SAINT PAUL, MINN- The Hamline University men's basketball team was in action Wednesday night when they hosted Gustavus Adolphus. In a tight affair wire-to-wire it was
Bradley Cimperman that was the difference willing the Pipers to the 85-82 win with his 51 points.
The win will improve the Pipers to 10-5 (6-4 MIAC), while the Gusties fall to 6-9 (6-4 MIAC).
Hamline 85 Gustavus Adolphus 82
This MIAC matchup was tight from the beginning as the two teams struggled to take control in the first half. Gustavus was able to use 50% shooting from the field in the first half to make a run to get up eight late in the half. The Pipers on the other hand were kept afloat by 25 first-half points from
Bradley Cimperman as well as two late three's from
Sam Hoffman and
Mick Wherley to cut the lead down to 42-38 at the half. The second half saw the Gusties looking to stretch their lead again pushing the score to 63-52 with just over 10 minutes left in the game. After that it was all
Bradley Cimperman as he outscored the Gusties 24-19 from then on, and the lead started to be shaved down. With 42 seconds left and the score 82-79, Cimperman pulled one from well behind the arc and tied the game with ease. After a big stop on the other end, the Pipers were able to get the last possession of the game where Cimperman was forced to dribble through traffic to get enough space to try his game winner which found the bottom of the net winning the game for the Pipers 85-82.
Cimperman's 51 points is a new school record for Hamline, and one off from Devean George's (Augsburg) single-game MIAC scoring record of 52 that was achieved on January 16, 1999. He also now holds the highest scoring individual game among MIAC players.
The Gusties were led by a 22-point performance from Spencer Swanson, as well as 14 points from Evan Wieker.
The Pipers will take the court next on Wednesday, January 18 at 7 p.m. when they host Carleton at Hutton Arena.
