Saint John's plays host to St. Olaf for a 3 p.m. contest Saturday, Jan. 19, in Sexton Arena. – Listen (Real Audio Player, Tape Delay) | Live Stats
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (5-10, 4-6 MIAC) reciprocated Nov. 28's 75-59 loss to Hamline with a 75-59 win over the Pipers on Jan. 16 in Collegeville. The Johnnies held Hamline to a .286 shooting percentage in the first half but only led 35-26 at intermission, thanks to 10 points off eight SJU turnovers. The Pipers cut their deficit to as little as five (51-46) with 12:04 to go but made only four of their final 17 shot attempts (23.5 percent) the rest of the way. Junior Seth Marx (Maple Grove, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's) led SJU with 21 points and added 10 rebounds to post his second double-double of the season and third of his career. He was 4-for-8 from behind the arc and made five of his six free-throw attempts. Senior Chris Neumann (Winsted, Minn./Holy Trinity) collected 17 points and a career-high 15 rebounds for his second straight double-double on the home court. Freshman Mitchell Kuck (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) followed with 19 points and seven assists.
DOUBLE-DOUBLES: The last time two Johnnies tallied double-doubles in the same game occurred during SJU's 59-54 loss at home to Carleton on Feb. 2, 2011: seniors Aaron Burtzel (12 points and 11 rebounds) and Nermin Hujdurovic (12 points and 10 rebounds).
ASSIST ME: Kuck has totaled 15 assists in the Johnnies' last two games, all wins, and is now second on the team with 33.
FAMILY MATTERS: Kuck's older brother, Nathan, is a junior guard for the Oles. He is currently averaging 8.4 points in seven games, with four starts, this season. Mitchell, meanwhile, averaged 10.2 points and 4.4 assists while shooting .564 over his last five games for SJU. He is second on the team in assists (33), third in scoring (9.1 ppg.) and steals (11), and fourth in blocks (6).
HOME COOKING: It is safe to say that Neumann has enjoyed the friendly confines this season, as he is currently averaging 12.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and a block per game while shooting .667 (36-for-54) from the floor in six home games this season. Coincidentally, Neumann's .667 shooting percentage matches his shooting percentage in conference play (48-for-72), which is tied for the MIAC lead. As a team, SJU touts a .477 shooting percentage in Sexton Arena, compared to a .426 mark for its opponents.
A LOOK AT THE OLES: Saint Mary's pulled away from St. Olaf for a 66-57 victory on Jan. 16 in Northfield. Junior Connor Gunderson had 14 points and four assists to lead the Oles (5-10, 4-6 MIAC), who went six-plus minutes without a bucket in the second half. The Oles have lost eight of their last 10 games with wins over Carleton (Jan. 7) and Hamline (Jan. 9). Gunderson and sophomore Sterling Nielsen lead the team with 15.3 and 12.5 points per game, respectively.
LAST YEAR'S SERIES: SJU dropped both games to the Oles last season. Saint John's led by as much as 17 with 7:39 remaining in the game, but St. Olaf outscored the Johnnies 33-11 the rest of the way in a 82-77 overtime loss last Jan. 14 (2012) in Collegeville. Down 66-49 at the 7:39 mark of the second half, the Oles proceeded to go 8-for-10 from the floor, including five of six from three-point range, to send the game into overtime. The Johnnies, meanwhile, ended the game two of three from the floor but committed four turnovers and missed a pair of free throws late. The Oles tallied an 11-2 scoring advantage off turnovers and went 7-for-11 from beyond the arc in the second half alone. STO carried its momentum into overtime and posted a 9-4 scoring advantage over SJU, which was 0-for-8 from the floor in OT. The Johnnies scored seven points in the final 12:39 of the game, including the five-minute overtime. Marx led the Johnnies with career-highs in points (22) and three pointers (6). Aaron Barmore '12 followed with 21 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Neumann recorded 12 points, while Andy Burns '12 added eight points, five rebounds and five assists. STO's Stu Neville led all scorers with 36 points and collected 11 rebounds. The senior averaged 20.8 points and 8.3 rebounds with a .620 shooting percentage in four career games in Sexton Arena, including a total of 64 points, 18 rebounds and a .706 shooting percentage (24-for-34) in his last two visits. Nathan Kuck tallied 17 points and four treys off the bench.
Burns became the 33rd Johnnie in school history to reach 1,000 career points, but that was the lone Saint John's highlight as St. Olaf handed the Johnnies a 72-47 loss on Feb. 11 in Northfield. Burns hit the mark with a three-pointer 1:18 into the game. He led the team with 15 points on what was a dismal afternoon for SJU. St. Olaf made its first six shots of the game and cruised to a 43-24 lead at the half. The Oles led by double digits from the 12:29 mark of the first half through the rest of the game, including a 28-point margin with just under six minutes remaining in the contest. Neville led the Oles with 22 points and 12 rebounds, while Bobby Fong added 17 points. Neville started the game with two consecutive three-pointers and finished eight of 11 from the floor.
SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 59-28 all-time against St. Olaf under the direction of head coach Jim Smith, including a 37-7 record in Collegeville. Saint John's has won 18 of the last 27 meetings overall, but the Oles have won each of the last four. SJU is 4-4 in its last eight games vs. STO in Sexton Arena. The average point-spread of the four SJU wins was 19.8 points.
