An 18 point second half from first-year guard Anders Nelson Wednesday at Schoenecker Arena helped the St. Thomas men’s basketball team comeback to defeat the Bethel Royals 68-65.
The Tommies (5-1 overall, 2-0 MIAC) began the game with two quick three-point shots from guard Connor Bair, leading by six points one minute into the game. However, the Royals (3-4 overall, 1-1 MIAC) quickly took control of the game and led 33-22 at the half.
“Bethel is a fantastic team, and there’s a reason they were picked ahead of us in the conference,” coach John Tauer said. “The first half shows what happens if were not ready to play, and the second half shows what can happen against an outstanding team when we play tough.”
The Royals led the Tommies in every shooting percentage category at the break, highlighted by a 100 percent rating from the free throw line, compared to 40 percent from the Tommies.
The Tommies began the second half with a 22-point surge in the first 10 minutes, equaling their scoring total from the first half.
“We came out of the break with lots of energy,” Hannon said. “We made a point to share the ball more. We played a little too selfish in the first half, so we made it a point to fix that in the second half.”
The Royals offense kept in stride and maintained a 57-54 lead 13 minutes into the second half. Connor Bair and Michael Hannon led the Tommies with 12 points each; and Royals guard Jack Jenson led Bethel with 22.
First year guard Anders Nelson played 33 minutes of the game while scoring 18 points, all coming in the second half.
“In the first half I wasn’t getting the looks I wanted,” Nelson said. “In the second half, we opened up more and played together which created looks for me and allowed myself to get looks for my teammates as well.”
With fewer than four minutes left, the Tommies pulled within one point of the Royals, trailing 62-61. St. Thomas ended the game on a 22-10 scoring run, overcoming a 15-point deficit to capture its fifth-straight win.
The Tommies play again Dec. 8 at Schoenecker Arena against Carleton.
Jacob Schneider can be reached at schn6923@stthomas.edu.