Immune to Hamline’s defense, Grant Shaeffer scores a lay-up. With a career total of 260 assists, Shaeffer is in third place for most assists in school history, only 76 behind number 2. (Caroline Mackeen/TommieMedia)
St. Thomas beats Hamline 83-66, marking their seventh consecutive victory this season. Having suffered an unfortunate loss in their last game against Hamline, St. Thomas was eager to earn the win. (Caroline Mackeen/TommieMedia)
Hamline and St. Thomas both dive for the ball. Coming off a 68-63 win against Gustavus last Saturday, Hamline hoped to outplay the Tommies, but fell short in the second half of the game. (Caroline Mackeen/TommieMedia)
Freshman Erik Davis attacks the net in the final minutes of tonight’s game. With each win, St. Thomas gains momentum toward their goal of winning the MIAC conference. (Caroline Mackeen/TommieMedia)
The Tommies scored shot after shot in an exciting game against Hamline on Wednesday night. St. Thomas is ranked first in MIAC standings while Hamline is ranked sixth. (Caroline Mackeen/TommieMedia)
John Veil boxes out Hamline defense. In the first 30 seconds of the game, Veil made a 3-point jump shot to start the Tommies on their way to victory. (Caroline Mackeen/TommieMedia)
Senior Ryan Johnson is pure focus as he anticipates his opponent’s next move. Johnson has a total of 50 points so far this season. (Caroline Mackeen/TommieMedia)
Guard Grant Shaeffer scored 22 points, including 14 in the first half, and had six assists to lead the St. Thomas men’s basketball team to a 83-66 win over Hamline Wednesday at Hutton Arena in St. Paul.
The Pipers (12-10 overall, 9-8 MIAC) previously beat the Tommies (17-4 overall, 13-3 MIAC) on Dec. 7, and St. Thomas has won 13 of 14 games since that loss.
“We are really happy to get a road win against a team who beat us handily the first time,” St. Thomas head coach John Tauer said. “Tonight is an indication of how far our guys have come since that loss.”
The Pipers led the MIAC near the halfway point in the conference schedule.
Shaeffer carried the offense at the start of the game, scoring four of the first six Tommie baskets and not missing a shot in the first half.
“My goal every game is to be aggressive,” Shaeffer said. “If my shots are falling like they were tonight, it’s great for our team.”
One of Shaeffer’s first half baskets was a three-pointer in transition with about four minutes left in the first half, which gave the Tommies their largest lead of the first half at 37-26.
Hamline did not go down easily, however, as the Pipers cut the Tommie lead to six at halftime when guard TC Robinson intercepted a St. Thomas inbound pass and hit a three at the buzzer.
The Tommies came out firing in the second half to put the game away, triggering an 18-8 scoring run over the first six minutes of the first half. They capped it off with a four-point play by guard Michael Hannon, giving the Tommies a 16-point lead.
“We came out with great focus in the second half,” Tauer said. “There’s a reciprocal relationship between offense and defense and when we get stops and get to run on offense like we did in the second half, we can be really good.”
Forward Jordan Burich was a big factor in the run, scoring 12 of his 14 points in the second half, along with four rebounds, a steal and a block.
Hannon finished with 18 points after missing the Tommies’ last game against Gustavus.
“(Hannon) is a phenomenal shooter and he really helps us get rolling,” Burich said. “He’ll hit a few threes and it opens up things up for everyone, so it’s great to have him back.”
Forward Ryan Boll was another Tommie in double figures with 10 points and 11 rebounds, a double-double.
Next up for the Tommies is a matchup with the Carleton Knights on Saturday at 3 p.m.
The Knights have won nine consecutive games since losing to Concordia Jan. 11, a few days after falling to the Tommies 62-61 in overtime.
“The first time we played Carleton, it was a pretty epic battle,” Tauer said. “Hopefully everyone will come out and support us because it should be an exceptional battle between two very good teams.”
Taylor Smith can be reached at smit9660@stthomas.edu.