SAINT PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus Adolphus College men's basketball team battled the Whitworth College Pirates on Thursday night in their home opener, falling 62-60.
The two teams traded leads through the opening minutes until
Max Buslee hit a three to put the Gusties up 14-12. Gustavus held that lead through the rest of the half, leading by as many as 13 points up 32-19. At halftime, the Gusties led by seven up 34-27.
In the second half, Gustavus led by as many as 11 points up 51-40 with 9:33 to go. As that point, Whitworth started to rally. The Pirates went on a 16-4 run to go up 56-55 with 3:55 remaining. The Gusties retook the lead 57-56 on an
Andrew Quam jumper with 2:45 to go, but Whitworth took the lead back with a three-point basket to go up 59-57 with 1:07 remaining. The Pirates added to their lead with free throws down the stretch to go up 62-57. Buslee hit another three as the clock neared zeros to cut the deficit to two points, but there was not enough time remaining to rally as Gustavus fell 62-60.
Myles Barnette led the Gusties with 12 points on 5-for-11 shooting to go along with seven assists, four rebounds, a block, and a steal. Quam followed with 11 points and a team-high six rebounds.
Gustavus shot 34.3 percent from the floor and 29.0 percent from three-point range. Whitworth shot 36.2 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from beyond the arc.
Up next for the Gusties is another home game on Saturday, November 22 at 5:00 p.m. against the University of Wisconsin-Platteville Pioneers.
