NORTHFIELD, MINN. - Luke Harris slashed and spun his way to a game-high 22 points, keying the Carleton College men's basketball team to a 68-51 victory over the Hamline University Pipers in the MIAC Playoffs semifinal. The No. 1 seeded Knights will host the MIAC Playoffs championship game for the first time in team history when No. 2 seed Saint John's University visits West Gym on Sunday.
"What a gritty performance against a tough-as-nails and well-coached Hamline team," said Carleton head coach Ryan Kershaw. "This was a total team win in what was as good of an environment we have had at West Gym in quite some time. Kudos to our students for showing up in full force and for bringing it from the opening tip until the final buzzer. I cannot say enough about the effort and toughness each guy that stepped on the floor played with. This was a well-deserved and total team win. It was a memorable evening, and I'm thrilled for our team that we get a chance to play again Sunday at West Gym."
Standout performances abounded for Carleton (23-3). This was the ninth time this season that Harris scored at least 20 points in a game. Beck Page contributed 16 points off the bench for the Knights, including 14 of those in the second half thanks to a 4-of-6 showing from beyond the arc.
Jeremy Beckler had an off night by his lofty standards but still nearly notched a double-double with 12 points and a season high-tying nine rebounds. He also moved into ninth place on Carleton's all-time in scoring chart (1,368 points). Meanwhile, Matt Banovetz secured a career-best 18 boards for Carleton, tied for the second-highest total in the MIAC this season.
Spencer Goetz played a personal season-high 33 minutes and made every one of them count with an all-around stellar stat line. He doled out eight assists (tied for the third-highest single-game total in the in MIAC this year) with five rebounds, three steals, and a block. He helped limit Bradley Cimperman, Hamline's top scorer, to 14 points on 5-of-19 (26 percent) shooting.
After trailing 32-28 at halftime, Carleton outscored Hamline 40-19 during the second half. The Pipers led 40-38, but the Knights went on a 14-2 run spanning the next three-plus minutes. Overall, Carleton out-scored Hamline 30-11 over the final 10:30 of game action.
Carleton has now won nine straight games and extended its single-season wins record. This was the team's first postseason win since the 2017 MIAC Quarterfinals.
After a sluggish first half, Carleton shot below 50 percent over the final 20 minutes and finished at a 44.6 percent clip for the game. Hamline shot 37.1 percent in the first half but was held to 24.1 percent shooting in the second period and finished at 31.3 percent overall.
For Hamline, Cimperman posted a double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds), and big man Austin Holt finished with 11 points and 9 rebounds overall, but most of Holt's damage came in the first half as he was held scoreless with only one rebound after intermission.
Carleton advanced to the finals of the MIAC Playoffs for the fourth time (also 1997, 2006, 2010). The Knights will be looking for their second postseason tourney title but will have to go through a Saint John's squad that won the last three conference tourneys (2019, 2010, 2022).
The MIAC Playoffs Championship will be held at West Gym Sunday, Feb. 26 at 2:00 p.m. The winner claims the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Championships.