<t first you don’t succeed, try, try again. That recipe worked for the Carleton College men’s basketball team on Wednesday as the Knights boasted an 18-0 advantage in second-chance points en route to a 58-53 triumph over Concordia College-Moorhead.
It was not easy for the Knights (7-17, 5-14 MIAC). After trailing 29-26 at intermission, Carleton started the second half 2-for-7 from the field with five turnovers and found itself facing its largest deficit of the contest at 41-32 with 14 minutes remaining.
That forced a Knights’ timeout, and coming out the break, Carleton put together an 11-1 run over the next 3:20. Kent Hanson (Jr./St. Paul, Minn./St. Paul Academy) scored seven of his game-high 21 points during that stretch, including a steal and dunk.
The Knights opened up a 50-46 lead after senior Noah Plewa (Eau Claire, Wis./Wildlands School) drained two free throws at the 6:16 mark. That marked Carleton’s largest lead since holding an early 13-9 advantage.
Concordia responded with a mini 7-2 spurt to reclaim a 53-52 advantage with 2:56 still to play. The Carleton defense stepped up down the stretch, holding Concordia scoreless the rest of the way as the Knights scored the final six points of the evening.
Hanson also snared a game-high nine rebounds as the Knights controlled the boards 43-22 overall and 22-8 in the second half. Carleton corralled 15 offensive rebounds leading to the significant edge in second-chance points, offsetting Concordia’s 21-4 margin in points off turnovers.
Matthew Stritzel (So./Chicago, Ill./Niles Notre Dame) saw his streak of 20-points games snapped as he accounted for 12 points and six rebounds. Senior Quinn Johnson (Sr./Roseville, Minn./Roseville) chipped in eight points, three steals, and an assist.
Bryden Urie’s 17 points paced three Cobbers in double figures. Jordan Davis chipped in 12 points, while Thomas Schyma added 11 points.
Carleton hits the road for its final game of the season at No. 15 Saint John’s University on Saturday, Feb. 16 at 3 p.m.