WINONA, Minn. — In their final regular season game on the road, the Gustavus men's basketball team defeated Saint Mary's to improve to 14-10 overall and 13-6 in the MIAC with one regular season game to go. Despite an impressive second half from the Cardinals, the Gustie offense held strong for a 72-63 victory in Winona.
Adam Biewen started the Gusties off strong, hitting a three on the game's opening possession for the early Gustie lead. That lead held for the remainder of the game, as the Gusties put their foot on the offensive pedal and never let up on the Cardinals. Gustavus separated itself from SMU with an 18-6 scoring run to end the first half, keeping the Cardinal 3-point shooters at bay, who went 0-for-6 from long in that span. The Gustie defense pulled down 17 rebounds and forced six Saint Mary's turnovers to hold the home team to just 25.8 percent shooting in the first 20 minutes.
The second half told the tale of a different story, as the Cardinals shot 62.5 percent to outscore the Gusties 45-34. Cameron Mallory helped Saint Mary's cut the lead to single digits, scoring 19 points in the half on 8-for-10 shooting.
Brady Kienitz kept the Gustie offense rolling, though, scoring 11 of his own in the second, including three from downtown to maintain the separation and seal the victory for the Gusties.
Gustavus finished the game shooting 49.1 percent from the floor, still bettering the Cardinals' 44.4 percent despite a strong second half showing. Four Gusties scored in double digits, led by
Evan Wieker with 17 points.
Brady Kienitz put up 16, while
Spencer Swanson added another double-double to his name with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Wyatt Olson rounded out the top Gustie scorers with 10 points on the night.
The Gusties have one final game left in the regular season, hosting Hamline at 3 p.m. at Gus Young Court.
