Box Score
McMINNVILLE, Ore. - No. 11 Saint John's basketball opened its two-game Oregon trip with a 69-62 win over Linfield on Friday, Dec. 20, in McMinnville, Ore.
The Johnnies (8-1, 5-0 MIAC) erased a one-point deficit (54-53) with 6:09 remaining thanks to a 9-0 run over the next 3:17. The Wildcats (6-2, 0-0 NWC) trimmed SJU's lead to five (62-57) before sophomore guard
Colton Codute (Wayzata, Minn./Orono) drained his fifth three-pointer of the afternoon with 1:31 left and SJU went 4-for-4 from the charity stripe to seal the victory.
Senior wing
Jubie Alade (Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) led all scorers with 18 points, on 7 of 9 shooting, and posted four rebounds, two assists and two blocks. He passed Mark Lenss '78 and Ryan Lieser '08 to move into 32nd in school history with 1,061 career points.
The Johnnies jumped out to a 22-9 lead at the 12:27 mark of the first half before the home team responded with a 13-0 run to tie the game over the next 4:21. SJU settled down and doubled up the Wildcats 12-6 to take a 34-28 lead into halftime.
The five treys tied a career high for Codute, who is now 10-for-16 from behind the arc over the last three games. He followed Alade with 15 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Senior post
Lucas Walford (Elko, Minn./New Prague) recorded his sixth double-double of the season and 21st of his career with 12 points and 13 rebounds. He also chipped in four assists. Junior wing
Oakley Baker (Geneva, Minn./New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva) followed with 10 points and five rebounds.
Junior post
Zach Hanson (New Prague, Minn.) registered eight points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes. A career 61.6-percent shooter (183-for-197), Hanson made only one of his first 10 shots but drained his final two and a pair of free throws in the final five minutes.
SJU out-rebounded Linfield 40-27, including 13-7 on the offensive glass, and tallied a 13-4 advantage in second-chance points.
The Johnnies travel roughly 30 miles to the south to face Willamette (1-7, 0-1 NWC) at 2 p.m. PT/4 p.m. CT Saturday, Dec. 21, in Salem, Ore.
