Box Score
COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Saint John's basketball secured head coach
Pat McKenzie's '04 200th win – 74-71 over Central (Iowa) – on Friday night, Nov. 14, in Sexton Arena.
SJU (1-1 overall) built a six-point lead (66-60) with 2:43 remaining thanks to eight-straight points from freshman guard
Peyton Podany (Anoka, Minn.). Central (2-1 overall), however, tied the game on two occasions, 66-66 and 68-68 with 1:02 left, when Grant Uecker tallied eight-straight points for Dutch.
Sophomore post
Charlie Theis (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) broke the stalemate – 70-68 – when he grabbed a loose ball on the offensive end and score the put-back with 41 seconds on the clock.
Sophomore guard
Liam Farniok (Minneapolis, Minn./Southwest) drained a pair of free throws following a Central three-point miss, but Uecker drained another three-pointer with 16 ticks left on the clock. Podany made two more free throws on the ensuing possession and Owen Schipper's three-point attempt was off the mark as time expired to seal the Johnnies' home-opening win.
Podany led the Johnnies with 24 points and just missed his first collegiate double-double with nine rebounds. Theis followed with 21 points and six rebounds off the bench. The duo combined to shoot 17-for-24 (70.8 percent) from the field, including 6-for-12 (50 percent) from three-point range, while the rest of the Johnnies shot 25 percent (11-for-44) from the floor and 1-for-14 (7.1 percent) from behind the arc.
SJU closed the first half with an 8-0 run to take a 31-28 lead into halftime. The home team finished at 41.2 percent (28-for-68) from the field and just 7-for-26 (26.9 percent) from long range and left eight points at the free-throw line (11-for-19, 57.9 percent) in the victory.
Junior wing
Jamison Lien (Prior Lake, Minn.) was the next Johnnie in points with six off the bench.
Uecker led the Dutch with 24 points, including 17 in the second half. The visitors shot 36.8 percent (25-for-68) from the floor and 9-for-28 (32.1 percent) from three-point.
SJU tallied a 47-44 edge in rebounds and 23-8 advantage in fast-break points.
The Johnnies host Simpson (Iowa) for a 5 p.m. tip-off on Saturday, Nov. 15, in Collegeville.
