ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Macalester College men's basketball team nearly erased a 19-point deficit, only to fall at the University of Northwestern,  68-61 in a non-conference match-up Tuesday evening at the Ericksen Center. The defeat is the first of the season for the Scots, who are now 2-1. The Eagles improve to 1-2 with the win.

Northwestern took control of the game in the first half with 16 consecutive points in building a 27-10 lead less than two minutes before halftime. Back-to-back three-pointers from sophomore guard Michael Gutierrez (Stillwater, Minn./St. Croix Prep Academy) and junior guard Gunnar Goeden (Appleton, Wis./Appleton North) ended the run, as the Eagles eventually took a 29-16 advantage into the break. The Scots shot just 21.2 percent from the field in the first half compared to 39.4 percent for Northwestern.

Early in the second half, sophomore guard Isaac Siegel (Amherst, Mass./Amherst Regional) hit a pair of threes to cut the deficit to seven, 33-26 with 15:39 on the clock. The Eagles responded with a 14-2 run of their own to push the lead to 47-28 at the 11:42 mark of the second half. With the lead still at 19, 54-35 with 8:26 remaining, Macalester fought back valiantly with a 24-6 run that made the score 60-59 with 36 seconds left. Gutierrez scored 10 points including two three-pointers in the improbable run, with senior center Kareem Ismail (Pasadena, Calif./Flintridge Prep) adding five points.

After a foul put Anderson Bazile at the line, Bazile made the first free throw but missed the second. However, the rebound was knocked out of bounds off a Macalester player. Will Gisler was fouled on the inbounds pass and also missed the second free throw, but he grabbed his own rebound and went to the line again. This time Gisler hit both shots for a 64-59 Eagles' lead. Gutierrez made two free throws on the other end to make the score 64-61 with 18 seconds to play. But Gisler converted his final four free throws to wrap up the win for Northwestern.

The Scots fueled its comeback by shooting 51.6 percent from the floor in the second half. Northwestern owned the glass, registering a 52-35 rebounding edge for the game. Gutierrez led all players with 22 points while shooting 4-of-7 from three-point range. He also had seven rebounds and two assists. Ismail tallied his second double-double in three games this season with 13 points and 10 boards. Siegel scored a career-best 13 points to go with four rebounds and two assists. Gisler led the Eagles with 17 points and 16 rebounds.

Macalester returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 26 with a non-conference game against Coe College. Game time is set for 1:00 p.m. in the Leonard Center.