The Gustavus men’s basketball team suffered its first loss of the 2005-06 season falling to St. Thomas 87-51 in St. Peter on Wednesday night. The match-up between two of the top teams in the MIAC, turned into a rout as the Tommies shot a sizzling 64.8 percent from the field, while the Gusties shot a chilly 32.7 percent from the field. St. Thomas was led by junior Isaac Rosefelt with 27 points, 14 rebounds, and nine blocks, while Gustavus was led by Phil Sowden with 12 points.
The Tommies opened the first eight minutes of the game on a 20-12 run. St. Thomas continued to build on its lead and was up by 15 with 7:18 remaining in the first half (30-15). The Gusties were outscored 16-3 in the final seven minutes as the Tommies took a 46-18 lead into the lockerroom. Rosefelt (11) and Schnettler (10) led the Tommies offensively in the first half, while Phil Sowden scored 12 points to lead Gustavus.
The Gusties were outscored 15-8 in the first five minutes of the second half and trailed 61-26 with 15:03 left in the game. The Gusties pulled to within 27 points with 10 minutes remaining in the game, but St. Thomas countered to extend its lead to 38 points with two minutes left. The Tommies shot 64 percent (16-of-25) in the second half, while the Gusties shot only 34.6 percent (9-of-26).
Gustavus shot 32.7 percent (16-of-49) from the field, 18.2 percent (2-of-11) from behind the arc, and 68 percent (17-of-25) from the free throw line. Joining Sowden in double figures was Andrew Olson with 10 points.
The Tommies shot an impressive 64.8 percent (35-of-54) from the field, 61.5 percent (8-of-13) from the three-point line, and 81.8 percent (9-of-11) from the charity stripe.
St. Thomas out-rebounded the Gusties 37-20. Rosefelt led the Tommies with 27 points, 14 rebounds, and nine blocks, while Schnettler tallied 21 points and Joey Shimek added ten.
The 36-point loss to the Tommies was the second worst home loss by the Gusties since Gus Young Court was dedicated in September of 1984. The worst loss was a 44-point setback to the University of Minnesota-Morris (89-45) on November 21, 1994.
Gustavus drops to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the MIAC, while St. Thomas improves to 5-1 overall and 4-0 in league play.
The Gusties will be back in action Friday (12/9) on the road against UM-Morris at 7:30 p.m.