ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – With three starters in double figures and seven players finding the scoring column, the Bethel University men's basketball team earned a 69-60 victory over Augsburg Wednesday evening inside the Robertson Center.
 
Shooting 44.1 percent from the field, BU finished the night with 10 threes. Defensively they held the Auggies to 27.8 percent behind the arc and 45.0 percent from the field. The Royals largest deficit of the night was five points that came at the midway point of the first half. Their largest lead of 11 was early in the second.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
• A pair of Zach Doely dunks got the Royals off to a 7-2 start just over three minutes into the game.
• A 10-3 run for the Auggies gave them the lead with 13:04 to go. BU tied it up on four more occasions before finally regaining the lead on a 3-pointer by AJ Kaul with 11:11 left before the break.
• Adam Mattes beat the halftime horn with a nice drive up the middle of the lane laying it off the glass before time expired. On the defensive end, BU held Augsburg scoreless the final 3:42 taking a 31-24 lead into the break.
• A balanced attack in the opening half saw seven different Royals find the scoring column while shooting 39.4 percent and keeping the turnovers minimal at five.
 
Second Half
• The Auggies cut it to 42-40 with a 13-4 run near the midway point. But the Royals caught steam behind the arc with threes from Kaul and Mattes pushing the lead back to 10 and forcing a timeout form Augsburg.
• Augsburg soared back into it tying it at 53-53 following another big run, this time 13-3. Emmanuel Schmitter responded promptly with back-to-back threes.
• Once again Augsburg got it down to one but a layup from Doely with 90 seconds left kick started an 8-0 run that let Bethel take it for good.
 
KEY PERFORMERS
• Payton Thomsen and Zach Doely each led the squad with 16 points in 33 minutes of action. Thomsen added three assists while Doely brought in six boards.
• Emmanuel Schmitter dropped 13 points playing in a season-high 31 minutes. Nine of those 13 came from long range. 
• Joey Kidder had a game-high nine boards to go along with five assists and three steals. 
 
UP NEXT
 The Royals look to get above the .500 mark, as they are now 9-9 overall and 6-7 in MIAC play, at Saint Mary's on Saturday. Tip off in Winona is scheduled for 3 p.m.
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