The Aquinas men’s basketball team entered this season with high expectations. The Saints are looking to achieve great success in the non-conference schedule and ultimately plan on winning the WHAC.

On Nov. 3, the Saints took the first step toward achieving their goals by notching their first win of the season by defeating the Judson Eagles by the score of 69-64 at Judson. The Saints featured a balanced attack with three different players reaching double- digit point totals.

Leading the way was sophomore guard John Lierman with 24 points and eight rebounds.

Along with Lierman were Aquinas’ main offensive threats; junior forward Pedja Lazic with 18 points and seven rebounds and senior Guard James Telman who chipped in 13 points. Guards Jeff Wierzbicki (senior) and Jordan Torres (junior) also added five and three points, respectively.

On Friday, the Saints traveled to Goshen, Ind. to participate in the two-day Goshen Tournament. In the Saints’ first game, Aquinas went up against Cardinal Stritch and came out on top. The Saints however, had to work hard for the win, as the game went into overtime before they prevailed 84-74.

On Saturday night, Aquinas faced host team Goshen College, and once again the Saints had to work hard to earn a victory.

“We didn’t play as well as we wanted to in either of the games,” said freshman forward Jason Hill. “But we were able to stick around and we never quit. Then when it came down to crunch time we found a way to win.”

The Saints found themselves up against the wall, trailing by eight with 1:20 left on the clock. But with under a minute to go, Telman came up with a key steal and then hit a 3-point shot in the ensuing possession to give Aquinas a one point lead.Later in the contest, with just two seconds left on the clock, junior Guard Jordan Torres hit a shot to give the Saints a 65-62 win over Goshen and clinch the tournament championship.

Leading the way for the Saints throughout thetournament were sophomore guard John Lierman, who was named First Team All-Tournament, and Lazic, who brought home tournament MVP honors.

The Saints take four victories into the Hall of Fame Classic over Thanksgiving weekend. There, the Saints will get the chance see rival Cornerstone for the first time this year, in addition to Calvin and Hope.

The Saints play their first game Nov. 23 at 6 p.m. against Hope. All games will be played at Cornerstone.