Guard Grant Shaeffer sank a last-second field goal and put up 25 points Wednesday night at Steve Fritz Court to clinch the men’s basketball team’s victory over Gustavus 59-57 and extend its win streak to seven games.
The Gusties (5-15 overall, 5-10 MIAC) and the Tommies (16-4 overall, 12-3 MIAC) traded off taking the lead throughout the game. The Gusties trailed by double-digits only once, and the Tommie deficit never surpassed four points.
After Gustavus’ Peter Kruize tied the score with 29 seconds left, Shaeffer said he knew what he had to do next.
“I knew I was gonna have the ball in my hands, and I wanted to take the shot,” he said. “I like it better that way. If I miss it, I can live with it, and if I make it, all the better.”
Head coach John Tauer was thankful for Shaeffer during Wednesday’s 40-minute battle.
“It was a one-possession game that’s functional on who makes the big play at the end,” he explained, “and I’m sure thrilled we have Grant Shaeffer on our side.”
He also partially attributed the absence of a key scorer to the team’s struggle to hold onto the lead.
“Obviously not having Michael Hannon available tonight impacted us on the perimeter,” Tauer said. “but I thought our guys did just a tremendous job of staying focused and trusting in one another.”
Hannon has been reliable for the Tommie offense this season, averaging 12.8 points per game from the bench.
While the Tommie defense struggled to combat Gustavus’ strong inside shooting, Burich led the attempt with 14 rebounds. He said mental toughness is the key to winning gritty games.
“I just think we were able to keep our heads cool, able to stay into it and just grind it out,” Burich explained. “I mean, not every game you’re going to be able to win by 20.”
Wednesday’s victory extended St. Thomas’ win streak to seven. Burich said the team’s depth is integral to the team’s recent success.
“Most teams play with only six or seven guys, while we have 10 or 11 or 12,” Burich said. “So we’ve really been able to wear teams down and take advantage of that.”
The Tommies will return to the court next Wednesday at Hamline at 7 p.m.
Lauren Andrego can be reached at lauren.andrego@stthomas.edu.