University of St. Thomas Athletics
24-3
Bethel
19-9
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethel University | 34 | 29 | 63 |
| St. Thomas | 32 | 34 | 66 |
Bench, poise help Men's Hoops take crown
3/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By DOUG HENNES
St. Thomas basketball fans had that sickening déjà vu feeling when Bethel sharpshooter Brycen Wojta stepped to the free throw line with 4:24 remaining and the Tommies hanging on to a 57-55 lead in Sunday's MIAC playoff championship game.
The Royals had scored eight points in a row in rallying from a 10-point deficit. They looked like they just might replicate their comeback victory over St. Thomas 11 days ago, when they were behind by 14 points with nine minutes to go but found a way to pull out the win in overtime.
No déjà vu this time. Woyta made the first free throw but missed the second, and the Tommies responded with seven free throws and a layup in the final four minutes to hold off Bethel and win 66-63 for their eighth conference playoff title in the last 10 years.
With the win before 1,550 fans in a packed Schoenecker Arena, No. 6-ranked St. Thomas (24-3) earned an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III tournament, which opens Friday. The Tommies will find out their opponent, and where they will play, on Monday.
That Bethel (19-9) made a run in the closing minutes did not surprise St. Thomas Coach John Tauer, whose team went on a 21-6 run to build the 57-47 lead with 7:34 to go.
"We hit some outside shots (two 3-pointers by both Jimmy Remke and Marcus Alipate) to go up by 10, but then we hit a slow spot," Tauer said. "Our guys didn't panic, though. We got back to running our offense and made our free throws at the end."
"Basketball always is a game of runs, and Bethel is a really good team," said junior guard Cortez Tillman, who came off the bench to score 14 points on 5 of 6 shooting. "Look what they did to us at the end of the regular season. We knew they would make a run at the end."
Wojta hot early for Bethel
The Royals had the game's first run, outscoring St. Thomas 14-2 to take their largest lead at 26-18. Wojta had 10 of Bethel's points during that stretch, hitting two 3-pointers and driving for two layups.
The Tommies responded with nine straight points to retake the lead at 27-26, thanks to back-to-back layups by sophomore guard Grant Shaeffer and a layup and 3-pointer by junior forward Taylor Montero. A Bethel trey inside a minute to go gave the Royals a 34-32 lead at halftime.
With St. Thomas down 41-40 seven minutes into the second half, Remke hit back-to-back 3-pointers from the top of the key to give the Tommies a lead they would not relinquish. The junior reserve forward from Hill-Murray went on to tie his career high with 16 points.
"At halftime, the coaches told me if Bethel kept sagging off me that I should go ahead and shoot," he said. "So I did! I love coming in off the bench and bringing a little spark. I don't think other teams pay that much attention to me, so if I can make a few shots, it's great."
Remke's sharpshooting may have opened the door for senior guard Marcus Alipate, who had been handcuffed all game by Bethel. Alipate was 0 for 3 at the time, but hit two 3-pointers and another jumper in a two-minute span to stake the Tommies to their 57-47 lead.
"They were playing me tighter than usual," said Alipate, who scored a career-high 30 points against the Royals earlier in the season. "But that's okay. The great thing about this team is you can't key on one player. Other guys step up and make the plays."
Tauer also cited his team's unselfishness. "Neither Conner (Nord) or Marcus had a point at halftime, and they didn't care," Tauer said. Nord went scoreless for the game but nabbed a team-high nine rebounds. "That just shows how much this is a team game."
Tommie notes
St. Thomas, ranked first in Division III in three-point shooting (43.8 percent), burnished its record by hitting 9 of 18 from outside the arc against Bethel. The Tommies are second in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.63), with 10 assists and only eight turnovers on Sunday.
• Balanced scoring and bench scoring also helped St. Thomas. Five players finished in double figures, including Shaeffer at 13, Montero at 11 (all in the first half) and Alipate at 10. Thanks to the performances by Remke and Tillman, the Tommies swamped Bethel 30-3 in bench scoring.
• St. Thomas has won 13 MIAC titles in the 31 years of the playoff format and has a 35-15 (.700) record, including 32-8 (.800 at home). They are 18-1 in Schoenecker Arena playoff games over the last eight seasons, with the only loss coming to St. Olaf in last year's MIAC title game.
• It's a good thing there are video replays. The discussion after Friday's win over Gustavus centered on who tipped the ball on a missed Shaeffer shot to Alipate, who made a jumper to force overtime. Some people said Nord, but he credited Montero. As it turned out, the ball came to Alipate off the hands of Gary Cooper, who led the Gusties with 23 points.
• Assistant Coach Don Johnson raised a few eyebrows with his sartorial splendor, sporting a light purple blazer. He said he has had it "for awhile," but Sunday was the first time he has worn it. "Good thing we won," he added, "or I was going to burn it."
