Saint John's (5-2, 1-1 MIAC) plays host to Bethel (2-5, 0-3 MIAC) for a 7:30 p.m. game tonight at Sexton Arena in Collegeville. – Listen Live | Live Stats
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's had their first conference win as they defeated Hamline, 80-72 on Monday; Dec. 6, in St. Paul. Saint John's was 18 of 22 from the free-throw line in the second half, including 11-for-14 in the final two minutes as they edged past the Pipers. Senior Sam Blank (Rollingstone, Minn./Winona Cotter) led five Johnnies (5-2, 1-1 MIAC) in double figures with 20 points, thanks to a 10-for-12 performance from the charity stripe in the second half. Juniors Andy Burns (Shorewood, Minn./Minnetonka) and Aaron Barmore (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) followed with 17 and 14 points, respectively. Senior Aaron Burtzel (Cold Spring, Minn./Rocori) totaled 13 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for his first double-double of the season and 18th of his career. His six assists moved him past Joe Deignan (1991-93) for second on the school's all-time assist list with 335 for his career. He is now 32 behind Matt Ohme (2003-07) for the school record. Carl Hipp led all scorers with 23 points and added nine boards for the Pipers (2-3, 0-2 MIAC). SJU shot 54.2 percent in the second half and held a 35-34 advantage on the glass. The Johnnies' three-point shooting woes came to a halt, as the visitors were five of 12 (41.7 percent) from beyond the arc. SJU entered the game shooting just 17.1 percent (6-35) from three-point land the last two games. Hamline, meanwhile, made only one of its 16 three-point attempts (6.3 percent) in the game and shot 38.3 percent overall. The two teams combined for 51 fouls in the contest (SJU: 30, HU: 21).
A LOOK AT THE ROYALS: Bethel is currently riding a three-game losing streak, including a 79-64 loss at Saint Mary's Monday night. Eric Hildebrandt led the team with 11 points and was 4-for-5 shooting from the field. Taylor Hall leads the Royals with 19.1 points per game, while Kellan Dahlquist leads the team in rebounding (5.7 rpg.). The Johnnies are shooting 50.8 percent from the field through seven games, compared to 40.7 percent for the Royals.
THE LAST MEETING: SJU defeated the Royals 80-67 in the last meeting on Jan. 20, 2010, in Arden Hills. SJU broke open a 34-30 halftime deficit with a 20-3 run in the second half's first six minutes giving the Johnnies the lead. Burtzel led the Johnnies with 15 points and 13 rebounds. He also added seven assists. Blank added 14 points off the bench and Burns followed with 12. Daniel Baah led all scorers with 16 points for Bethel, but scored just two in the second half. SJU out-rebounded the Royals 37-21 in the contest and held an 18-4 scoring advantage in second-chance points. The Johnnies also forced 16 turnovers and scored an additional 30 points off of them (a 30-14 scoring advantage off turnovers).
