Box Score

Post-Game Interviews:
-Schmitt & Smith (1:15)

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Saint John's surrendered a 15-point lead but made 17 of its 19 free throws in the second half, including the last nine, to defeat Concordia-Moorhead 79-76 in the MIAC opener on Wednesday, Dec. 3, in Sexton Arena.

The Johnnies (3-1, 1-0 MIAC) led by as much as 15 (39-24) early in the second half and by 13 (48-35) with 15:04 remaining, but Concordia (3-2, 0-1 MIAC) cut its deficit to four with a 13-4 run at the 11:47 mark. 

SJU battled back to gain a 10-point lead (64-54) with 6:56 left before the Cobbers gained their first lead since the 11:33 mark of the first half thanks to a 15-4 run. 

Junior guard Alex Schmitt (Waconia, Minn.) made sure the CC lead was short-lived, however, with a traditional three-point play for SJU on the ensuing possession. He led all scorers with 22 points and made all nine of his free-throw attempts, including six in the final 1:39 of the game.

A layup from Jordan Bolger tied the game at 71 just inside the two-minute mark, but a foul on the other end, and two free throws from Schmitt, gave the lead back to SJU. The Johnnies capitalized on a Bolger turnover, barely, thanks to an offensive rebound from senior post Blake Maslonkowski (St. Joseph, Minn./St. Cloud Apollo) and foul on the put-back with 1:03 remaining. Maslonkowski extended the lead to four with a pair of free throws, but Bolger came through again on the other end and cut the Cobbers' deficit in half. 

Schmitt rattled a three-pointer around the rim and out, giving Concordia a chance to either tie or take the lead with 14 seconds left. Brett Bergeson, however, stepped on the baseline for CC's 16th turnover of the night. SJU turned those 16 turnovers into 23 points.

Schmitt was fouled on the in-bounds pass and made both free throws to make it 77-73 with six ticks left on the clock. Bolger made things interesting with a deep three-pointer, but Schmitt again made both free throws. Tom Fraase's game-tying three-pointer hit the back iron and bounced out at the buzzer.

Hampered by two fouls in the first 5:49 of the game, Maslonkowski finished with 10 points and four boards in 17 minutes of play. Senior post Jacob Peterson (Golden Valley, Minn./Hopkins) tallied a career-high 12 points and grabbed four rebounds in 13 minutes off the bench, while freshman guard Patrick Strom (Fargo, N.D./Shanley) added 10 points. 

SJU, which made only two of its first 14 shot attempts to start the game, shot 88 percent (22-for-25) from the charity stripe and finished at 45.6 percent (26-for-57) from the field.

Brandon Giese led the Cobbers with 16 points and six assists, while Bolger added 15 points, including 13 in the second half. Concordia went 6-for-12 from behind the arc and shot 66.7 percent (20-for-30) from the field in the game's final 20 minutes.

With the win, SJU head coach Jim Smith improved to 71-33 all-time against Concordia, including a 46-6 record in Collegeville.

The Johnnies play host to No. 5 St. Thomas (4-1, 0-1 MIAC) for a 3 p.m. tip-off on Saturday, Dec. 6, in Sexton Arena.