Simpson College shot 57.7 percent from the field in the first half to lead by as many as 11 points and Nebraska Wesleyan was unable to overcome the deficit as the Storm defeated the Prairie Wolves, 75-68, in NCAA Division III men' basketball action Saturday night (Dec. 13) in Indianola, Iowa.

The loss was the third straight for the Prairie Wolves who fall to 6-3 overall after opening the year with a 6-0 record. It was also the first NCAA DIII loss for the NWU men.

The Prairie Wolves battled back the entire second half, but just like the loss on Wednesday versus Concordia, NWU was never able to pull back even. On four different occasions, NWU had the game within two points, but they could not make the final push towards the lead.

Ryan Thramer hit a 3-pointer at the 1:35 mark to get the lead down to 63-59, but Simpson answered right back as Dave Johnson made a lay-up and converted the free throw for a 3-point play to seal the win.

Thramer led NWU in scoring with 18 points on 3-4 shooting from 3-point range. Dylan Aylward added 16 points, while Preston Englund came off the bench to score 12 points and grab a team-high seven rebounds.

Simpson finished the game shooting 51.9 percent from the floor and out rebounded the Prairie Wolves by six. Dave Johnson had a game-high 25 points and Andrew Dau added 14 points.