Gustavus vs. Macalester
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 7
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: St. Peter, Minn. | Gus Young Court
Live Coverage: Stats | Video
ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s basketball team is set to begin a three-game home stretch Wednesday evening with a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup against Macalester College, in search of a series sweep. The Gusties (11-11, 9-8 MIAC) and the Scots (2-19, 1-15 MIAC) are set to tipoff at 7 p.m. from Gus Young Court.
The Series
Wednesday’s game marks the 159th meeting between Gustavus and Macalester on the hardwood, with the Gusties holding a 104-54 advantage in the all-time series. The two teams recently faced each other in early January, in which Gustavus recorded a season-high scoring output during a 98-79 victory in St. Paul, Minn. Jason Faul (Sr., Prior Lake, Minn.) led the team with a career-high 25 points, shooting 12-13 from the field.
Last Time Out
The Gusties got back on track Monday evening, snapping a four-game losing skid with a 69-67 win at Concordia College, closing out its regular season road schedule with a Riley Sharbono (Jr., Marshall, Minn.) buzzer-beater in Moorhead, Minn. After the score was tied 38-38 at the half, Gustavus opened the second half on a 20-6 run and held on for the win with a last second jumper from Sharbono.
The Black and Gold shot 45.6 percent from the field (26-57), 47.1 percent from three-point range (8-17) and 81.8 percent from the free throw line (9-11). Concordia out-rebounded Gustavus 30-29 while the Gusties forced 16 Cobber turnovers, while committing 13. Kelsey Thomas (Sr., Wiesbaden, Germany) led the Gusties with a season-high 25 points, shooting 10-16 from the field. Sharbono followed with 14 points while Jason Faul added 12 and a team-high six rebounds.
Scouting the Scots
Since Macalester faced Gustavus on Jan. 8, they have went 1-8, most recently falling against Hamline University 98-88 on Monday. The Scots are currently on a seven-game losing streak since their sole conference win of the season came at Saint Mary’s Jan. 13, winning 116-87. Macalester ranks at the bottom of the MIAC with 101.3 points against per game, while ranking first with 9.2 steals per game. Junior forward Wyatt Ferm leads the Scots offensively, averaing 16.4 points per game (3rd/MIAC). First-year forward Jackson Henningfield adds 14.8 points per game and leads the team with 6.4 rebounds per game.
Gustavus Notables
- The Gusties matched their win total from last season with the Dec. 6 victory at Augsburg. They doubled their win total with their 10th win of the season versus St. Thomas Jan. 24.
- Gustavus snapped its longest losing skid of the season at Concordia on Monday.
- Kelsey Thomas recorded a season-high 25 points at Concordia, shooting 10-16 from the field and 3-5 from long-range while playing a career-high 34 minutes.
- The Gusties’ 13 steals at Concordia marked the second most in a game. Gustavus tallied 15 steals versus Saint Mary’s Nov. 29.
- Sharbono’s buzzer-beater at Concordia marked the first time Gustavus won a game on a last second shot since Jordan Dick made a free throw with 2.3 seconds to defeat Saint John’s 65-64 Feb. 26, 2014.
- Sharbono ranks third in the conference with a 75- for-91 clip from the free throw line.
- Gustavus owns an 8-1 record when Sharbono sinks at least four free throws. Conversely, the Gusties are 3-10 when Sharbono makes less than four chances at the charity stripe.