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  • Gustavus Adolphus College's Reed Sallstrom drives the lane against Macalester's Patrick Piepkorn during the first half Saturday in St. Peter. Pat Christman

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February 12, 2012

Gustavus men down Macalester, keep MIAC title in sight

Gusties lead conference by one game with three to play

By Denny Weller Special to The Free Press

ST PETER — With its first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference basketball title since 2004-05 in clear sight, the Gustavus Adolphus men’s basketball team roared past Macalester 68-52 Saturday afternoon at Lund Center.

Unlike the first meeting between the two clubs — a game where the Scots built a 19-point lead 10 minutes in before falling 86-70 — the Golden Gusties (17-5 overall, 14-3 in MIAC) seized control from the opening tap and were never challenged. Senior guard Seth Anderson led a balanced attack with 12 points while senior wing Tyler Grey and junior wing Ben Biewen scored 10 each.

“We know what they can do if you give them a breath of air and make them feel good,” Gustavus coach Mark Hanson said. “It was good to see us clamp down on that a little bit and not give them that opportunity again.

“I think we’re more balanced the last two or three weeks. I think teams have done some things to try to take Seth away and Seth has reacted to that well by getting the ball to open people.”

Gustavus got field goals from Grey, Biewen and Anderson to get things rolling before Biewen’s transition basket and second-chance 3-pointer put the Gusties in front 11-2 four minutes into the contest. Grey and junior wing Blake Shay then buried top-of-the-key 3-pointers and Anderson followed with a 10-foot fadeaway to extend the margin to 21-9.

After the Scotts (1-22, 1-17) crept within 28-23 behind Sam Marshall’s three interior hoops and a left-side 3-pointer from Bert Yaffe, Shay converted two free throws and Reed Sallstrom scored on a strong move to the cup. Anderson then hit an elbow jumper before Adam Michel’s putback set up Grey’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer that gave Gustavus a 39-25 lead at the break.

“When you don’t take a team lightly it’s easier to come out and play well,” Grey said. “Our offense moved pretty well and got the ball inside to take advantage of them in the paint.

“Defensively, we made them take tough shots and finished with rebounds. We saw what they could do to us up there, and we didn’t want that to happen again.”

Gustavus, which holds a game lead over defending Division III national champion St. Thomas with three games remaining, pushed its cushion to 45-25 behind a 12-footer and driving basket from Anderson to open the second half. Biewen’s three-point play off a baseline jumper and Anderson’s crashing-to-the-floor 12-footer sparked another Gusties’ run that produced a 58-32 bulge with 9:39 to go.

Anderson banged his left shoulder on his final basket of the game and played only briefly the final 10 minutes.

“I am just glad the shot went in.” Anderson said moments after receiving some postgame treatment. “I just dinked my shoulder up a little bit so hopefully with some rest tomorrow I’ll be ready Monday.

“Everybody is excited right now because we control our own destiny. We have three tough games left and everybody is aware of that and ready to give everything.”

Shay finished with nine points for the Gusties, who also got eight points each from Michel and Sallstrom. Sallstrom grabbed a team-best seven rebounds while Michel tallied six boards and four assists. Pierce Peters led the Scots with 16 points and eight rebounds while Yaffe was 4 of 4 from 3-point range in netting 14 points.

Gustavus plays Monday at St. Johns in Collegeville.

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