Saint John's takes its four-game win streak to Bethel this Saturday, Feb. 1. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. at the Robertson Center in Arden Hills. – Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM) | Live Stats/Live Video
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (9-8, 7-5 MIAC) shot 64.9 percent (24-for-37) to build a 32-point lead at the half and run its win streak to four games with a 78-65 victory over Hamline on Wednesday night (Jan. 29) in Collegeville. Ahead by six (23-17) with 9:55 remaining in the opening half, SJU made 15 of its final 19 shots, including nine consecutive, to ride a 35-9 run into the locker room. The Johnnies held HU to 38.5 percent (10-for-26) from the field and scored 17 points off 12 turnovers in the half. The intensity faded, however, in the second half as the Pipers shot 72.7 percent (16-for-22) from the floor and out-scored the home team 39-20 in the game's final 20 minutes. Senior Seth Marx (Maple Grove, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's) led all scorers with 19 points, seven rebounds and three steals. His four three-pointers on the night enabled him to pass Ryan Lieser (2005-08) for fifth in school history with 147 in 72 career games. Marx is averaging 18.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while shooting 54.8 percent (23-for-42) from the field (12-for-24 from three-point range), in his last four games since cracking the starting lineup.
A pair of sophomores, Joe Risinger (Shorewood, Minn./Minnetonka) and Alex Schmitt (Chaska, Minn./Waconia), added 16 points apiece. Schmitt ended the evening 7-for-10 from the floor, but the rest of the bench combined to shoot only 26.7 percent (4-for-15). The 16 points for Risinger, meanwhile, is a career high. Junior Blake Maslonkowski (St. Joseph, Minn./St. Cloud Apollo) added five points, eight rebounds (six offensive) and three steals.
FIRST-HALF SWING: Wednesday night's contest against Hamline was a tale of two halves. The Johnnies shot a scorching 64.9 percent and scored nearly three points per minute in the first half en route to a 58-26 halftime lead. SJU made 15 of its final 19 shots, including 5-for-6 from three-point range, in the half. The second half, however, was a different story as HU missed fewer shots (six, 16-for-22) than the Johnnies made (34.8 percent, 8-for-23).
STARTING MARX: Marx is averaging 18.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while shooting 54.8 percent (23-for-42) from the field (12-for-24 from three-point range), in his last four games (all SJU wins) since cracking the starting lineup. With his four three-pointers on Wednesday night, Marx passed Ryan Lieser (2005-08) for fifth in school history with 147 three-pointers in in 72 career games.
A LOOK AT THE ROYALS: Bethel (11-7, 7-6 MIAC) saw its two-game win streak come to an end with a 61-51 loss at Concordia Wednesday (Jan. 29) night. Freshman Brycen Wojta leads the Royals, and is fifth in the MIAC (all games), with an average of 15.7 points per game and is 10th in the conference with 59 assists (3.1 apg.). Senior Luke Buttenhoff is averaging 12.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest since trading his football cleats for basketball shoes and replacing classmate Kyle Zimmermann (12.6 ppg., 8.9 rpg.), who is out due to an injury suffered in the 69-55 loss at SJU Jan. 4.
EARLIER THIS SEASON: Saint John's started the New Year with a 69-55 home win over Bethel on Jan. 4 in Collegeville. The Johnnies found themselves ahead by two, 31-29, at the half despite making only one of their 11 three-point shot attempts (37.5 percent from the field overall). The tide turned in the second half, however, as SJU shot 58.3 percent (14-for-24) from the floor, including a 4-for-8 showing from behind the arc. SJU built a 20-point lead, 61-41, thanks to a 22-7 run with 7:12 remaining before the Royals went on a 12-0 run to cut their deficit to eight with four minutes left. The Johnnies went 4:35 without a made field goal during the momentum shift before senior Kevin McKenzie (De Pere, Wis./Notre Dame Academy) poured in six points in 1:19 to bring the home team's lead back to 14. Senior Jack Wittenborg (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) recorded a career-high 19 points, 16 of which came in the second half, and Risinger added a then-career-high 14 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting day off the bench. McKenzie finished the contest with 11 points, three assists and a career-high five steals. Maslonkowski tallied 10 points and 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season. Marx scored two points and grabbed two rebounds in eight minutes, his first game of the 2013-14 season due to a knee injury suffered during preseason practice. Wojta and Jackson Canfield led BU, which entered the game with wins in seven of its last eight contests, with eight points apiece. Bethel's leading scorer with an average of 16.4 points per game, Wojta was held to 3-for-12 shooting and committed five turnovers. SJU out-rebounded the Royals 34-29, posted a 24 points off 19 turnovers and ended the game 18-for-24 from the free-throw line.
SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 52-24 against Bethel under the direction of head coach Jim Smith, but just 19-16 in Arden Hills. SJU has won five of the last eight meetings at the Robertson Center, but has lost each of the last two.
