WINONA, Minn. – Kaleb Feahn (Jr., Waseca) scored a career high 26 points to lead the Gustavus men’s basketball team to a 76-65 win at Saint Mary’s on Wednesday night. The Gusties are now 5-8 overall and 5-3 in the MIAC, while the Cardinals drop to 6-6 overall and 3-4 in the league.
“He’s a fabulous shooter,” Head Coach Mark Hanson said of Feahn. “So he gives us that value as a scorer. And because of his shooting, people are quickly seeing they want to take that away and that got them in foul trouble early. He was making nice reads and found himself in good scoring positions.”
There were four scoring ties and four lead changes in the first 10 minutes of the game before an Isaac Douglas (Jr., Montevideo) three pointer gave the Gusties a 19-18 lead with 9:14 on the clock – an advantage they would not relinquish the rest of the way. Three minutes later, Gustavus scored 11 unanswered points to gain a 36-22 lead with three minutes left in the half and then carried a 39-27 advantage into the locker room at break.
The Gusties carried their momentum into the second half, gaining their largest lead at 57-36 with 13:44 on the clock. The Cardinals slowly chipped away at their deficit and were able to get the score within single digits at 72-64 at the 1:45 mark, but the visitors fended off the late comeback for their second straight win.
Gustavus shot 40.7 percent from the field and made a season high 26 free throws, led by Feahn’s 14-for-16 performance. The 26 made team free throws are the most since 2012 and Feahn’s 14 made are the most by an individual since Gary Cooper sunk 14 against Concordia on Feb. 6, 2016.
The Gusties won the rebound battle 43-35, led by Logan Rezac (Jr., Andover) and CJ Woda (Jr., Maple Grove) with eight apiece. The Gustie defense held the Cardinals to under 39 percent shooting and limited the league’s second leading scorer in Eli Cave to 12 points, which is eight below his season average.
“[Saint Mary’s] has one of the better offensive players in the MIAC, but [assistant coaches] Justin [DeGrood] and Vandy [Chris VanderHyde] had a good game plan to make things difficult for him,” Hanson said. “Saint Mary’s was left with guys taking shots who may not have been comfortable with those perimeter shots. And I think our guys used that game plan well.”
Gustavus returns to the court Saturday at Bethel. Tipoff in Arden Hills is slated for 1 p.m.