Box Score They would have preferred to go in the front door with a win over St. John's Wednesday night in Collegeville. But the Hamline men's basketball team -- picked for 11th place in the coaches' preseason poll -- is headed for the MIAC playoffs despite a 65-63 loss to the Johnnies at Sexton Arena. 

The Pipers are currently in fifth place with a 10-9 record in MIAC play. They hold a one game lead over Concordia, Augsburg and St. Olaf, who are all 9-10 and tied for sixth place -- the final playoff spot. A Piper win in the season finale Saturday against Macalester at Hutton Arena locks them into fifth place. If HU lost, there would be at the most a three-way tie because Augsburg and St. Olaf play each other. HU holds the tiebreaker over Concordia (which host St. Thomas Saturday) and St. Olaf because they swept the series against both teams Augsburg holds the tiebreaker over Hamline for the same reason. In the case of a three-way tie, you go head-to-head among all the tied teams. HU would be first in a deadlock with Concordia and St. Olaf (4-0) and would be the fifth seed. They would be second in a matchup with Concordia and Augsburg (2-2) and would drop to the sixth seed. 

Bottom line: Hamline will be playing in the postseason for the first time since the 2010-11 season. Their first game will be Tuesday, February 21 at either third or fourth place team. (Carleton is currently third at 13-6 and St. John's is fourth at 12-7). 

They nearly pulled a remarkable comeback at Sexton Arena Wednesday. A cold first half from the floor (22.6 per cent) put the Pipers in a 33-18 hole at intermission. SJU kept the Pipers at bay for much of th second half as well, leading 60-46 with 4:30 to play. Isaac Brooks, who scored a team high 15 points, started the rally with a pair of free throws and a jumper. TC Robinson followed with a three-pointer and a pair of free throws and Zach Smith also sank two fre throws. It was now 60-57 with 1:34 left to play. The teams traded free throws for next 50 seconds. Brooks hit a layup with five seconds left to make it 63-62. Hamline had to foul and SJU converted both extra shots. The Johnnies fouled in turn and Dylan See-Rockers sank his first shot and missed his second but SJU grabbed the rebound and secured the harrowing win. The Pipers were opportunistic, holding a 16-7 edge in points off turnovers and a 11-0 advantage in second chance points. 

HU is 13-11 overall. Hamline will face a Macalester team that is 9-15 overall but own wins over St. Olaf and St. John's in the past week. Hu recorded a season high for points in a 92-83 victory when the teams met January 14 on the Scots' floor. Before the game, the Pipers will honor seniors playing their final game at Hutton Arena.