LINCOLN, Neb. (ov. 26, 2022) - Junior Ryan Mendoza led four players in double figures with 20 points for Buena Vista on Saturday to help lead the men's basketball team to an 82-76 victory over North Central (Minn.) in its final game of the NWU Snyder Classic.

Mendoza was 8-of-11 overall from the field and 4-of-4 at the charity stripe while BVU as a team finished 54 percent from the field and 11-of-13 at the line. Gunner Reed followed with 16 points and seven rebounds, Zane Neubaum had 14 points and three boards while Michael Santich chipped in with 13 points, five rebounds and five assists.

There were three ties and 10 lead changes in the contest. The Beavers led 21-12 with just under 13 minutes left in the first half and continued to lead by six with two minutes remaining before the Rams cut the deficit to 40-36 at the break. North Central carried that momentum into the start of the second half by starting on a 7-0 run to take a 43-40 lead. It was back-and-forth over the next five minutes before BVU rolled off eight straight points to take a 58-52 lead with under 10 minutes to go. The Rams pulled back even at 60-60 but were never able to get the lead back.

A layup by Mendoza with just over two minutes matched BVU's largest lead of the game at 75-66 en route to the six-point victory.

North Central (4-3) got a game-high 27 points from Micah Filer while Tanner Holtman added 18. The loss by the Rams snapped their four-game win streak, which included an eight-point win over host Nebraska Wesleyan on Friday night.

Buena Vista (4-2) has now won back-to-back games for the second time this season and now turns its focus to American Rivers Conference play as the Beavers travel to defending champion, Dubuque, on November 30, for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off against the Spartans.