NORTHFIELD, Minn. – In what proved to be the highest-scoring game in MIAC Playoffs history, the No. 2 seed Carleton College men's basketball team lost its semifinal round matchup against No. 3 seed Gustavus Adolphus College 124-116 in double overtime.
Six players finished the game in double figures for Carleton (17-9), led by Luke Harris' career-best 33 tallies. Matt Banovetz notched 21 points and 10 rebounds, good for his 10th career double-double and his sixth of the season. Sam Koelling and Miles Frisch chipped in 15 points apiece, and Spencer Goetz came up just shy of his own double-double with 12 points and a career-high-tying nine assists. Alex Gibbens tallied all 11 of his points over the final 11 minutes of the contest.
The Knights' 116 points marked the third-highest total in program history, and the most points scored by Carleton since Feb. 8, 1995.
The battle featured big runs for each team and clutch shots at both ends of the floor.
The Gusties (17-10) drew first blood and got out to an early 5-0 lead, but the Knights responded and took their first lead at 15-13 when Chuck Sweat drained his first 3-pointer of the game.
The Knights held this lead for the majority of the first half, thanks to the defense, which snatched four steals and rejected three shots. Harris gave Carleton a 33-23 lead with 5:00 left before halftime, but the Gusties closed the period with a 17-3 run, giving them a 40-36 advantage at intermission. The Gusties shot 5-of-7 from the field during this run, including 3-of-5 from behind the arc. Two of these triples, including one at the buzzer, came from Wyatt Olson, who had hit only 12 of 45 attempts (26/7 percent) from deep this season.
Carleton re-grouped in the locker room and opened the second frame on a 17-1 run as the Knights forced four early turnovers and Gustavus missed its first six shot attempts.
The Knights held a sizeable lead for a large portion of the second half, and Carleton matched its largest lead of the contest at 84-71 with 2:40 to play in regulation. Gustavus out-scored the Knights 23-10 over next 2:40. Adam Biewen canned four triples during the run to keep the Gusties in the contest, and Jonah Anderson hit a layup at the buzzer to tie the game at 94-94 and send the game to overtime.
Gustavus struck first in the first extra period, with an old-fashioned three-point play from Wyatt Anderson. Harris responded with two free throws on the other end. The Gusties answered with two consecutive buckets, handing them a five-point advantage at 101-96. Gibbens scored two clutch baskets to help Carleton pull within 102-101. The Knights were forced to foul, and Spencer Swanson – the Gusties leading scorer this season - went 1-of-2 at the line. Harris hustled up the court and sank a layup with four seconds to play, tying the game at 103-103, and Gustavus' potential game winner came up short, sending the game to a second overtime.
The Gusties struck first again, getting off to an early five-point lead. Carleton's offense could not get hot and was unable to catch up and trailed by eight with 1:11 to play after a dagger 3-pointer by Ashton Dingmann. The Knights ultimately fell 124-116.
Gustavus was led by four 20-plus point efforts, and at the helm was a 30-point game from Brady Kienitz. Swanson and Biewen each recorded 21, and Evan Wieker dropped 20. Olson finished with 15 points and a game-high 17 rebounds.
Carleton shot 44-of-74 (.595) from the field, including 7-of-19 (.368) from deep. The Knights sank 21-of their-35 attempts (.600) from the line. Gustavus countered with 38-of-79 shooting (.481) and 18-of-42 attempts (.429) from downtown. From the charity stripe, the Gusties went 30-of-42 (.714 percent).
Gustavus will host No. 4 seed Hamline University for the MIAC Playoffs championship on Saturday, Feb. 24. The Pipers edged top seed Saint John's University, 83-80, with a 3-pointer at the buzzer.