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Loberger, Pearson have Knights clicking at break

NEW ULM — The Martin Luther College men’s basketball team’s offense has been clicking this season.

Through seven games, the Knights have scored 90 points twice, with a season high of 98 against Maranatha Baptist on Nov. 16. The team has averaged 83.7 points per game, 15.2 points per game more than a season ago. Last season, the Knights went 1-9 heading into the Christmas break.

This year’s improvement has resulted in a solid 3-4 record for MLC at the break, and much of the improvement has come from a surprising source — two freshmen in Adam Loberger and Ben Pearson.

Loberger, who hails from Fox Valley Lutheran in Appleton, Wisconsin, leads the team in scoring with 25 points per game, shooting 49.6% from the field, along with 5.4 rebounds per game. Pearson, who graduated from Minnesota Valley Lutheran last year, is second on the team in points per game with 14.6 and leads the team in assists (3.1 per game) and rebounds (6.7 per game) while shooting 50% from the floor and from 3-point range.

And they’re roommates.

File photo by Ari Selvey Martin Luther College’s Ben Pearson prepare to pass the ball during a home men’s basketball game on Nov. 19, 2024, against Lakeland University.

“We both played golf together too,” Pearson said. “We had a lot of time to hang out and everything in college. We both have a level of trust and we’re both super competitive and want to win and willing to do whatever it takes to win. It’s just been a huge benefit for us to trust each other and know that we’re there for each other.”

Neither player entered the season with many expectations, but the pair have played the most minutes for MLC this season and have bolstered the team in its three wins.

“I guess I kind of came in with no expectations and just kind of came in ready to work and see what we can do as a team,” Loberger said. “We had a good freshman class coming in, and early in the season just getting to know the guys, we just created a relationship and that helped our chemistry on the court.”

Pearson added that at the beginning of the season, he just wanted to experience how college basketball felt.

“I thought that at the beginning of the season, it would be cool to just see how it worked out,” he said. “I didn’t really know what to expect. I didn’t know the level difference and how that would shape out. But I think it’s been cool to have three freshman starters. I think that’s been cool and it’s been fun to hang out with them and to grow as a team.”

The key to the team’s offensive success has been a strong connection between the players, with Loberger, Pearson and fellow starting freshman Benjamin Vasold developing a bond with the older players quickly.

“I think it’s a lot of teamwork,” Pearson said. “I think it’s great to have a group of guys that are willing to spread the ball and are willing to make the extra pass just to get an extra look at it. I think that we have a lot of good scorers on our team with the three freshmen that are starting, it’s been pretty cool to get into a groove with that. Just the chemistry of our team has been pretty good just knowing that we’re so young but we have good chemistry already.”

Pearson added that it’s taken a lot of cooperation between veterans and younger players to get to that level of communication.

“I think that it’s just a combination of our vets on the team and their knowledge of the game and they’re level of play at the college level and our youth with our intensity and work ethic. I think it’s been a good combination of our teamwork during practice with our intensity and our competitiveness, along with still having team camaraderie. It’s been pretty great.”

Loberger describes himself as a three-level scorer who works from the inside out with his shot, scoring in the paint to free up more outside shots. He said that Pearson’s passing has helped set up a lot of his scoring this season.

“He’s been doing a great job of running the offense at the point guard spot,” Loberger said.

Another key to the team’s offensive success has been their ability to score from any level. The Knights have been making 8.4 3-pointers per game on 35.8% shooting, nearly two 3-pointers and 4.9% more efficient more than a season ago.

“I feel like we can just spread the floor out really well,” Loberger said. “We have a lot of shooters on the team and that shows with our points per game.”

The team started the season with a clear goal — make the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference playoffs by finishing as a top-four team in the conference. In order to reach that, Loberger said the team needs to improve on its existing chemistry to connect the team even more.

“With a young team still, just getting that chemistry and knowing what we’re doing,” Loberger said. “That will lead to offense, it will lead to us just getting better and getting that goal.”

Pearson added that the team’s work ethic in practice will be a key to winning in conference play as well.

“How we’re going to do that is our competitiveness in practice,” he said. “One of our main themes this year is elite practice culture. That’s been something that we look for before every practice, just to bring a level of competitiveness and sacrifice and effort and willingness to get better the gym even though there may not be people watching, that’s how you’re going to get better is putting in the work and effort in practice so then you can perform in the game.”

MLC ends the winter break with a game at Minnesota Morris at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 8.

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