Despite going 0-4 from the free-throw line in the game’s final 10 minutes, forward Zach Riedeman rallied to hit a game-winning shot with 2.2 seconds remaining and help St. Thomas men’s basketball edge St. Olaf College 62-61 Wednesday at Schoenecker Arena.

After holding a 5-point lead with only 1:05 remaining, the Tommies found themselves trailing by 1 point on their final possession with only :15 to play. Yet, Riedeman and the Tommies finally put their game plaguing mistakes behind them for a go-ahead basket.

“I was obviously pretty frustrated with missing free throws. I don’t think I’ve shot that badly from the free-throw line in probably my whole life,” Riedeman said. “I had a bunch of teammates come up to me and say, ‘just forget about it. Let it go, you can’t think about it.’ I’ve always just kind of thought the last shot doesn’t matter; it’s the next one you’ve got to hit.”

Riedeman, who had missed just 3 free throws all season coming into the game, went 3-9 from the line Wednesday and shot 2-8 on free throws in the second half. Despite his struggles shooting, Riedeman took a shot on the game’s deciding possession to put his team ahead.

“We got that timeout with, I think, :15 left, and we just said, ‘first open shot, you got to take it,’” Riedeman said. “Once I got the ball, I just kind of thought to create some open space and get an open look.”

Despite hanging on for the 1-point win, the Tommies struggled throughout the game. St. Thomas shot below 60 percent as a team from the free-throw line and committed 16 turnovers, while St. Olaf shot 67 percent on free throws and had just 5 turnovers.

“We probably didn’t quite execute as crisply as we’d like, but I also thought we played with a lot of intestinal fortitude through a lot of contact,” coach John Tauer said. “Quite frankly, we were thrilled to win, but we do have to shore a lot of things up between the turnovers in the first half and the missed free throws in the second half.”

After trailing 32-29 at halftime, the Tommies rallied behind guard Erik Tengwall’s consistent play to take a 2-point lead about 5:00 into the second half. Tengwall, who went 1-1 from the field and 7-7 from the free throw line in the second half, helped the Tommies build a 5-point lead with 1:05 remaining in the game.

A St. Olaf layup with just over 1:00 remaining cut St. Thomas’ lead to 3 points. After a Tommie turnover followed by a quick Ole layup, St. Olaf trailed by 1 point. Only :18 remaining on the clock, Ole guard Sterling Nielsen nailed 2 free throws to put St. Olaf up by 1 point. This mistake-riddled half minute of basketball, shrunk the Tommies’ 5-point lead to a 1-point deficit.

“St. Olaf is a very good team. They’re exceptionally well coached, and we knew going in this was going to be a battle,” Tauer said. “We shot ourselves in the foot a lot … tonight we weren’t at our best, but I love the way our guys competed.”

After taking the lead on Riedeman’s floater with 2.2 remaining, the Tommies hung on for the 62-61 victory.

“It’s not always going to go our way, but that’s kind of how we are,” center Conner Nord said. “The definition of a good team is that you’re going to win at all costs. Nothing really went our way, and we still pulled out with a ‘W’ against a pretty good team, so overall it’s a great win.”

With the win, the Tommies remain undefeated in MIAC play and hold on to first place, while the loss drops the Oles to 4-2 in MIAC play and third in the conference. St. Thomas will travel to Winona Saturday, where the team will take on St. Mary’s University.

Jacob Sevening can be reached at seve8586@stthomas.edu.