No. 13 Saint John's basketball plays host to Saint Mary's for a 7 p.m. game on Wednesday, Jan. 23, in Sexton Arena. – Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM) | Live Stats/Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (13-3, 9-2 MIAC) suffered a gut-wrenching 74-72 overtime loss at No. 7 St. Thomas Monday night (Jan. 21) in St. Paul. Freshman guard Colton Codute (Wayzata, Minn./Orono) gave SJU a 71-69 lead with his second three-pointer of overtime, but was called for a touch foul on the other end of the floor and UST's Anders Nelson made both free throws (due to the double-bonus) with 47.9 seconds left.

After Codute missed a layup, Nelson gave the Tommies the lead for good on a jumper in the lane with 35.8 seconds remaining. Sophomore post Zach Hanson (New Prague, Minn.) made one of two free throws with 20.6 on the clock and the Tommies' Elijah Hannah matched it at the other charity stripe to end the scoring. Codute's three-pointer at the horn rattled off the iron. 

Hanson and senior guard David Stokman (Maple Lake, Minn.) led four Johnnies in double figures with 17 points apiece. Junior wing Jubie Alade (Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) collected 14 points and a career-high eight assists, while junior post Lucas Walford (Elko, Minn/New Prague) registered his fifth double-double of the season (and ninth of his career) with 12 points, 14 rebounds, and four blocks.

The Johnnies shot 58.3 percent (14-for-24) from the field in the first half but only led by one point (36-35) at the break, thanks to Michael Hannon's three-pointer at the buzzer. SJU made only 12 of its 34 shot attempts (35.3 percent) after intermission and finished at 44.8 percent (26-for-58) for the game.

Hannah led four Tommies in double digits with 13 points off the bench. UST shot 42.6 percent (26-for-61) for the game and 59.1 percent (13-for-22) from the free-throw line.

CLOSE LOSSES: The last time SJU lost back-to-back games, by a combined five points or less, was nearly 25 years to the date. The Johnnies suffered an 80-76 defeat on Jan. 26, 1994, at Hamline and returned home to drop a 69-68 defeat Jan. 29 to Concordia.

ALMOST THERE: Stokman takes the court Wednesday with 1,300 career points, two behind former teammate Alex Schmitt '16 for 11th on SJU's all-time scoring list. Stokman is also four three-pointers away from tying the school record of 232 held by another former teammate, Patrick Strom '18.

21 STRAIGHT: The 2018-19 season is the Johnnies' 46th in the Warner Palaestra (since 1973-74). SJU boasts a 416-142 (.746) home record during that span, including a 47-11 mark over the last five seasons. The Johnnies have won each of their last 21 regular-season games at home, going back to Feb. 8, 2017 (82-76 loss to Augsburg).

IN THE MIAC: The Johnnies lead three MIAC stat categories in conference play and are third in scoring. The stat-line where SJU is out of the top three is at the free-throw line (eighth), where the Cardinals are close behind in ninth.

Scoring
3. SJU, 82.7 ppg.
8. SMU, 66.0 ppg.

Shooting Percentage
1. SJU, .567
10. SMU, .406

Three-Point Percentage
1. SJU, .405
9. SMU, .316

Free-Throw Percentage
8. SJU, .705
9. SMU, .678

Rebounding
1. SJU, 40.5 rpg.
9. SMU, 31.4 rpg.

A LOOK AT THE CARDINALS: Saint Mary's (6-11, 2-10 MIAC) suffered its seventh straight loss with an 87-64 defeat at St. Thomas last Saturday (Jan. 19). Sophomore forward Eli Cave led all scorers with 19 points on 6-for-12 shooting. He is fourth in the MIAC in scoring (18.1 ppg.) and leads the Cardinals in assists (3.5 apg.) and rebounds (7.1 rpg.) this season. Junior guard Kevin Gleason has made 32 three-pointers and is second on the team in scoring at 9.9 points per game.

EARLIER THIS SEASON: SJU extended its win streak to six games with an 87-70 victory at Saint Mary's earlier this season on Dec. 12 in Winona. The Johnnies shot 59 percent (36-for-61) from the field, despite a 2-for-15 showing from three-point range, and out-rebounded SMU 49-21. 

Junior post Ethan Novacinski (St. Joseph, Minn./St. Cloud Apollo) led SJU with a career-high 29 points, on 13 of 15 shooting, off the bench. He also recorded seven rebounds and three assists in 29 minutes. His previous career high was 12 points, which he tied Dec. 8 against Hamline.

The Johnnies started slow, trailing the Cardinals 12-8 in the game's first 5:25 until Novacinski sparked a 10-0 run with three consecutive baskets. SJU broke open a two-point lead (18-16) with a 28-14 run over the final 8:33 to take a 46-30 lead into the break. 

Alade totaled 18 points and three assists, while Stokman added 14 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Walford just missed a double-double with 11 points and nine boards. Sophomore post Kyle Sorenson (Caledonia, Minn.) snared 10 rebounds off the bench.

Cave, the MIAC Men's Basketball Athlete of the Week at the time, led the Cardinals with 16 points on 6-for-16 shooting. SMU finished at 40.6 percent (26-for-64) from the floor.

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 86-21 against the Cardinals since the 1964-65 season, including a 53-1 record in Collegeville. SJU has won each of the last 23 meetings overall and 50 straight at home (46-0 in the Warner Palaestra). The last time Saint Mary's defeated SJU in Collegeville was in 1968, when the Johnnies played in the Old Gym (Guild Hall).