Saint John's returns to action this Saturday, Jan. 16, against nationally-ranked St. Thomas. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. at the Gangelhoff Center on the campus of Concordia-St. Paul. – Listen Live | Watch Live | Directions
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Junior Aaron Burtzel (Cold Spring, Minn./Rocori), the reigning MIAC Player of the Week, led the Johnnies (9-4, 6-2 MIAC) with a career-high 25 points in SJU's 88-75 loss at Hamline Wednesday night. He also added 11 rebounds and five assists. Sophomore Andy Burns (Shorewood, Minn./Minnetonka) followed with 13 points. Both SJU (54.3 percent, 19-35) and Hamline (56.3 percent, 18-32) found the net in fine fashion thru the game's first 20 minutes as the Pipers held a close 44-40 lead at the half. The energy shifted for the Johnnies, however, as they shot 32.4 percent (12-37) in the second half to finish at 43.1 percent. The Pipers shot an even 52 percent (13-25) in the second half to finish with a .544 shooting percentage. SJU entered the game with the MIAC's top shooting percentage at .494 (.509 in seven previous conference games). Hamline posted a 17-5 scoring advantage in second-chance points despite both squads recording 13 offensive rebounds. SJU also had 15 more shot attempts in the game.
A LOOK AT THE TOMMIES: St. Thomas (11-2, 7-1 MIAC) had three turnovers and four missed shots in the final 2:30 of Wednesday's loss at Gustavus. The Tommies finished with 19 turnovers, eight over their season average, and both teams shot 40% from the floor in the defensive battle. Nicolai led the Tommies with 14 points, including four treys. Teddy Archer scored nine points and Josh Peltier and Alex Healy each closed with eight points and six rebounds. The Tommies fell behind 9-1 and 20-10 before an 11-0 run capped by an Alex Healy three-point shot gave them their first lead. SJU is 37-61 all-time against the Tommies under the direction of head coach Jim Smith.
LAST YEAR'S SEASON SERIES: SJU went 0-2 against UST last season. In their first meeting on Jan. 14, the No. 2 ranked Tommies opened the second half with a 16-0 run in route to an 86-55 win. Junior Chris Schwartz (Sioux Falls, S.D./Lincoln) led the Johnnies with 15 points. Burtzel added six points and six rebounds, while Burns recorded seven assists. Anders Halverson, who entered the game averaging 6.8 points per game, led the Tommies with 17 points off the bench. UST held a 40-21 advantage in bench points and outscored the Johnnies 48-18 in the paint. St. Thomas took a 40-28 lead into halftime as both teams shot an even 50 percent from the field. The Tommies, however, caught fire in the second half. UST shot 70.0 percent from the floor and forced 12 SJU turnovers in the game's final 20 minutes.
In their second meeting, the top-ranked Tommies defeated Saint John's 82-47 on Feb. 18 in St. Paul. The Johnnies were down 27-24 with 5:13 left in the first half before the Tommies ended the first half on an 8-0 run. UST then began the second half on another 8-0 run and ended the contest's final six minutes with a 20-5 run. Burtzel led SJU with 10 points and Joe Scott led UST with 18 points. The Tommies forced 20 turnovers while committing 11, but outscored the Johnnies 30-9 off the mishaps.
