It took a lot of moving parts but the end result was well worth the effort. Hamline's men's basketball team is 2-0 in MIAC play for the first time since 2007-08 after a hard fought 78-68 triumph over Concordia Saturday at Hutton Arena. Isaac Brooks delivered 15 of his game high 21 points in the first half to lead the offense. But there were plenty of supporting heroes.

Such as:

• Connor Knutson with 18 points and three steals
• Ethan Scheuring with 11 points and five rebounds
• Michael Dillon with three more three-pointers and five rebounds
• and Jake Larson with nine points, seven rebounds and a game high seven assists

It added up to Hamline being one of three MIAC teams who went 2-0 in league play in the first week of the season.

Although the Pipers led for the majority of the game, it was a far from easy conquest. There were five first half ties before HU broke free for a 7-0 run to grab a 27-17 lead in the first half. The margin was still seven at 35-28 when CC shut off the HU offense and cut the margin to 35-32 by intermission. HU kept pushing and the lead expanded to 10 midway in the second half. The Cobbers fought back to get within four at 67-63 with 8:12 to go. Hamline responded with a Scheuring layup and Dillon's ninth three-pointer of the week to expand the lead to nine and the combination of defense and Jake Larson's free throw expertise (he hit six in the final minute of play) sealed the deal. 

Hamline, now 4-2 overall, plays at Augsburg (4-1, 1-1 MIAC) Wednesday, December 5. Game time is 7:00 p.m.