The conference playoffs begin this Tuesday, but the intensity of postseason play has come early for the Scots, who won a 72-70 overtime thriller last Saturday against Concordia-Moorhead before falling last Monday at fifth-ranked St. Thomas in an epic three overtime 86-80 affair.

The Scots (14-10, 12-7 MIAC) have played a total of five overtime periods in their last six games.

Macalester clinched its first ever MIAC playoff berth and will meet St. John’s in a first-round playoff game on Tuesday. The Scots missed a chance to clinch fourth place and play St. John’s at home with a disappointing 74-69 loss at home to St. Mary’s.

The semifinal and final games in the MIAC playoffs will be held this Thursday and Saturday respectively.

Last Saturday, Macalester did not come out with its usual home-court intensity but was nevertheless able to sneak past a hard-working Concordia team for its 12th conference win.

Despite shooting only 35 percent from the field, the Scots were led by a strong game from center Doug Benson ’02, who scored 24 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. While Macalester struggled from the free-throw line in their 64-62 home loss to Gustavus on Feb. 6, the Scots made 25 of their 27 attempts against the Cobbers and used timely foul shooting to scrape out the win.

Benson hit both of his free throws with 1:14 left in the game to tie the score at 65-65, and neither side was able to score for the remainder of the game. With 10 seconds remaining on overtime, forward Ben Van Thorre ’04 sank two free throws to make the score 72-70, where it remained as time expired.

The Scots traveled one mile west to face local rivals St. Thomas, ranked fifth in the nation, last Monday night. St. Thomas would clinch the regular season conference championship with a win. The Tommies ran out to an early 11-4 lead, but Macalester, lifted by a large contingent of traveling fans, stormed back with an 11-0 run.

Macalester utilized a very patient team offense, moving the ball well and controlling possession. The Scots often ran the shot clock deep and were able to find many open shots. First-year guard Erik Jackson was a primary beneficiary of this offensive strategy, making all six of his three-point attempts.

“We decided that we wanted to try to exploit [St. Thomas’] interior defense,” said head coach Curt Kietzer. “The inside and outside games flowed together. As we played consistently, the defense would collapse down low, and we were able to send out return passes.”

Patrick Russell ’03 gave the Tommies’ defense fits and was nearly impossible to guard as he scored 16 points in the first half, leading the Scots into halftime with a 38-34 lead.

Macalester continued to have its way with the St. Thomas defense as the second half began, and the Scots extended their lead to 48-38 with 15 minutes remaining. St. Thomas head coach Steve Fritz called a timeout and switched forward Kevin Fitzgerald to guard the hot-shooting Russell. On offense, the Tommies became more threatening, cutting the Macalester lead to five after just one minute.

The Tommies retook the lead with five minutes to go and held on to a three-point lead with 3:29 remaining when Fitgerald crashed into Russell, sending the Macalester forward to the ground injured. Russell suffered a laceration on the back of his head and remained sprawled on the court for several minutes, not returning to the game.

Russell’s injury came at a crucial moment of the game and it could have taken the wind out of Macalester’s sails, but instead the Scots responded by retaking the lead. Up 64-62 with under 30 seconds remaining, the Tommies set up senior conference MVP candidate Mark Buri, who drained a 14-footer with six seconds remaining to tie the game. The Scots had a chance to win the game at the buzzer but a runner by Chris Palm ’02 fell short.

Macalester went out to a 70-67 lead with one minute left, but Fitzgerald tied the game with a three pointer 20 seconds later to send the game into a second overtime period. In the second overtime, Macalester missed several chances from the free throw line and the score remained deadlocked at 75-75.

Nearly all of the 1,500 in attendance remained until the end of what was shaping up to be the most exciting game in MIAC play this season. Van Thorre started the third overtime by making an acrobatic reverse lay-up from behind the basket, but the man of the hour would be Buri, playing in his final regular season home game. Buri’s three-pointer with 2:29 to go put the Tommies on top, 80-78, before Benson’s left-handed baby hook tied the score on Macalester’s next possession.

The Tommies gave the ball right back to Buri, who drove the lane and scored a reverse lay-up with just over one minute remaining to put St. Thomas back on top.

Macalester failed to score on their next possession and held the Tommies’ offense in check, but Fitzgerald grabbed the offensive rebound and Buri connected on both free throws to ice the game, adding two more before the clock expired.

Kietzer pointed to below-par free throw shooting as a critical factor which would have turned the heartbreaking loss into an upset victory. Van Thorre finished the game with 19 points and 10 rebounds, but only converted five of his ten free throws. “Ben’s the guy we want on the line, he’s one of the best free throw shooters in the nation,” said Kietzer. “His shooting on Monday was an aberration because he’s made so many big shots in critical situations since his freshman year. He plays with tremendous energy, and the game lasted three overtimes, so fatigue played into it.”

Russell and Jackson led Macalester in scoring with 20 points each. Benson finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.

Buri led all scorers with 29 points, making all 12 of his free throw attempts, while Fitzgerald added 13 points and 15 rebounds-six off of the offensive glass. Buri’s backcourt partner Jimmy Sioris scored 17 points for the Tommies.

Last Wednesday night, the Macalester was upset at home by St. Mary’s, 74-69. The Scots held a 33-28 lead at halftime but shot only 32 percent from the field in the second half.

Jason Dzick paced the Cardinals with 20 points. Ryan Wilt scored 15 points for St. Mary’s while Lance Larson added 11 points and eight assists.

For Macalester, Benson lead the team with 20 points and also grabbed 9 rebounds. Russell scored 11 points and Van Thorre grabbed 10 rebounds while scoring eight points.

The Scots finish the regular season at home this Saturday when Hamline visits Macalester at 3 p.m. The Scots are currently tied with St. John’s for fourth place in the MIAC and must win against Hamline to ensure that its first playoff game will be in front of its home crowd.

Macalester has split its two games this season with the Johnnies, winning 62-60 at home on Dec. 1 and losing 69-48 on Jan. 19 in Collegeville.