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79		98

Game Summary / GameDay Online

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — For Saint Mary's University men's basketball coach Mike Trewick, watching his Cardinals' offense Saturday was fun.

After all, the Cardinals scored 79 points – their third-highest offensive output of the season — and got a career-best 26 points from Lukas Holland (La Crosse, Wis.).

Watching Bethel run its offense, however, was anything but enjoyable for Trewick, as the Royals shot 82 percent from the field in the first half — yes, 82 percent missing just five of their 28 first-half field-goal attempts — erupting for 63 points in the game's opening 20 minutes en route to a 98-79 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win.

"What can I say? We have a pretty solid performance offensively, and Bethel just buries us," said Trewick, whose Cardinals have now dropped four straight heading into Sunday's conference game against Concordia — the final game in the first half of the MIAC schedule. "There are two numbers that tell the whole story — 82 percent (from the field in the first half) and 85 percent (from the 3-point line in the first half).

"I thought we came out in the second half and did a nice job, outscoring htem by five points over the last 20 minutes — but when you give up 63 points in the first half, it's pretty tough to stay with anyone."

Four of Bethel's first five shots against the Cardinals were all 3-pointers — and all four were right on the money — as the Royals hit their first five shots and never took their foot off the accelerator, scoring a season-high 63 first-half points to take their biggest lead of the game, 63-39, at the half.

Holland hit 9 of his 15 field-goal attempts — including a 5-for-8 effort from behind the arc — in posting his best offensive outing as a Cardinal. Will Wright (Chicago, Ill.) chipped in 17 points and Dan Cormier (Blaine, Minn.) chipped in 10 for SMU, which fell to 1-8 in the conference and 1-13 overall.

"We've been pretty solid offensively the last couple of games — it's defensively that we are struggling," said Trewick, whose team gave up 96 points in a 96-71 loss to Augsburg on Wednesday. "We've got to do a better job on the defensive end — you can't give up 90-plus points and expect to win many games."

But then, you can't expect a team to be shooting 82 percent from the field against you, either.