WINONA LAKE – Grace’s three-game men’s basketball winning streak was snapped on Saturday at the hands of No. 9 St. Francis, 72-57 at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.

The Lancers (13-5, 3-3 Crossroads League) could not match neither the efficiency nor the rebounding that the Cougars (14-4, 4-2 CL) displayed at the MOCC. St. Francis was particularly efficient in the second half, hitting 74 percent from the floor (14-of-19) and making 11-of-14 on free throws.

The game could not have started better for Grace. The Lancers scored the first nine points of the contest as Dennis Williams netted six points.

It took St. Francis 4:52 to get on the scoreboard, but the Cougars did not take long to slice into Grace’s lead. St. Francis tied the game at 17-17 and took its first lead of the game on a 3-pointer with 6:26 to play in the first half. Once Grace fell behind the Cougars, the Lancers never tasted the lead again.

St. Francis went into halftime ahead 30-28 despite shooting 35 percent from the floor. The Cougars did get to the free throw line 15 times in the first half and made 10 of their attempts. Brandon Vanderhegghen (11 points) and Williams (8) were responsible for 19 of Grace’s 28 first-half points.

Before five minutes had expired in the second half, the Cougars had opened up a double-digit lead. Grace trimmed the Cougars’ cushion down to 54-47 on a basket from Williams with 10:09 on the clock. But St. Francis promptly reestablished a 10-point lead, eventually cruising away for the 15-point win.

Although the Lancers made 46 percent of their field goals in the second half, they could not keep pace with the Cougars’ 74 percent shooting performance.

For the game, Grace made just 3-of-18 from the 3-point line (17 percent) and 4-of-13 from the free throw line (31 percent).

Vanderhegghen led Grace with 16 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, and Williams added 15 points and a block. Chad Hoffer netted 10 points in 13 minutes off the bench, and Logan Irwin added 8 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists.

The Lancers will look to rebound on Tuesday at Marian at 7 p.m. The Knights are coming off a 90-85 upset in double overtime at No. 7 Bethel.