Box Score

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The University of St. Thomas Tommies entered tonight's  game with an unblemished record of 26-0 on the season, begging the question, "When will it end?" After the result of tonight's game, that answer is still unknown. While the Bethel Royals certainly did everything they could to mar the Tommies  perfect season both in the regular season and tonight, they could not stop them from earning the 2008-09  Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) title. The Tommies defeated Bethel 68-51 in front of a sell out crowd of more than 1,700 people, thus ending the Royals season.

The two teams played to a near even draw at the end of the first 20 minutes, with St. Thomas leading 30-28. But it was in the second half that the Tommies broke the game open with a 16-0 run that forced the Royals to play catch up the remainder of the game.

Chris Vavra (Jr., Cambridge, Minn.) was Bethel's leading scorer with 13 points, primarily due to 3-for-3 shooting from behind the three-point arc. Tim Madson (Sr., Redwood Falls, Minn.) was the only other Royal to finish in double digits with 10 points. Mike Moberg (Sr., Plymouth, Minn.) had six points and 11 rebounds as well as a blocked shot and two steals. Rob Lang (Jr., Johnston, Iowa) was the third highest scorer for Bethel with seven points.

Joe Scott led the Tommies with 17 points, while Anders Halvorsen scored 14 off the bench, and B.J. Viau finished with 12.

Tonight marked the end of the collegiate careers of three Bethel seniors who were each impact players. In addition to Madson and Moberg, Cory Laugen (Sr., Blaine, Minn.) will graduate in the spring. Madson recently surpassed Dale Turnquist (1989-91) as the third highest point scorer in Bethel history. Moberg eclipsed the 1,000 point mark in his career and finished with 1,077, putting him among the top 20 all time.

Bethel finishes the season with a 20-7 record, while St. Thomas is now 27-0 and moves on to the NCAA national tournament.