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COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – No. 2 Saint John's basketball advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 78-69 win over Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the second round of the NCAA Division III Tournament on Saturday, March 7, in Collegeville.

The Johnnies (27-2 overall) plays host to No. 4 St. Thomas (26-3 overall) in the third round - the program's first appearance in the Sweet 16 since 2001 - at 6 p.m. Saturday, March 14, in Sexton Arena. 

Ahead by five (67-62), SJU scored its last 11 points at the free-throw line (11-for-12) in the final 1:51 to seal the victory, which tied the Johnnies' program record for wins in a season (1978-79).

The Blugolds (20-10 overall) led by two (37-35) at halftime thanks to a 57.7-percent showing from the floor (4-for-5 from three-point). The Johnnies countered a 1-for-6 performance from downtown by going 13-for-20 inside the arc in the first half.

SJU opened the second half with a 13-5 run in the first 7:40 and led by as many as nine (59-50) with 7:14 to play.



UWEC cut its deficit to three (65-62) with 3:13 remaining, but senior post Lucas Walford (Elko, Minn./New Prague) took advantage of an offensive rebound for a bucket – the team's final made field goal – to go back ahead by five (67-62).

Junior post Zach Hanson (New Prague, Minn.) led all scorers with 21 points on 10 of 11 shooting. He went 4-for-4 during a 2:45 span as SJU built an eight-point lead (61-53) with 6:38 remaining.

Senior wing Jubie Alade (Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) scored 15 points, which enabled him to pass Norb Kowalkowski '59 and Paul Bernabei '69 for sixth in school history with 1,418 in his career.

Walford posted his 11th double-double of the season and 26th of his career with 15 points and 10 rebounds. He also blocked three shots.

Sophomore guard Colton Codute (Wayzata, Minn./Orono) was the fourth Johnnie in double digits with 13 points, 11 of which came in the second half (6-for-6 at the charity stripe).

Spencer Page led Eau Claire with 18 points, thanks in large part to a 5-for-7 performance from the field (3-for-3 from three-point) and 13 points in the first half. Cole Rabedeaux added 16 points and three steals.

SJU out-rebounded UWEC 32-19 (9-3 on the offensive glass) and went 21-for-24 at the free-throw line. The home team finished at 52.9 percent (27-for-51) overall and 61.5 percent (24-for-39) inside the three-point arc.