Guard Erik Tengwall’s nine points in the final three minutes solidified the No. 1-seeded St. Thomas men’s basketball team’s 70-57 victory against No. 4-seeded Carleton Friday at Schoenecker Arena.
Tengwall lit it up with two “old fashioned” three-point plays and one 3-pointer while the Tommie defense held the Knights (16-11) scoreless for the final 4:32 of the game. St. Thomas did not allow a made field goal in the last 7:07. The 13-point margin of victory was the largest lead of the game.
St. Thomas (25-1) hosts Augsburg Sunday in the MIAC title game. It’s the Tommies’ seventh trip in the past eight seasons to the conference championship game.
Coach John Tauer said he is proud of his team’s effort against the Knights.
“I think tonight was a great example of playoff basketball,” Tauer said. “We’re thrilled to be moving on to the MIAC playoffs and very proud of how the guys hung in there and played a really tough and gritty game.”
The Tommies brought the heat at the start of the game when guard Will DeBerg sank an easy jumper from inside the arc, putting the Tommies up 5-2 . DeBerg tallied five points for the Tommies and had three assists. Forward Zach Riedeman stepped up for St. Thomas, stealing the ball and sinking a jumper to extend the lead 7-2.
Riedeman said Carleton played a tough game despite its starters participating for the majority of the game.
“They’re a tough team. They play six guys,” Riedeman said. “It’s credit to (the Knights) just because they run their system really well.”
Center Tommy Hannon kept St. Thomas rolling when he made an easy layup, giving his team an 18-10 lead. Hannon racked up 10 rebounds.
Carleton fired back when forward Tyler Goetz sank a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired, pumping up the Carleton crowd and pulling his team to a 20-17 deficit.
Hannon said the team’s strong defense kept them afloat in the first half.
“Our calling card is defense,” Hannon said. “We didn’t do as well as we’d like in the first half, so we really had to buckle down and get stops.”
Forward Josh Pella’s dunk gave the the Tommies a jolt and a 26-23 lead.
St. Thomas took a 33-27 lead into halftime.
Fans trickling in after break necessitated expanded seating. The second half commenced with the Tommies’ strong defense.
Early in the second half, the Knights crept up on the Tommies. Sinking the third-consecutive 3-pointer between the teams, guard Tom Sawatzke drilled a 3-pointer for the Knights, pulling within three at 54-51.
Hannon said tonight’s game showed the competitive nature of the playoffs.
“Everyone’s going to give us their best shot,” Hannon said. “Our depth is a big thing for us so we got to make sure one through 19. Everyone’s ready.”
The game took a dramatic turn when Hannon fouled Knights’ wing Scott Theisen, who sunk two free throws and levelled the score at 57-57. The Tommies, led by Tengwall, brushed this off, holding the Knights scoreless from the field for the remainder of the game.
Tengwall took control of the Tommies’ fate when he drove to the hoop, making a layup after sliding through the Knights’ defense. Tengwall finished with 12 points.
Riedeman provided the exclamation dunk in the Tommies’ 13-point victory.
Riedeman said his dunk couldn’t have come at a more perfect time.
“The last couple games we’ve had a couple opportunities at the end, but just haven’t converted,” Riedemann said. “So it was nice.”
In the regular season, St. Thomas swept its series with Augsburg.
Tauer said the Auggies will be well-prepared come Sunday.
“Every team we see is going to give us their best shot,” Tauer said. “Playoff basketball is a little bit different animal, and these are fun games to be in.”
Sean Crotty can be reached at crot0230@stthomas.edu.