end, but missed both free-throw attempts.

BVU came up short on a three-point attempt on the ensuing possession, and after a Norse turnover, misfired on yet another long range attempt with 1:20 left.  The Norse then came through with another big bucket - this one from long range - to grab a 77-74 lead with 1:05 left.

The Beavers, who missed their final five shot attempts, still had a chance to tie with under 30 seconds to go, but Kennedy Drey's three-pointer rimmed out, and Luther tacked on two free-throws to put the game out of reach.

BVU led by as many as nine in the contest, and that came with 3:00 left in the first half.  Luther led by no more than five points in a game that also featured nine ties and 12 lead changes.

Clark finished the game making 8-of-15 shots from the field and 4-of-1 0 from long range.  He also dished out four assists and had two steals.  Thomas Wisecup was 3-of-5 from downtown and followed with 13 points and four rebounds.  Drey, who was held to only six points in the game, hauled in a team-high seven rebounds.  Sam Lipps and Robby Burke combined for 15 points off the bench, as Burke played a career-high 22 minutes.

The Norse, who began the year at 1-12 overall, have now won three of their last five games, and move into a four-way tie with Buena Vista (8-10, 3-4 IIAC) in the IIAC standings at the midway point.

Buena Vista begins the second half of its conference schedule with a road contest at Wartburg (10-8, 3-4 IIAC) on Saturday afternoon at 4:00pm.  The Knights took the first meeting earlier this year, 83-80 (OT).