NORTHFIELD, Minn. – After rallying late to tie the game, the Carleton College men's basketball team dropped a 74-72 squeaker to Saint John's University in the opening contest of MIAC play for both teams.
 
Carleton (1-1, 0-1 MIAC) trailed 69-59 with 2:57 remaining, but Luke Harris scored 10 of his career-high 31 points during a late 13-3 run. His final bucket of that stretch knotted the score at 72-72 with 0:10.8 on the clock. However, Luke Healy's layup with 4.4 seconds left pushed Saint John's (2-2, 1-0 MIAC) back in front, and Carleton's bid for a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer hit off the was off the mark, allowing the Johnnies to snap a three-game losing streak to the Knights.
 
The game was a rematch of the 2023 MIAC Playoffs championship game, which Carleton won 86-76. This time, the Knights shot 39.0 percent overall and 31 percent (5-of-16) from 3-point range. Saint John's made 45.6 percent of its field goals and exactly matched Carleton's performance from beyond the arc. Both teams attempted 24 free throws, and Carleton out-rebounded the Johnnies, 39-30.
 
Both teams got off to slow starts offensively with Carleton holding a 15-14 lead midway through the first half. The scoring eventually picked up, but the Knights kept the Johnnies at arm's length to maintain the lead for the entirety of the first half, heading into the interval up 37-29.
 
After Alex Gibbens hit two free throws to begin the second half and give Carleton a double-digit advantage, Saint John's reeled off a 17-2 run to move in front, 46-41. After some back-and-forth play, the Johnnies stretched the advantage to 69-59 with 2:57 remaining.
 
With Harris leading the charge, the Knights would not go away, and with 24 seconds remaining Matt Banovetz nailed a tough corner 3-pointer to shrink the deficit to 72-70. The Knights sent Johnnie forward Ryan Thissen to the line, but he missed twice, keeping the door open for a Carleton comeback. Harris, who had 20 points in the second half, spun to the rack and finished to tie the game at 72-72 only to watch the visitors eke out the game's final bucket.
 
Harris finished 7-of-18 from the floor and 17-of-20 at the charity stripe, tying the highest number of free throws made in recorded team history. He added six rebounds, five assists, three steals, and a blocked shot.
 
Carleton rookie Sam Koelling notched 13 points for his first career double-digit effort, while Banovetz had 14 points and finished a rebound shy of a double-double.
 
Saint John's had five players finish in double figures, led by Blake Berg's 16-point effort. Ryan Thissen added 13 points, while Healy had 11 and both Brandon Adelman and Kooper Vaughn finished with 10 points apiece. Vaughn entered the game as the Johnnies' leading scorer at 19.7 points per game, but was held to nearly half that total by Carleton defensive star Spencer Goetz.
 
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton heads to Claremont, Calif. for a pair of tough games at the David Wells Classic. The opening game on Friday, Nov. 24, between the Knights and Pomona-Pitzer features two squads that are receiving votes in the D3hoops.com top-25 poll. Tip-off is at 4:00 p.m. PT/6:00 p.m. CT. Carleton will return to action 24 hours later at No. 23 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.