ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – Caleb Rosenow (Sr./Red Wing, Minn./Red Wing) led four Knights in double figures with a 19-point effort—including 11 points in the second half—as the Carleton College men’s basketball team picked up its first conference road victory of the year, posting a 75-67 victory at Bethel University.
Shane McSparron (Fy./Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) came off the bench to add 14 points, while Tom Sawatzke (Jr./Monticello, Minn./Monticello) and Scott Theisen (Jr./Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park) contributed 13 and 12 points respectively.
Bethel (4-3, 1-2 MIAC) scored the game’s first eight points, but McSparron had 11 points in the first half to help Carleton dig out of that hole. The Knights eventually carried a 32-29 advantage at the break on a Sawatzke three-pointer in the final minute of the period.
It remained a two-possession game for much of the second half, with the Royals re-taking the lead, 52-50, on Daniel Baah’s triple with 8:16 remaining.
Sawatzke answered back with another three pointer on the next Carleton possession, giving the visitors a lead they would not relinquish.
The Knights sealed this one at the free throw line. Beginning at the three-minute mark, Carleton made 10-of their next-11 attempts from the charity stripe, turning a two-point margin into an eight-point victory.
Taylor Hanson (So./Saint Paul, Minn./Minnehaha Academy) contributed eight points and a game-high 11 rebounds for Carleton. Baah finished with 25 points to pace all scorers. Kyle Zimmerman added 10 points and six rebounds.
Carleton shot 50 percent from the floor while the Royals converted 40 percent. The teams were fairly close in the other statistical categories except for free throws where the Knights were 20-of-31 compared to 12-of-17 for the home team.
The Knights three-game road trip concludes on Thursday, Dec. 8 when the team travels to Mankato, Minn. to face Bethany Lutheran College at 7:00 p.m. Carleton then returns home for its final pre-holiday contest, a Dec. 14 contest versus UW-La Crosse.
