The win, coupled with St. John's 96-91 overtime win over St. Thomas, moved the Knights (16-5, 13-3 MIAC) into a first-place tie in the MIAC with the Tommies. The win also clinched a MIAC Playoff berth for the Knights for the 14th time overall and the 13th time in the last 17 seasons.
The win was Carleton's 13th straight in MIAC play and 12th straight overall, the longest in more than 80 years in school history. The overall win streak is tied for third-longest in school history, with only the 1923-24 squad (14 consecutive wins) and 1915-16 teams (15 straight) besting this year's club's current string.
Zach Johnson added 16 points and four assists and Tommy Drake tallied 15 points and seven rebounds. Jake Phillips added 10 points and three assists.
Brock Citterman paced the Cobbers (5-15, 4-12 MIAC) with 17 points, including five 3-pointers. Jason Miller added 14 points, but the duo had only seven points after halftime as the Cobbers cooled from beyond the arc in the final 20 minutes, making only 4-of-15 after canning 9-of-13 from deep in the first half. Gavin Ganab added 10 points and five rebounds for the Cobbers.
Trailing by as many as 12 points midway through the first half, the Knights used a 14-4 spurt at the end of the period, capped by a Brian Sharkey triple and highlighted by a three-ball from Phillips and a steal and lay-up by the junior point guard. Ganab drilled a three with 38 seconds left, leaving the Knights staring at a 44-39 deficit at the break.
The Cobbers' advantage grew to 10 out of the locker room as Citterman nailed a three and Anthony Boike connected on consecutive baskets. Carleton used a 15-4 run to gain its first lead of the game midway through the half, fueled by five points from Johnson and four by Forkrud.
Carleton used its defense to make its final push, holding the Cobbers without a field goal for more than five minutes while building a 67-61 lead with less than five minutes remaining. A Citterman triple made it a one-point affair, but Forkrud's three-point play with under three minutes to go proved the final margin.
Carleton shot 57 percent from the floor, marking the 12th time this season the Knights have shot 50 percent or better from the field. The Cobbers shot 52 percent and 46 percent from three-point range, but only 41 percent overall and 27 percent from three-point range in the second half. Carleton held a 28-17 advantage in points in the paint.
Carleton, which plays three of its final four games at home and now controls its own destiny for its first MIAC title since 1922-23 and it first conference crown since the 1965-66 squad won the Midwest Conference title, returns home to face Macalester College on Monday, Feb. 6 at 7:30 p.m at West Gym. The game can be heard live on Knights Online.
Carleton College vs Concordia College 02/04/06 3:15 PM at Memorial Auditorium/Moorhead, MN At Memorial Auditorium/Moorhead, MN CARLETON COLLEGE 71, CONCORDIA COLLEGE 69 CARLETON COLLEGE (16-5/13-3 MIAC) Zach Johnson 5-13 5-5 16; Dan Forkrud 7-10 2-4 16; Tommy Drake 6-9 3-4 15; Jake Phillips 4-8 0-0 10; Jay Melson 4-6 0-0 8; Brian Sharkey 2-3 0-0 6; Tucker Schieck 0-0 0-0 0; Mike Kootsikas 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-49 10-13 71. CONCORDIA COLLEGE (5-15/4-12 MIAC) Brock Citterman 6-14 0-0 17; Jason Miller 5-5 2-3 14; Gavin Ganab 3-4 2-2 10; Eric Meichsner 3-3 0-0 9; Anthony Boike 4-9 0-1 8; Ryan Johnson 3-6 0-0 6; Cody Dyshaw 1-3 0-0 3; Ryan Templeton 1-3 0-0 2; E.J. Adams 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 26-50 4-6 69. Carleton College.............. 39 32 - 71 Concordia College............. 44 25 - 69 3-point goals-Carleton College 5-15 (Brian Sharkey 2-3; Jake Phillips 2-5; Zach Johnson 1-5; Jay Melson 0-1; Dan Forkrud 0-1), Concordia College 13-28 (Brock Citterman 5-12; Eric Meichsner 3-3; Gavin Ganab 2-3; Jason Miller 2-2; Cody Dyshaw 1-3; Ryan Templeton 0-2; Anthony Boike 0-3). Fouled out--Carleton College-None, Concordia College-None. Rebounds-Carleton College 23 (Tommy Drake 7), Concordia College 22 (Gavin Ganab 5; Brock Citterman 5). Assists-Carleton College 17 (Dan Forkrud 7), Concordia College 16 (Brock Citterman 6). Total fouls-Carleton College 7, Concordia College 14. A-300