EAU CLAIRE, Wis. – College of Saint Benedict basketball coach Mike Durbin has witnessed a lot in 39 years of coaching basketball. But trailing by 21 and rallying for a win was not among them.

With a 48-25 run in the second half, the CSB basketball team overcame that 21-point deficit to earn its second win in three starts. Leading the way was junior guard Megan Morgan with 15 points and junior Kira Young who added 10. Both senior Sophia Jonas and first-year Tatum Findley each scored nine points and tied for a team-high with eight rebounds.

"Tonight proves you can coach for 39 years and still experience a first," said Durbin of his 751^st career win, including his 746^th at St. Ben's. "Never have I ever been part of a team and a game that we start a game down 21 and then rallied to win," added Durbin, whose team will compete at the Gundersen Hotel and Suites Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 30-Dec. 1 at La Crosse, Wis.

After missing its first 17 shots, the Bennies hit 23 of its final 47 shots to finish at 35.9 percent shooting for the game. For the second time in three games, CSB hit double-digit three-pointers, knocking in 10-of-30 for 33.3 percent. CSB, which was outrebounded, 49-to-35, used another strong defensive effort to force 17 turnovers and gain a 17-to-6 margin in points off turnovers. With a 25-to-10 edge in bench scoring, the Bennies prevailed in the nonconference game.

After trailing 21-6 after a quarter of play, CSB outscored the Blugolds, 63-to-42, to gain the win. Saint Benedict, which totaled 12 assists and had three steals, scored 24 points in each of the third and fourth quarters for a 48-to-25 margin in the second half.

Morgan hit 5-of-12 field goals, including 3-of-8 from three-point range, for 15 points and totaled three assist and two rebounds. Young, who played for the first time this year, made 3-of-5 field goals, including 2-of-3 from three-point range for her 10 points. Findley, who was 4-of-9 from the field, had a career-best eight rebounds. Jonas hit a pair of triples and now has 197 in her career. She also had eight rebounds and a team-high five assists.

Game Summary

UW-Eau Claire scored the first 21 points of the game before CSB ended the first quarter with six straight points, including four by Findley.  The Blugolds hit 7-of-15 field goals for 46.7 percent while the Bennies hit 3-of-20 for 15 percent.

CSB, which hit 6-of-16 for 37.5 percent in the second quarter, cut the lead to 38-21 by the halftime break. However, CSB, which had a 17-to-15 scoring advantage in the quarter, had cut the lead to 10 at 29-19 before the Blugolds scored nine straight for a 38-19 advantage with 38 seconds left in the half.  Emily Crandall converted a lay-up at the half to draw CSB to within 38-21. At halftime, CSB had hit 9-of-36 field goals for 25 percent and just 3-of-16 from three-point field goals.

In the third quarter, St. Ben's turned the game around with a 24-12 run, which including hitting 46.2 percent from the field on 6-of-13 shooting. The Bennies used a 4-of-8 shooting effort from three-point range and eight made free throws to cut the lead to 50-45 when Young dropped in a three with eight seconds to play.

In the fourth quarter, CSB used the momentum to take the lead and with a 24-to-13 scoring advantage to gain the six-point win. St. Ben's hit 8-of-15 from the field for 53.3 percent, including 3-of-6 from three-point range. In the final two quarters, CSB hit 14-of-28 field goals for 50 percent and made 7-of-14 from beyond the arc.

When Jonas hit a three the 7:44 mark of the quarter, CSB trailed just 50-48. Then Morgan scored seven points as part of a 9-2 run to give CSB a 57-52 lead. With 1:14 to play, Boily's layup provided a 65-60 lead before the Blugolds's Lauren Meudt hit a three with :54 seconds left. Then Jonas and first-year Sofia Baldessari, who had eight points, both hit free throws to ice the game.