The game featured two of the three teams tied for third place in the MIAC standings.
Anthony Baquero paced Carleton (11-5, 7-4 MIAC) with 14 points, making 3-for-6 from behind the arc. Dan Forkrud added 13 points, six rebounds and five assists, but scored only two points in the second half. Kyle Beste chipped in with 12 points and Tanner Schieck tallied 11 points and six boards.
Travis Jones tallied 15 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots for Bethel (13-3, 8-3 MIAC), which salvaged a season split with the Knights and ended a three-game losing streak to Carleton. The Royals have now won eight of their last nine games.
The Knights zoomed to an early 23-11 advantage, with six of their field goals being lay-ups in the first 10 minutes. The Royals answered back by closing the half with a flurry of three-point buckets, as the visitors tallied four consecutive possessions with made three-pointers, going 5-for-8 from beyond the arc in the final 3:35 of the first half. The sharp-shooting exhibition turned an 11-point deficit into a 36-36 tie at the break.
The Royals opened the second half with a bang. Jones drilled a jumper, Gilbert converted a three-point play, Isaac Hinrichs hit a mid-range jumper, Jones nailed a triple and Hinrichs scored inside, giving the visitors a 48-39 lead. All told, the Royals outscored the Knights 27-7 over the final four minutes of the first half and first three minutes of the second.
The Knights tried to rally back, getting within 58-55 at the 6:33 mark and again with just over five minutes left, but the Royals had an answer each time.
The Royals made 8-of-16 three-pointers in the first half, but cooled to 1-for-10 in the second half to finish 9-for-26. The visitors shot 47.3 percent from the floor compared to 39.0 percent for the Knights, including a 9-for-30 (30.0 percent) performance over the final 20 minutes. The Royals owned a slight 37-32 edge on the glass, as each time scored 12 second-chance points and 16 points off turnovers.
Carleton continues its home stand by hosting Augsburg College on Saturday, Jan. 24, at 3 p.m.