Contact: Emily Adlfinger, Director of Athletic Communications, 563-588-7970

WAVERLY, Iowa (Feb. 22, 2022) – Still feeling the energy from a high intensity win aginst the same foe only days prior, the Loras College men's basketball team (18-8, 9-7 A-R-C), led by sophomore Declan Ciurlik's scoring run in the second half, sealed a 77-62 win against Wartburg College (16-10, 9-7 A-R-C) in the first round of the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) Tournament on Tuesday, sending the Duhawks to the semifinal game.

Ali Sabet set the tone early for the Duhawks with five points to open the game and back-to-back jumpers by Rowan McGowen put Loras ahead 11-6 at the 16:33 mark. The Knights responded with a 6-0 run to pull ahead by one point, their only lead of the contest, as Jake Healy quickly erased the lead with a layup and started a 6-2 run that lasted two minutes. Wartburg chipped away and came as close as three points with 4:22 left in the half but a pair of free throws by Tyler Bass, Ciurlik and Healy helped put the distance back to lead 39-32 at the half.

The Duhawks pulled away for their first double-digit lead of the game with sharp shooting by McGowen and Cole Navigato to open the second half but the Knights cut into their lead to come back within five points with 12:33 left to play. Ciurlik put an end to it with a layup and three-pointer before Wartburg answered back with a three-point play but the sophomore kept it going with back-to-back three-pointers on the next possessions, extended Loras' lead 63-52 with under ten minutes to play and forcing the Knights to call a timeout. Wartburg scored coming out of the break but it was Ciurlik again who found the hoop for the Duhawks and showed his versatility on the defensive side of the ball, blocking Wartburg's next shot. McGowen added five points of his own and Jackson Kolinski made a tip-in layup to put Loras up 76-56 with four minutes left to play. Wartburg hit a three-pointer at the 3:25 mark and remained scoreless until the final seconds with a last-ditch long ball, but it was not going to be enough to mount a comeback as the Duhawks claimed their second-straight win at Levick Arena this past week.  

Ciurlik scored a career-high 17 points, shooting 6-9 from the field and 75 percent from three-point range, leading four players for the Duhawks in double-figures with McGowen scoring 16 and Healy and Sabet scoring 14 each. Bass led the team with ten rebounds while Sabet had five assists and Healy added three steals. The Duhawks out-rebounded the Knights 45-33 and committed half as many turnovers. Loras also had eight steals on the night while Wartburg did not come away with any.

The Duhawks will have another go at crosstown rival the University of Dubuque on Thursday, Feb. 24 in the semifinal game, looking to avenge a one-point loss in the final week of the regular season. Tip-off at the Stolz Center is set for 7 P.M.