RIVER FALLS, Wis. – The Gustavus men’s basketball team found success in its first win of the season at UW-River Falls with an 82-63 victory in a complete game effort. With the victory, the Gusties improve to 1-2 overall.
Jake Guse (Jr., Waseca) and Nolan Malo (Sr., Owatonna) got the Gusties on the board for an early 5-0 lead. The Gusties shot 62 percent from the three-point arc, and held the lead for the entire first half with the largest lead being 18 points. The Gusties found advantages in second chance points 26-3 and in defensive rebounds 20-10. Making a trio of free throws, Malo led the Gusties with 11 points at the end of the first half, with Gustavus leading 44-28.
Half two opened up with Gustavus carrying the momentum as Adam Biewen (So., Golden Valley) made back-to-back three-pointers with Kaleb Feahn (Sr., Waseca) on the assists. Pete Lundquist (Sr., Rochester) rattled off five points as the Gusties held a season-high 31-point lead over the Falcons with 12 minutes remaining. The Gusties were impressive on the offensive boards with 19 offensive rebounds to the Falcons seven. Gustavus also had a 26-3 advantage in second chance points.
Five Gusties scored double figures in the contest; Malo and Guse each put up 11, Spencer Swanson (Fy., Waconia) added 13, and Biewen posted 14. Evan Wieker (So., St. Michael) recorded a double double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, and as a team the Gusties out-rebounded the Falcons 53-26.
“We’ve got some guys that just kind of have a natural inclination to rebounding,” said Head Coach Mark Hanson. “Wieker, Guse and Swanson are key players in that regard but it was certainly a full team effort. Offensively, when we were a little bit more patient in making an extra move or extra pass we got the shots that we wanted. We got a little bit more anxious at some other times when we tried to rush it and hopefully we can cut down on the turnovers.”
The team will open up conference play when they travel to Bethel on Saturday with a 7:00 tip off in Arden Hills.