COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – The Macalester College men's basketball team held Saint John's to its lowest offensive output of the season in a 59-45 loss Saturday afternoon at Sexton Arena. The MIAC defeat drops the Scots to 9-11 overall and 6-9 in conference play, while the Johnnies improve to 17-3, 14-1 MIAC.
After losing to Saint John's by 23 points back on Dec. 11, Macalester tightened up the defense, holding the Johnnies to 32.3 percent shooting from the field in the first half. The score remained close in the first half, with neither team leading by more than six points. Following a three by Colton Codute that gave Saint John's a 23-17 lead with six minutes left, the Scots finished the half on a 7-2 run, punctuated by a three-pointer from sophomore guard
Caleb Williams (Wild Rose, Wis./Wild Rose) and a dunk by first year forward
Badou Ba (Dakar, Senegal/Williston Northampton), that made the halftime score 25-24 Johnnies.
Macalester carried momentum into the second half, with Williams hitting another three and senior center
Shane Anderson (Fargo, N.D./Davies) scoring to put the Scots on top, 29-25 three minutes into the half. But Saint John's showed why it is one of the top two teams in the MIAC by answering with a 15-0 run to take a commanding 40-29 advantage with 12 minutes remaining. Still trailing by 11 later in the half, baskets by Ba and senior guard
Lucas Leiter (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Eagan), plus a three from senior guard
Gabriel Ramos (Dorado, Puerto Rico/Tasis Dorado), brought the Scots to within four, 44-40 with 8:08 to play.
This time the Johnnies stepped up their defensive play, holding Macalester to 2-of-12 shooting the rest of the way in closing out the game with a 15-5 run. The Scots shot just 29.6 percent from the field in the second half and 33.3 percent for the game.
Williams scored a team-high 12 points to go with four rebounds and two blocks. Ba made all four of his shots from the field en route to nine points, five boards and two blocks, while Ramos grabbed nine rebounds. Zach Hanson scored 13 points to pace Saint John's, which has won six straight.
Macalester returns home to host St. Scholastica in a MIAC game on Monday, Feb. 7. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m. in the Leonard Center.
