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St. Joseph, Minn. - Junior wing Brianna Barrett had 16 points and went 5-for-6 from the free throw line today (Dec. 3) as the Saint Benedict basketball team defeated the Carleton Knights by a score of 65-53. Barrett has led the Blazers in scoring in three of the past four games.

The win is the ninth straight for the Blazers over Carleton, a streak that stretches all the way back to the 2008 MIAC tournament, when they lost to the Knights 64-60.

The Blazers improve to 4-2 and 2-1 in the MIAC, while the Knights drop to 2-3 and 2-1 in the MIAC.

The game was dominated from beginning to end by the Blazers, who grabbed the lead 26 seconds in and never let it go.

The Blazer defense was out in full force as the game began, holding the Knights to one point for the first eight-and-a-half minutes, and opening the game with a 12-to-1 run highlighted by six points from Brianna Barrett.

Late in the first half, Knight guard Akemi Arzouman's free throw cut the lead to five at 25-20, but Elena Koch's jumper at the other end pushed the Blazer lead to 27-20 at halftime.

The Blazers held a double-digit lead for most of the second-half, although Knight guard Skylar Tsutsui gave them a slight scare with 4:18 left when her jumper cut the Blazer lead to five.

With the memory of a Gustavus game on Saturday still fresh in their minds – a game in which they let a lead narrowly slip out of their hands – the Blazers appeared determined not to let this game fall ill to the same misfortune. They held the Knights scoreless in the final four minutes, closing out the game on a 7-to-0 run.

The Blazer combination of good defense (Carleton shot 35% from the floor), domination in the paint (20 points in the paint to Carleton's 12), and great transition game (20 points off 20 Carleton turnovers) were keys to the victory on a night when they shot only 36% from the floor. Carleton made only 15 of their 43 shots, each the fewest allowed by the Blazers all season.

Aside from Barrett's big game, the Blazers also got big contributions from senior wing Jamie Wollin and junior wing Tish Alexander. With 14 points and nine rebounds and 3-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc, Wollin was one board away from her second double-double of the year. She led the team in rebounding for the third straight game and the fifth time out of the Blazer's six games. Alexander added 13 points and led the team with three assists and two steals.

The Blazers next travel to St. Paul, Minn. on Wednesday, where they will take on the Macalester Scots. Tip-off will be at 7:30 p.m.