ARDEN HILLS, Minn.—It took all 40 minutes on Wednesday night, but the Bethel University men's basketball team was able to stay perfect in conference play thanks to a 55-50 win over Hamline University. The fatigued Royals, who have played four gamed in the last eight days, overcame a 10-point deficit with 16:04 left in the game to capture their third victory in MIAC competition.
 
Down 10 with just over 16 minutes remaining, BU manufactured an 8-0 run over the next three minutes to draw within two. But the Pipers maintained their slim advantage until the six-minute mark, when Kyle Zimmermann had a critical put-back that triggered a back-and-forth of one-point leads between the two teams for nearly five minutes. The Royals were able to score the final six points in the last 1:53, however, and locked up the five-point triumph. Back-to-back layups by Brycen Wojta and Bridgeport Tusler, along with critical defensive stops down the stretch secured Bethel's victory.
 
Neither team was electric offensively, as both executed an extraordinary defensive game plan throughout the night. Both teams shot 38 percent from the field and Hamline tallied a better mark from long range, but shot just 30 percent from downtown. The Royals forced the Pipers into 13 turnovers and held a slim advantage in bench points and points in the paint. Perhaps the biggest edge between the two squads was the 15-8 difference in favor of Bethel in bench points.
 
Kyle Zimmermann recorded his seventh consecutive double digit performance this season and his 15th-straight dating back to last season before he was injured for the year. Zimmermann put up 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, with nine rebounds, three assists, three blocks, and zero turnovers. Brycen Wojta was the only other Royal to tally double figures, as the sophomore guard finished with 12 points and three boards in limited minutes due to foul trouble.
 
Bethel was called for just eight personal fouls throughout the night, which lowers their average for the year. Coming into tonight's contest the Royals ranked No. 4 among all Division III teams in personal fouls per game, averaging just 14.2 whistles per contest.

BU will face one more opponent in 2014—a road nonconference matinee at UW-La Crosse that is set to tipoff at 3 p.m. on December 20—before resuming conference play on January 3 against Saint John's University, who has lost their last two games at home to St. Thomas and St. Olaf.