ARDEN HILLS, Minn. —  All season, the Saint Mary's University men's basketball team has struggled to get to the free-throw line.

In fact, through their first 16 games, the Cardinals had gone to the line 249 times, an average of just 15 free-throw attempts a game.

Their opponents, meanwhile, had shot 376 free throws — more than 23 a game and 127 more than SMU had attempted.

Wednesday evening, the Cardinals made it a point to get to the free-throw line, finishing 18-for-24 from the charity stripe. Unfortunately, while the Cardinals' free throws were dropping at an alarming rate, their field goals weren't — especially in the second half.

The Cardinals made just seven field goals in the second half — and 16 in the game — as Bethel broke open a close game with 51 second-half points en route to an 84-57 win over the Cardinals.

"We played a very good, competitive half, but then we just kind of fell asleep," said SMU coach Bob Biebel, whose team dropped its ninth straight. "I thought we had pretty decent looks all night. But you're not going to win games going 7-for-39 in the second half."

Nick Michaels (Dyer, Ind.) scored a game-high 20 points in the losing effort for SMU, while Jim Wangler (Wheaton, Ill.) also finished in double figures, netting 11 points.