No. 6 Saint John's plays host to Macalester for a 7 p.m. game on Wednesday, Feb. 12, in Collegeville. - Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM/95.7 FM) | Live Stats | Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (19-2, 12-0 MIAC) outlasted Concordia-Moorhead for an 80-73 overtime win – the Johnnies' 15th-straight victory – on Saturday (Feb. 8) in Sexton Arena.

Tied at 69-69, the Johnnies out-scored the Cobbers 11-4 in overtime, including a 7-0 margin at the free-throw line. SJU entered the game as the NCAA Division III at the charity stripe (.796) and finished at 72.4 percent (21-for-29) Saturday. CC went 2-for-7 from the field in the extra session, including 0-for-4 from three-point range, after ending regulation at 50 percent (8-for-16) from long range.

A pair of free throws from senior guard Kooper Vaughn (St. Charles, Minn.) tied the game at 69-69 with 32 seconds remaining in the second half. With a two-second differential between the game and shot clocks, CC's Jacob Cook drove to the basket seeking the game-winning points, but Vaughn drew the offensive foul with six ticks on the clock. Senior wing Ryan Thissen (Rosemount, Minn./Eastview) missed a jumper in the closing seconds and senior wing Griffin Rushin's (Baxter, Minn./Brainerd) put-back attempt rolled around the rim and out as the horn sounded.

SJU led by as much as eight (54-46) with 10:57 left thanks to a 14-3 run. The Cobbers, however, responded with a 17-9 run over the next 7:49.

Concordia shot an even 60 percent (15-for-25) from the floor, including 5-for-9 (55.6 percent) from behind the arc, in the first half but the game was tied at 37-37 thanks to SJU's 8-0 advantage in second-chance points.

Thissen led SJU with 17 points and seven rebounds in 40:11 played and senior guard Blake Berg (West Fargo, N.D./Sheyenne) was next with 13 points and five rebounds in just 20:26 of action due to foul trouble. He fouled out with 1:47 left in the second half.

Junior guard Kyle Johnson (Prior Lake, Minn./DeLaSalle) was the third Johnnie in double digits with 12 points off the bench. His back-to-back three-pointers sparked the Johnnies' 14-1 run in the second half.

Jacob Cook led all scorers with 29 points and grabbed eight rebounds in a game-high 42:09 of play for CC. Rowan Nelson followed with 23 points. The duo combined to shoot 21-for-32 (.656), while the rest of the team combined for a 28-percent showing (7-for-25). Seven different Cobbers made a three-pointer.

IN THE NCAA STATS: The Johnnies are currently (through games of Feb. 10) second in NCAA Division III in assist/turnover ratio (+1.68), fourth in fewest turnovers per game (9.2), fifth in free-throw percentage (.789), eighth in shooting percentage (.490), 10th in scoring margin (+16.0 ppg.) and 14th in both three-point percentage (.384) and three-point defense (.281). Individually, senior guard Zach Longueville (Eagan, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran) is 15th in assist/turnover ratio (2.74).

ONE POINT FROM BIGALKE: Thissen (1,567 points) takes the court Wednesday needing one point to tie – and two points to pass – Troy Bigalke '01 for third (1,568) on SJU's all-time scoring list.

KOOP: Vaughn is 18th on the scoring list with 1,196 career points, 21 behind Tom Grudnowski '72 in 17th (1,217). He is also second in school history with 253 career three-pointers, 13 behind the record of 266 owned by David Stokman '19, and is also second in free-throw percentage (.890/251-for-282).

NEW POLLS: SJU jumped three spots to No. 6 in yesterday's (Monday, Feb. 10) D3hoops.com Top 25 poll and moved up to No. 15 in the second NCAA National Power Index (NPI) for Division III men's basketball. Three teams from NCAA's Region 9 were ranked in D3hoops.com's top 25: Wisconsin-Platteville (No. 3), SJU (No. 6) and Wisconsin-La Crosse (No. 9) and SJU (No. 9). Gustavus Adolphus – SJU's opponent this Saturday, Feb. 15, in St. Peter – received votes.

BACK IN THE MIAC PLAYOFFS: Saint John's has already clinched its 31st appearance to the six-team MIAC Playoffs (est. 1984-85) and 13th consecutive.

STAT COMPARISONS: The Johnnies currently lead the MIAC in five of the nine major statistical categories in conference play and are second in the other four.

Scoring Offense
2. SJU, 82.9 ppg. (79.6 overall)
9. MAC, 68.6 ppg. (71.2 overall)

Scoring Defense
2. SJU, 65.2 ppg. (63.6 overall)
8. MAC, 75.1 ppg. (77.1 overall)

Shooting Percentage – Offense
2. SJU, 52.4 percent (49.0 percent overall)
7. MAC, 43.9 percent (43.6 percent overall)

Shooting Percentage – Defense
1. SJU, 40.7 percent (39.3 percent overall)
7. MAC, 46.6 percent (45.8 percent overall)

Three-Point Percentage – Offense
1. SJU, 40.5 percent/109-269 (38.4 percent/190-495 overall)
5. MAC, 35.5 percent/107-301 (35.3 percent/193-546 overall)

Three-Point Percentage – Defense
1. SJU, 30.5 percent/73-239 (28.1 percent/116-413 overall)
7. MAC, 36.0 percent/103-286 (36.1 percent/190-527 overall)

Free-Throw Percentage
1. SJU, 76.5 percent/130-170 (78.9 percent/232-294 overall)
9. MAC, 67.7 percent/84-124 (66.9 percent/174-260 overall)

Rebounding
2. SJU, 37.7 rpg. (37.7 overall)
7. MAC, 32.3 rpg. (35.8 overall)

Fewest Turnovers
1. SJU, 9.4 tpg. (9.2 overall)
5. MAC, 10.5 tpg. (11.5 overall)

A LOOK AT THE SCOTS: Macalester (7-14, 4-8 MIAC) suffered an 80-55 loss Saturday (Feb. 8) at Hamline. The Scots had a 33-31 halftime lead but shot 32.1 percent (9-for-28) from the field in the second half, including a 2-for-15 performance from behind the arc, while the Pipers made 59.4 percent (19-for-32) of their shots to out-score them by 27 (49-22). Junior (6-foot-5) forward Noah Shannon led Mac with 16 points and seven rebounds. The team's leading scorer (16.0 ppg.), junior (6-foot-4) guard Eric Wentz, was held scoreless in the loss. Sophomore (6-foot-1) guard Kaden Holdbrook is next at 15.8 points per game, while Shannon averages 12.8 points. Junior (6-foot-5) forward  Ryan Brush is a 40.3-percent shooter (58-for-144) from long range is averages 11.4 points.

LAST SEASON'S MEETINGS: The Johnnies swept the regular-season series against the Scots for the sixth-straight time in 2023-24.

at Saint John's 101, Macalester 79 (Dec. 9, 2023)
The Johnnies broke open a 12-9 game with a 28-8 run over a span of 7:40 in the first half and took a 62-35 lead into the break. The home team made 10-consecutive field goals (4-for-4 from three-point range) during the final 4:30 of the scoring run. SJU shot 66.7 percent, both from the field (24-for-36) and three-point (10-for-15), in the first half.

SJU led by as much as 42 (98-56) with 7:20 to play and 13 different Johnnies scored a point or more.

Johnson in double figures with a then-career-high 15 points in a team-leading 18:24 played. He also added four assists, three rebounds and two steals.

Vaughn followed with 13 points and Rushin added 12 points off the bench. The Johnnies' bench out-scored Macalester by a 62-23 margin. Guard Brandon Adelman '24 was the sixth Johnnie in double digits with 10 points.

SJU finished at 58.5 percent (38-for-65) from the field and 48.1 percent (13-for-27) from behind the arch. The Johnnies out-rebounded the Scots 33-24 and produced 17 points off 11 turnovers.

Coby Gold led all scorers with 22 points for Mac, which shot 53.6 percent (30-for-56) from the floor. Gold also registered six rebounds and five assists in 34:50 played. The Scots' leading scorer, Caleb Williams (20.3 ppg.), finished with 15 points on 5-for-12 shooting and three first-half turnovers.

Thissen totaled 11 points, four assists and three rebounds in 15:46, while senior guard Luke Healy (Hudson, Wis.) matched him with 11 points and collected a career-high five assists.

Saint John's 76, at Macalester 59 (Jan. 27, 2024)
SJU held Macalester to 32.1 percent (9-for-28) in the second half for a 76-59 win the last time these two teams met last Jan. 27 (2024) in St. Paul.

Macalester cut the Johnnies' lead to two (50-48) with 10:58 remaining in the game, but Vaughn drained a three-pointer that sparked a 13-0 run (19-4 overall) over the next seven minutes. 

The Johnnies led 38-36 at halftime, thanks to a 55.6-percent (15-for-27) performance from the floor, but committed nine turnovers (10 for the game). The visitors finished at an even 50 percent (27-for-54) for the game, including 33.3 percent (7-for-21) from three-point range, and went 15-for-17 (88.2 percent) from the free-throw line. SJU entered the game as the NCAA Division III leader in shooting percentage (.509), as well as fourth in free-throw percentage (.807), seventh in three-point percentage (.398) and ninth in fewest turnovers per game (10.1).

Berg led three Johnnies in double figures with 20 points, including 12 in the second half, on 8-for-15 shooting. The 20-point game was the second of the season (third career) for Berg, who also collected four rebounds, four assists and two blocks.

Adelman recorded his first collegiate double-double – 16 points and 11 rebounds – off the bench with four assists and senior post Luke Budzyn (St. Paul, Minn./East Ridge) added 12 points, seven rebounds and two blocks.

Williams led the Scots with 20 points on 9-for-22 shooting and Gold followed with 19 points. Williams poured in a school-record 51 points thanks to a 20-for-28 showing from the field in the Scots' previous game (a 92-88 win at Concordia).

SJU outrebounded Mac by a 40-29 margin and the bench tallied a 37-10 scoring advantage. The home team finished at 37.1 percent (23-for-62) overall and 29.2 percent (7-for-24) from behind the arc. The Scots took the court ranked fifth nationally in three-pointers per game (11.3) and 12th in three-point percentage (.390).

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 91-29 against Macalester since the 1964-65 season, including a 49-11 record in Collegeville. SJU has won 33 of the last 35 meetings in Sexton Arena and 36 of the last 38 overall.