The Gustavus men’s basketball team did not miss many shots against Macalester on Wednesday night as it shot a blazing 62.3 percent from the field on 33-for-53 en route to an 87-59 win in St. Paul. The Gusties were equally impressive from the three-point line as they hit 8-of-13 from behind the arc and went a perfect 13-for-13 from the charity stripe. Bobby Johnson paced Gustavus, which improved to 10-9 overall and 9-5 in the league, with 15 points. Macalester remained winless at 0-21 overall and 0-16 in the MIAC.
Head Coach Mark Hanson’s squad grabbed a 13-6 advantage after Jesse Van Sickle and Dan Schmidtknecht made consecutive three-pointers. Both teams traded buckets throughout the rest of the frame before the Gusties went on a 12-3 run to take a 48-32 lead into half. Phil Wirtjes served as the catalyst for the stretch with a pair for three-point baskets.
Gustavus did not cool off at halftime as five different players contributed to an 11-2 run early in the second half to go ahead 59-34 with 15:24 left to play. Macalester cut the deficit to 16 points, but committed nine turnovers during a nine-minute span. The Gusties capitalized on the chances as they outscored the Scots 24-4 to build their largest lead of the contest at 85-47 with 3:17 on the clock as Gustavus cruised to the 28-point win.
In addition to Bobby Johnson’s 15 points, Dan Schmidtknecht and Jesse Van Sickle contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively. All 14 Gusties who played scored during the game. Macalester was nearly as efficient on the offensive end as Gustavus as the Scots were 53.2 percent from the floor (25-for-47), but could not overcome turnovers and only went to the free-throw line twice. The Scots were led by Paul Richie, who scored eight of his game-high 19 points in the final two minutes, and Kyle Hamblett with 17. No other Scot registered more than six points during the game.
The Gusties return to Gus Young Court on Saturday where they will face Hamline at 3 p.m. as part of the 100th Anniversary Celebration of Gustavus Men’s Basketball.