Atchison’s jumper closed a 13-point, five-of-six field goal shooting night for the senior. He was one of three members of the Orange and Black in double digits. Junior center Nate Schmidt closed a strong tournament appearance with 19 points, five rebounds and a blocked shot, while sophomore forward Nick Gullickson came off the bench for 10 points.
Wartburg (7-3) opened a 14-point lead late in the first half and had to hold off a furious rally by the Tommies (6-4) in the second stanza.
UST caught the Knights at 55-55 with 9:15 left and took a brief 57-55 lead on a jumper by Danny Peterson on its ensuing possession. The game went back-and-forth down the stretch before a 4-0 run, sparked by jump shots from Schmidt and junior forward Rance Cartmill, lifted Wartburg to a 71-67 lead with 1:30 to play. The Tommies came right back as Neal Anderson canned a three-pointer and Isaac Rosefelt hit one of two free throws with six seconds to play, setting up Atchison’s heroics.
Rosefelt and Peterson led UST with 18 and 16 points, respectively.