NORTHFIELD, Minn.—Bethel University's men's basketball team recorded a critical 68-57 come-from-behind road win over Carleton College Saturday afternoon. The Royals (12-4, 7-4 MIAC), who were coming off of a gut-wrenching three-point road loss Wednesday evening, rallied from a halftime deficit and outscored the Knights (9-7, 7-4 MIAC) 37-23 in the final 20 minutes, which proved to be the difference in the weekend matinee.
 
BU trailed Carleton by 12 with 8:24 showing on the clock in the opening half, but the Royals were able to narrow the gap to three heading into the intermission break thanks to a 22-13 run in the final eight minutes. The Knights managed to build their lead back to eight with 14:26 left in the game, Bethel's defense held Carleton to just 11 points the rest of the way, while netting 30 points on offense.
 
Bridgeport Tusler scored 24 points on 6-of-10 shooting (3-of-5 from downtown) from the floor and 9-of-11 from the free throw line to go along with eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Riley Dearring also gave a sizeable contribution off the bench, scoring 14 points in 30 minutes played. Granger Kingland tallied 10 points, four boards, and three assists, while Matt Ambriz and Jack Jenson each added eight points and two steals.
 
The Royals shot 46.8 percent from the floor and 72.7 percent from the charity stripe, while the Knights shot 45.7 percent from the floor and 81.3 percent from the foul line. But what proved to be the biggest difference was BU's 8-of-18 mark from downtown and Carleton's 2-of-11 effort from long range.
 
Bethel's win over Carleton is a strong start to what's slated to be another heavy stretch. The Royals take on Macalester College on Monday, Jan. 22, at 7 p.m., then Concordia College on Wednesday, Jan. 24, at 5:45 p.m., and Saint John's University on Saturday, Jan. 27, at 1 p.m. All three matchups this week are inside the friendly confines of the Robertson Center Gym, where BU has amassed a 35-9 record since the start of the 2014-15 campaign.