WINONA, Minn. – Luke Harris' 25-point effort paced four Knights in double figures as the Carleton College men's basketball team held on for a 75-70 victory at Saint Mary's University.
 
Carleton (9-5, 3-3 MIAC) led 69-56 with 1:21 to go, but the Cardinals (5-9, 1-4 MIAC) put together an 14-4 run to inch within 73-70 with six seconds remaining before Harris iced the outcome with two late free throws.
 
Harris scored 20-plus points for the ninth time this season and the 33rd time in his career. His stat line also included five assists, four rebounds, and three steals. Tobias Averill returned to the Knights' lineup after sitting out eight games due to injury. He contributed 13 points and was credited with seven rebounds and two steals. Josh Engleberg chipped in 11 points, and Sam Koelling added his fourth double-double of the year after posting 10 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Both offenses started slow as Saint Mary's opened the game 1-of-10 from the field with four turnovers, while Carleton was 1-for-7 with five turnovers. With the scoreboard still showing only a 2-2 tally six minutes into the contest, Harris drained a 3-pointer and Tobias Averill added a layup to give the Knights a 7-2 lead.
 
Saint Mary's answered with a 9-0 run, but Carleton regained the lead at 13-11 following back-to-back triples by rookies Engleberg and Tysen Hayes.
 
SMU earned a 23-16 lead with under five minutes to go, but the Knights finished the first half with a 12-2 run including a 7-0 burst over the final 1:10 as Engleberg drained a jumper off a feed from Spencer Goetz. Harris contributed a layup of his own on the next possession and hit another 3-pointer as the first half expired to give the Knights a 28-25 edge into intermission.
 
The momentum continued to swing back and forth throughout the second half.
 
When Goetz scored off a feed from Harris with less than 80 seconds remaining, it gave the visitors a 69-56 lead. The Cardinals played the foul game and eventually saw Jonah Ogunsanya hit a pair of late 3-pointers to make it a one-possession game before Harris sealed the win at the charity stripe.
 
Despite the sluggish start, Carleton finished the day shooting 45.6 percent overall and 44.4 percent from 3-point range. Saint Mary's made 37.1percent of its shots and as 11-of-33 (33 percent) from beyond the arc.
 
Six Knights drained at least one 3-pointer as Carleton tallied a season-best 12 triples, the Knights' highest total since making 15 beyond the arc against Saint Mary's in the 2023-24 regular-season finale.
 
Breyton Buysman paced the Cardinals with 22 points, while Kahi Branham added 14 points, and both Jabari Sawyer and Jemari Moore tallied 10 points apiece.
 
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton visits Bethel University for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff on Wednesday, Jan. 15