The Johnnies open conference play with a 3 p.m. game against Saint Mary's on Saturday, Dec. 7, at Sexton Arena in Collegeville. – Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM, via Real Audio Player) | Live Stats | Live Video
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (2-2, 0-0 MIAC) shot 65.6 percent (21-for-32) from the field in the second half to break a 32-32 halftime tie in an 88-58 non-conference win over Wisconsin-River Falls in the Johnnies' home opener Nov. 26. The Johnnies, sparked by 11 points and five rebounds off the bench from senior Nick Meyer (Plymouth, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's), held on for a 32-32 tie at the half despite shooting 1-for-7 from three-point range. The second half, however, belonged to senior Patrick Butcher (Louisville, Ky./St. Xavier), who tallied four points in the first half but scored 20 of his career-high 30 points in the first 8:42 after halftime. He made his first nine shots, including five three-pointers, in the second half and finished 11-for-13 from the field (6-for-7 from three-point range). As a team, SJU started the second half with a 14-4 run and then put the game away with a 20-4 run during a 4:33 span in the middle of the half. The Johnnies made eight of their nine three-point attempts in the second half and out-rebounded the Falcons 43-28 in the game. Meyer ended the evening with 15 points and seven rebounds, while junior Jacob Peterson (Golden Valley, Minn./Hopkins) added career highs in both points (10) and rebounds (8). SJU's bench chipped in 40 of the team's 88 points on the night.
MIAC DENIED: Butcher led the Johnnies with a career-high 30 points in the 88-58 home-opening win over River Falls. The second half proved to be Butcher's opus, as he scored 20 points in the first 8:42 after halftime and finished with 26 points in the half. Despite his career night, Butcher was snubbed for the MIAC Men's Basketball Athlete of the Week award.
30-POINT GAMES: Butcher's 30-point game was the first for a Johnnie in Collegeville since Chris Schwartz '11 dropped 30 in a 77-67 win over Saint Mary's on Jan. 3, 2009. SJU has recorded nine 30-point performances, overall, since the 2001-02 season. Butcher's 26 second-half points is the most of the nine performances, topping Andy Burns' ('12) 23 points (of his career-high 35) in the 90-87 win at Chicago (Ill.) on Nov. 28, 2010.
ASSIST ME: Senior point guard Kevin McKenzie (De Pere, Wis./Notre Dame Academy) registered a career-high eight assists, all of which were recorded in the second half. Four of the eight assists led to Butcher baskets, including three three-pointers. McKenzie now has 159 assists in 82 career games (51 starts), 70 behind Corey Jackson (1992-96) on SJU's all-time list.
SECOND-HALF SHOTS: SJU made 21 field goals (21-for-32) in the second half of the win over River Falls, the most since the Johnnies made 21 (21-for-29) in the 94-80 win over Lakeland (Wis.) on Dec. 30, 2000.
A LOOK AT THE CARDINALS: Saint Mary's (1-4, 0-1 MIAC) ventures to Collegeville Saturday with the hopes of ending a three-game skid after defeating Crown in overtime, 86-81, Nov. 23. SMU returns two of its top five scoring leaders from last year: junior guard Evan Pederson and sophomore forward Will Swiggum. Swiggum currently leads the team in scoring (13.8 ppg.), rebounding (8.0 rpg.) and shooting percentage (.545), while Pederson touts an average of 4.4 assists per game. The Cardinals are shooting 38.6 percent from the field, including 25.0 percent from three-point range, and averaging 17.4 turnovers per game. First-year head coach Jamison Rusthoven, a graduate of St. Thomas, took the job in Winona after serving three seasons as an assistant coach at Wisconsin-Platteville, as well as five seasons at Hamline.
LAST YEAR'S MEETINGS: Saint John's swept the season series with SMU last season. The Johnnies ended their five-game losing skid with a 63-46 win last Jan. 14 in Winona. SJU scored a total of 16 points off turnovers and offensive rebounds to post a 34-16 halftime lead. Senior Seth Marx (Maple Grove, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's) led the Johnnies with 15 points, including 13 in the first half (10 in the game's first 9:17). Swiggum and Michael Burfeind led SMU, which cut its deficit to as little as 15 in the second half, with 10 points apiece. The Johnnies out-rebounded the Cardinals 39-30, including an 11-6 edge on the offensive glass (8-2 in second-chance points).
The Johnnies made 11 of their first 13 shots and never looked back in a 77-50 home win on Feb. 13. SJU led by as much as 22 (43-21) in the first half before missing eight consecutive shots in the final 5:25. Saint Mary's, however, capitalized on SJU's cold streak with only four points during the span to take a 43-25 deficit into halftime. SJU out-scored SMU 42-6 in the paint and led by as much as 29 (71-42) with five minutes remaining. Sophomore Mitchell Kuck (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) led the Johnnies with 16 points and added five rebounds. Swiggum led SMU, which shot 28.6 percent from the field in the game (23.1 percent in the second half alone), with 12 points.
SERIES HISTORY: SJU head coach Jim Smith is 77-21 all-time against Saint Mary's, including a 48-1 record at home. The Johnnies have won 43 consecutive meetings against SMU in Collegeville. The lone home loss for Smith against the Cardinals was an 80-77 decision in overtime in 1968, when SJU still played in the Old Gym. The Johnnies are 40-0 against Saint Mary's in the Warner Palaestra/Sexton Arena. SJU has won 43 of the last 51 meetings overall, including 14 of the last 15.
MIAC OPENERS: The Johnnies are 36-13 in their MIAC opener under the direction of Smith, including a 23-5 record when the first conference game is played in Collegeville. SJU, however, has started the conference schedule 0-1 the last three seasons.
