CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - The Coe College men's basketball team edged Loras 85-81 on Monday evening at Kohawk Arena. It was an uptempo contest which featured a combined 100 points in the opening half but the Kohawks scored the final eight points of the game to pick up their third-straight victory. The win moves Coe to 5-3 overall and 3-3 in the American Rivers Conference while Loras drops to 5-3 and 3-2 in the league.
 
Jarad Kruse had a career night in the win, posting a career-high 23 points on 11-of-17 shooting and adding three rebounds. Four other Kohawks reached the double-figure mark on the evening as Ray Thrapp (15), Cael Schmitt (13), Jacob Robertson (12) and Sam Auen (10) all hit the milestone. As a team, the Kohawks shot 51.5 percent from the floor while forcing 16 Duhawk turnovers.
 
The Kohawks and Duhawks were cold to start the game, combining for just eight points in the opening three minutes of the contest. Loras then came to life, putting together an 8-4 spurt to take a 12-8 lead with 15:09 left in the first. Coe began to fight back, using an 11-8 run to cut the deficit to just one-point with 11 minutes left in the half. 
 
The squads then traded buckets for three-plus minutes of action but Coe ripped off a 9-5 outburst, which included four points from Greg Hall, giving the Kohawks a two-point lead at 39-37. The up-tempo action continued for the final few minutes of the half as the teams scored a total of 24 points. A 3-pointer from Loras' Griffen Clark with just over 10 seconds left in the half tied the game at 50-50, sending the game into the break all square. 
 
Coe opened the second half on a mission, getting three-straight buckets from Thrapp to take the early advantage in the frame. Loras answered right back, putting together an 8-2 run over the next 2:42 of game time to pull within two. Coe put an end to the run and the teams began to exchange blows once again, trading buckets as Coe continued to hold a narrow four-point lead with 9:24 left in the game. 
 
The Duhawks dominated the next seven minutes of action, outscoring the Kohawks 13-5 to flip the momentum and score in their favor at 81-77 with 2:23 left to play. Coe buckled down in the final two minutes of play, holding Loras scoreless for the remainder of the game while putting up eight points en route to the win. During the stretch, Robertson hit four clutch free throws and Schmitt knocked down a mid-range jumper to put the Kohawks in front for good. 
 
Up next: The Kohawks return to action on Wednesday for another A-R-C matchup with Luther College at 5:30 p.m.
 
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