NORTHFIELD, Minn. –  The Macalester College men's basketball team lost a MIAC game on the road to St. Olaf, 83-59 in the first game of the new year Wednesday night in the Skoglund Center. The Scots drop to 7-3 overall and 4-2 in the conference with the loss, while the Oles improve to 7-4, 3-3 MIAC.

The game remained close throughout the first half, with Macalester using an 8-2 run to build a 24-19 edge with nine minutes left in the half. Sophomore guard Robert Grace IV (Minneapolis, Minn./The Blake School) tallied four points in the run, with sophomore guard Marcus Crawford (Edina, Minn./Edina) adding a three. St. Olaf rallied to tie the score at 24-24, eventually taking a 32-27 lead at the 5:04 mark. A three-pointer by sophomore guard Coby Gold (Denver, Colo./Kent Denver) capped an 8-3 run that tied the score at 35-35. The Oles were able to take a 40-38 lead into the halftime break despite a three from first year forward Noah Shannon (Northfield, Ill./New Trier). Both teams shot the ball well in the first half, with Macalester making 46.7 percent from the field compared to 50.0 percent for St. Olaf.

With the Scots still trailing by two just three minutes into the second half, the Oles used a 10-2 run to lead, 54-44 with 14 minutes left. After Macalester made it a nine-point deficit following a three from Grace, St. Olaf reeled off a 22-4 run that gave the hosts an 81-54 lead and put the game out of reach. The Oles shot 63.3 percent from the field in the second half while holding the Scots to 33.3 percent.

Sophomore forward Badou Ba (Dakar, Senegal/Williston Northampton) led the Scots with a career-high 14 points, while Grace finished with 10 points. Connor Martin led all players with 19 points to pace the Oles.

Macalester continues conference play with a home game against St. Scholastica on Saturday, Jan. 7. The MIAC game starts at 1:00 p.m. in the Leonard Center.