ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Macalester College men's basketball team welcomed 2025 with an 85-80 overtime victory over Minnesota Morris Thursday night in the Leonard Center. The win is the first in four games for the Scots, who are now 3-9 on the season. The Cougars fall to 2-8.

The game looked more like a lopsided affair than an overtime thriller early on, with Macalester opening up with an improbable 20-0 run. The Scots shot 9-of-12 (.750) from the field in the run while holding Minn. Morris scoreless on seven field goal attempts, two free throw attempts and four turnovers. Sophomore guards Kaden Holdbrook (Palo Alto, Calif./Henry M. Gunn) and Kyle Jilla (Dallas, Texas/Plano West), and senior guard Tom Andreae (Newton, Mass./Newton North) all hit threes in the run, with senior forward Armando Akapo-Nwagbo (Owerri, Nigeria/Pomona) scoring six points.

The Cougars' first basket came with 13:35 on the clock in the first half, and the visitors began the long road back from a slow start. With the lead still 20, 28-8 with 8:13 remaining in the half, Minn. Morris closed out the period on a 20-9 run that was capped by a three-pointer at the buzzer by Tarik Iyob that made the halftime score 37-28 Scots. Macalester shot 41.7 percent from the field in the first half but made just 3-of-16 from three-point range.

Momentum stayed with the Cougars at the start of the second half, as Minn. Morris tallied the first nine points after halftime to tie the score at 37-37. A three from junior forward Ryan Brush (Bellevue, Wash./Bellevue) sparked a 9-2 run that put the Scots back on top, 46-39 with 13:44 to play. After the Cougars cut the deficit to four on four different occasions, a basket by junior forward Noah Shannon (Northfield, Ill./New Trier) and threes from junior guard Eric Wentz (Minot, N.D./Minot) and Holdbrook put Macalester on top by 11, 62-51 with under five minutes remaining.

The Cougars did not give up, reeling off a 16-6 run to pull to within one, 68-67 with 20 seconds left. After first year guard JP Kerrigan (Atherton, Calif./Sacred Heart Prep) hit a pair of free throws, Pal Dak was fouled while shooting a three-pointer with two seconds left. Dak hit all three free throws to tie the score at 70-70, and a three by Kerrigan was off the mark, sending the game to overtime.

In the extra session, the Scots held a 74-73 edge when senior guard Robert Grace IV (Minneapolis, Minn./The Blake School) drained a three that was answered by Thomas Tiernan. Back-to-back baskets from Wentz and Grace made the score 81-76 Macalester, but four straight points by Dak brought the Cougars to within one, 81-80 at the one-minute mark. Shannon made 1-of-2 from the line, then punctuated a fast break following a Dak miss with a dunk for an 84-80 lead. He was fouled on the play and made the free throw to make the final score 85-80. Macalester made 4-of-6 of its field goal attempts in overtime while holding the Cougars to 3-of-10 from the floor.

Shannon led the Scots with 20 points, nine rebounds, four assists and two steals in a solid all-around performance. Wentz tallied 17 points and seven boards off the bench, with Holdbrook finishing with 11 points and eight rebounds. Grace contributed nine points and five rebounds off the bench. Dak led all scorers with 23 points for Minn. Morris.

Macalester returns to MIAC play on Saturday, Jan. 4 with a game at St. Scholastica. The opening tip is set for 1:00 p.m. in Duluth, Minn.