Hot-shooting Gustavus Adolphus rallied from a five-point deficit late in the second half to force overtime and edge St. Thomas 82-77 in MIAC men's basketball play on Saturday.
The win propelled the Gusties (13-5, 10-3 MIAC) into a first-place conference tie with St. Thomas (also 13-5 and 10-3) and snapped a five-game losing streak to the Tommies.
"We never quite got in a rhythm offensively," Coach John Tauer said of his team, which shot 44 percent from the field and hit only 1 of 10 three-point shots in the first half. "It was a hard-fought game. They just made more big plays at the end than we did."
The showdown featured 13 lead changes and 11 ties as Gustavus nailed 60 percent of its shots to hold off the Tommies.
St. Thomas trailed 34-30 at half and fell behind 41-32 and 49-42 before going on a 12-3 run to grab a 56-52 lead at the 9-minute mark. Guard Will DeBerg came off the bench to hit five three-point shots in the second half and overtime.
DeBerg's free throw tied the game at 69-69, but neither team could score in the final two minutes of regulation. DeBerg stole the ball with 3.5 seconds left but missed a long three-point at the buzzer and the game went into overtime.
The Tommies led once in the extra period, 72-71 on a DeBerg trey. His three-point play tied the game at 75-75 but then Gustavus, leading 78-77, got two offensive rebounds after a missed free throw and a missed shot to maintain possession. The Gusties sealed the game with four free throws.
John Nance and DeBerg were the only Tommies in double figures, with 21 and 20 points, with DeBerg hitting 19 in the second half and overtime.
Seth Anderson, the MIAC's leading scorer at 24.8 points per game, had 26 for Gustavus on 10 of 12 shooting, and three other Gusties hit double figures.
St. Thomas is on the road again Monday night at Macalester, while Gustavus will travel to third-place Augsburg. The Tommies face St. John's at home Wednesday night, when the Steve Fritz Court will be dedicated at halftime.
Click here for box score:
https://gustavus.edu/athletics/mbb/archives/2011-12/stats/ust0128.htm