WINONA, Minn. — After a rather balmy start to the month of February, the weather outside the Saint Mary's Gym turned a bit more seasonal on Wednesday.
 
Unfortunately, the Saint Mary's University men's basketball's offensive effort in the first half of its Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against Gustavus rivaled those cooler outdoor temperatures.
 
The Cardinals shot a frigid 25.8 percent from the field — hitting on just 8 of 31 field goal attempts, including 0-for-9 from 3-point range — and found themselves staring at a 20-point, 38-18 deficit at the break.
 
Saint Mary's found its offensive rhythm in the game's final 20 minutes, erupting for 45 second-half points — shooting a sizzling 62.5 percent from the field — but the Cardinals' red-hot rally came up short, as SMU dropped a 72-63 decision to the Gusties.
 
Gustavus opened the game with a 3-pointer from Adam Biewen — and the Gusties never relinquished the lead, grabbing and early 18-12 advantage midway through the opening half.
 
And over the final 10 minutes, Gustavus outscored Saint Mary's 18-6, including a half-ending 7-0 burst to take a 20-oint, 38-18 lead into the halftime intermission.
 
The Gusties extended their lead to as many as 23 on two separate occasions, and held what appeared to be a commanding 18-point lead, 59-41 with 9:26 to play in regulation.
 
And that's when the Cardinals got down to business.
 
Saint Mary's clawed its way to within nine points three times — 64-55, 67-58, and 70-61 — the final time on a pair of Jabari Sawyer (Chicago, Ill.) free throws with 41 seconds to play. After Gustavus hit one of two free throws to make it a 10-point game, Cameron Mallory (Joliet, Ill.) converted a layup to get SMU to within eight, 71-63.
 
That, however, would be as close as the Cardinals would get, with Gustavus knocking down one final free throw to seal the win — and snap Saint Mary's season-high three-game winning streak.
 
Mallory finished with a team-high 23 points on 10 of 19 shooting and a 3-for-3 effort from the free throw line, while Breyton Buysman (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) and Sawyer chipped in 16 and 11 points, respectively. As a team, Saint Mary's finished 28-for-63 from the field (44.4 %), with one 3-pointer, and shot 6 of 9 from the free throw line.
 
The Cardinals (7-12 MIAC, 8-16 overall) close out their regular-season slate on Saturday, heading to Carleton's West Gym in Northfield, Minn., for a 3 p.m. conference clash with the Knights.
 
 
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