NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The St. Olaf College men's basketball team used a 14-0 run in the second half to pull away for a 66-50 victory over visiting UW-Stevens Point on Wednesday evening at Skoglund Center.

St. Olaf (1-1) led by just one, 45-44, with 11:38 remaining before holding UW-Stevens Point (0-1) scoreless for nearly six minutes during the 14-0 run that put the game out of reach. The Pointers missed six-straight shots and committed three turnovers during the run, while the Oles made 5-of-6 shots during the stretch.

Senior Dominic Bledsoe posted his second-straight 20-point performance to start the season, shooting 7-for-9 from the field, including making both of his three-pointers, and sank all four of his free throws, while adding five rebounds, five steals, and three assists. Junior Charlie Haff had 10 points and seven rebounds, while sophomore Connor Martin contributed nine points, seven rebounds, and three assists.

St. Olaf shot 51.9 percent (28-for-54) from the field and enjoyed advantages of 38-18 in points in the paint and 24-7 in bench points. UW-Stevens Point shot just 27.6 percent (8-for-29) in the second half after shooting 48.0 percent (12-for-25) before the break.

The Pointers led 8-6 early before the Oles used a 9-0 run to grab a lead they would hold onto for the rest of the half. The visitors led for just 42 seconds in the opening half but were within a point, 25-24, with 8:13 remaining until St. Olaf held UW-Stevens Point scoreless for over five minutes while stretching its lead to 33-24 – the largest of the half.

Down by nine with four minutes to go in the half, the Pointers closed the half on a 7-0 run to cut the Oles' lead to two, 33-31, at the break. Bledsoe and Hall combined for 18 of St. Olaf's 33 points in the opening 20 minutes.

UW-Stevens Point took its largest lead of the game at 42-39 after scoring 11 of the first 17 points in the second half. St. Olaf grabbed the lead back on back-to-back three-pointers by senior Nathan Hendler and Bledsoe before embarking on the 14-0 run.

Junior Brendan Kauls started the run with a three-point play and Martin and Bledsoe combined for nine points as the Oles held the Pointers scoreless from the 11:38 mark until a bucket by Elijah Vander Velden with 4:47 remaining. Martin scored seven of his nine points in the second half for St. Olaf, which led by as many as 18 down the stretch.

Garrett Nelson had a team-high 16 points for UW-Stevens Point but shot just 6-for-16 from the field and committed six turnovers. Peter Timmerman added 11 points and Vander Velden approached a double-double with 10 points, eight rebounds, three blocks, and two steals.

St. Olaf hits the road for the first time this season with a trip to Mankato to face Bethany Lutheran on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 2 p.m.