The Aurora University Spartans men's basketball team defeated the Wisconsin Lutheran Warriors 82-79 Saturday night to win the Northern Athletics Conference Tournament and secure their third consecutive NCAA Division III Championship bid. The Spartans jumped out to a 12-6 lead early in the game behind strong play from junior guard Lance Robinson and senior forward Chad Trudo. The Warriors, however, would fight back and make the score 19-15 at the midway point due in large part to their strong three-point shooting. Yet, the Spartans, behind three pointers from Trudo and junior guard Dusty Magee, would go on a 15-7 run to make the score 34-22 with three minutes left in the first half. The Spartans would take a 38-27 lead into halftime. Trudo led all scorers with 17 points and Robinson chipped in 10. The inspired Warriors came out of halftime and promptly cut into the Spartan lead, making the score 48-43 with 15 minutes left in regulation. The Warriors, behind streaky three point shooting, would pull within two points of the Spartans with nine minutes remaining, and they would tie the game at 63-63 with eight minutes left on the clock. But the Spartans would regain the lead behind Magee and Trudo, and with one minute remaining, AU led 77-74. With five seconds left, two Trudo free throws would clinch the Spartan victory and make the final score 82-79. Top Spartan performers included Trudo (27 points), Magee ( 20 points), and junior forward Shane Roland (10 points). On another note, Magee became the 28th and newest member of the AU 1,000 point club. He entered the club with his second basket of the night in the first half with 9:44 to play in the contest. With the win, the Spartans improve to 16-12 (11-6 NAC) while the Warriors fall to 15-13 (9-8 NAC). The Spartans will await word on their opponent in the opening round of the 2009 NCAA Division III Championship. The field will be announced on Monday, March 2, 2009 at approximately 9:00 a.m. by the NCAA Division III Championships selection committee.