Game Summary

NORTHFIELD, Minn. — With more than seven months before the start of next year's college basketball season, Saint Mary's University men's coach Mike Trewick wanted nothing more than to have his Cardinals end the season on a positive note — give the players something positive to think about during the long off-season.

Problem was, once the Cardinals took the floor against the Oles, it was out of Trewick's hands.

A season-ending win rested solely in the hands of the Cardinals themselves.

And they didn't drop the ball.

Getting 14 points from Jeff Tendall (Le Claire, Iowa) and 11 from Michael Rohr (Bloomingdale, Ill.), the Cardinals put an end to a season-high seven-game losing streak — and, more importantly, ended the season on the highest of high notes — with a 63-57 victory over the Oles.

"This is a great way to end the season," said Trewick, whose team closed out its season with a 4-16 MIAC record and a 5-20 overall mark. "The guys played extremely well, and for once, we were able to hit the big shots when we needed them."

Rohr opened the game with a jumper and the Cardinals never looked back as they led from start to finish in beating the Oles for the second time this season. SMU held leads as big as nine, 16-7, in the first half, before settling for a four-point, 28-24 advantage at the intermission.

It was more of the same in the second half, as SMU kicked off the second half with a 3-point basket from John Gencius (Chicago, Ill.) and scored eight of the first 10 points to take a 10-point, 36-26 lead with 16:09 left in regulation. SMU would hold that 10-point advantage once more, 45-35 on a 3-pointer from Mike O'Hara (White Bear Lake, Minn.), only to have the Oles cut the lead to two, 47-45 with a 10-2 run of their own with more than eight minutes remaining. After SMU rebuilt the lead to seven, the Oles again cut it back to two late, but four straight Cardinal free throws — two by Brensley Haywood (Joliet, Ill.) and two from Gencius — sealed the win.

"This was a very important game — to end your season on a high note like this makes the offseason that much easier," said Trewick. "After playing like we did, after seeing the positive results from playing a great game, the guys are excited to get into the weight room, they're excited to go to the gym and shoot.

"A win like this helps you forget a lot — and helps you get excited about what lies ahead."