DE PERE - St. Norbert College officially returned to the hardwood for the first time in 614 days and gained a 75-59 win over Lawrence University in a non-conference game at Mulva Family Fitness & Sports Center.

The Green Knights, who last played a men's basketball game on March 6, 2020, shot a blistering 19-for-29 (65.5 percent) from the floor in the second half to pull away from a 32-32 halftime tie and claim their 23rd consecutive win against Lawrence.

St. Norbert jumped out to a 9-3 lead early and held a 14-13 advantage with 11:30 in the first half on a Carson Talbert jumper. The Green Knights would go nearly seven minutes without a field goal, falling behind 25-15 with 5:01 left in the half on a Kyle Lillwitz 3-pointer. St. Norbert broke the drought on a Garrett Grzesk hoop with 4:43 to go, but the Vikings still led by 10 at 31-21 with 2:45 left. The Green Knights charged into intermission on an 11-1 run, fueled by 3-pointers from DeAndre Johns and Michael Payant, to head into the break tied at 32-32.

The Green Knights forced a pair of Lawrence turnovers to open the second half, getting fastbreak layups from Evan Glaser and Jacob Bolwerk to take a lead they would never relinquish. St. Norbert led 40-39 with 15:37 to play, but then went on a 13-5 run to take a 53-44 edge on a steal and finish by Carter Gebler.

Lawrence would get to within five a couple times and trailed 61-53 with 7:54 left, but the Green Knights went on a 9-0 run to to salt the game away. A Talbert jumper, a 3-pointer by Payant, and runout layups by Gebler and Payant led to a 70-53 lead with 5:23 to go.

St. Norbert shot 50 percent from the floor, making 30 of 60 field-goal attempts. Payant had 15 points and eight rebounds to lead the Green Knights in both categories. Talbert finished with 14 points, Gebler 12 and Glaser 11. The Green Knights outrebounded the Vikings 42-36.

Lawrence shot 35.9 percent (23-for-64) from the floor. Brad Sendell led the Vikings with 21 points, while Lillwitz finished with 19 points.