The Johnnies return to the court, and conference play, with a 3 p.m. game at Augsburg this Saturday, Jan. 3, in Minneapolis. – Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM) | Live Stats | Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (4-7, 1-2 MIAC) dropped a pair of games in Texas before Christmas.

at No. 24 Trinity (Texas) 102, Saint John's 76 (Dec. 20)
No. 24 Trinity shot 58 percent (33-for-57) from the field, including a 14-for-21 performance (66.7 percent) from three-point range, in a 102-76 win over SJU as part of the Tigers' Leslie Robinson Classic in San Antonio.

The Johnnies finished at 48.3 percent (29-for-60) overall, but Trinity scored 26 points off 15 turnovers and went 22-for-28 at the free-throw line (to SJU's 3-for-8 showing).

The Tigers scored the game's first 10 points and led 45-34 at halftime. SJU cut the deficit to nine (50-41) 2:23 into the second half, but TU rattled off 11-straight points over the next 2:06 to regain control and put the game out of reach.

Sophomore post Charlie Theis (Cottage Grove, Minn./East Ridge) led SJU's starters with nine points, while freshman guard Hudson Hochstedler (Monticello, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville) and freshman post Evan Weichert (New Prague, Minn.) matched him with nine points apiece off the bench.

Weichert and senior guard Thomas Menk (Lewiston, Minn./Lewiston-Altura) accounted for a late surge of SJU three-pointers, hitting a combined five, including back-to-back makes from Menk to account for his six points against Trinity. 

Dean Balo led the Tigers with 18 points and four assists in 18 minutes. Two other Tigers scored in double digits. 

The last time SJU allowed 100+ points occurred March 2, 2018 (a 102-92 loss to Bethany Lutheran in the NCAA Tournament).

Hardin-Simmons (Texas) 81, Saint John's 71 (Dec. 21)
The Johnnies finished 6-for-27 (22.2 percent) from three-point range and 13-for-23 (56.5 percent) from the free-throw line, including an 8-for-17 showing from the charity stripe in the second half in the trip's finale. 

Back-to-back three-pointers from senior guard Kyle Johnson (Prior Lake, Minn./DeLaSalle) cut the deficit to five (72-67) with 2:28 to play, but HSU answered with two-straight buckets and led by eight or more the rest of the way.

Johnson led all scorers with a career-high 25 points. He added five rebounds and three assists.

Freshman guard Henry Tschetter (Stewartville, Minn.) and sophomore guard Jamison Lien (Prior Lake, Minn.) added 14 points and seven rebounds each. Tschetter also collected a career-high four steals.

SJU led by as much as five (18-13) with 12:26 left in the first half, but an 11-0 run put the Cowboys (8-6 overall) in command as the Johnnies went scoreless for 4:46 of play.

An 8-0 run gave HSU its largest lead of the game (48-35) 3:10 into the second half, but SJU answered with a 13-0 run over the next 3:42 to tie it at 48-48. Both teams exchanged baskets, but the Cowboys went on a 10-2 run. Johnson scored five-straight points and junior post Vincent Hillesheim (Minneapolis, Minn./Hopkins) went 1-for-2 at the line to make it a two-point game (58-56) with 8:06 remaining. HSU, however, made each of its next four shots and went 3-for-3 at the free-throw line to regain a double-digit lead.

The Cowboys finished at 55.6 percent (30-for-54) from the field – 65 percent (26-for-40) from inside the arc – and 81 percent (17-for-21) from the free-throw line. SJU held a 34-33 edge in rebounds (15-8 on the offensive glass), but HSU scored 18 points off 13 turnovers.

A pair of forwards, (6-foot-8) Chris Bryant and (6-foot-6) Asher Fleming, led Hardin-Simmons with 20 points apiece. Bryant missed two shots (7-for-9) and added eight rebounds, five assists and two blocks.

A LOOK AT THE AUGGIES: Augsburg (9-2, 3-0 MIAC) fell to No. 2 Randolph-Macon (Va.) 85-49 to close the Music City Classic on Dec. 20 in Gallatin, Tenn. The Auggies finished at 33.3 percent (17-for-51) from the field, including 7-for-24 (29.2 percent) from three-point land, and just 8-for-20 (40 percent) from the free-throw line. Freshman (6-foot-6) guard JJ Semanko leads the team in scoring (16.5 ppg.) and rebounding (8.0 rpg.), and is tied for the team lead with 27 assists. Junior (6-foot-3) guard Elias Batala is next with 12.6 points per game, while freshman (6-foot-5) guard Daveion Hart (10.7 ppg.) and sophomore (6-foot-0) guard Hanif Muhammad (10.2 ppg.) also average in double digits.

LAST SEASON: The Johnnies swept Augsburg for the second-straight season in 2024-25.

Saint John's 78, at Augsburg 69 (Jan. 22, 2025)
The Johnnies scored the game's first 12 points and led 23-8 before the Auggies went on a 15-2 run to cut their deficit to two (25-23) with 8:58 left before the break. SJU, however, closed the first half with a 24-8 run for a 49-31 halftime lead. The visitors shot 64.3 percent (18-for-28) from the field, including 6-for-11 (54.5 percent) from three-point range, in the first 20 minutes.

SJU led by as much as 19 (61-42) with 13:17 to play and by 16 (70-54) with 8:13 left, but did not score until Ryan Thissen '24 made a jumper with 53 seconds on the clock. Augsburg, meanwhile, cut the Johnnies' lead to as little as seven but SJU went 6-for-7 at the free-throw line the rest of the way to seal the win.

Thissen tied a season high with 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for his second-consecutive double-double. He scored the game's first basket, which enabled him to pass Bill Sexton '55  (1,480) for fifth on SJU's all-time scoring list. 

Johnson made his first collegiate start in place of Kooper Vaughn '25, who missed the game due to injury, and made a career-high five three-pointers (5-for-10) with 19 points.

Luke Budzyn '25 added 12 points, seven rebounds and three blocks off the bench for SJU, which shot 34.6 percent (9-for-26) in the second half to finish at an even 50 percent (27-for-54) for the game.

Will Blascziek led the Auggies with 18 points. The home team shot 38.2 percent (26-for-68) from the field and 25.9 percent (7-for-27) from behind the arc.

at Saint John's 110, Augsburg 63 (Feb. 19, 2025)
SJU 68.3 percent (43-for-63) from the field in a 110-63 win over Augsburg the last time these two teams met on Feb. 19 in Sexton Arena. The Johnnies dissected Augsburg's zone defense for 31 assists on the 43 made field goals and went 13-for-22 (59.1 percent) from three-point range. The hot shooting coincided with a strong performance in the paint, where the home team out-scored the Auggies by a 60-24 margin with a 38-20 advantage on the glass, as well as a perfect 11-for-11 performance at the free-throw line.

Thissen led six Johnnies in double figures with 21 points – on 8-for-12 shooting – with six assists and five rebounds in 18:28 played.

Blake Berg '24 was next with 16 points, thanks to a perfect 7-for-7 performance from the floor, with five assists. Johnson went 4-for-4 from long distance for 14 points off the bench, while Luke Healy '25 also made four treys (4-for-5) for 12 points.

Griffin Rushin '25 totaled 11 points, a team-high seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Budzyn was the sixth Johnnie in double digits with 10 points.

SJU made nine of its first 11 shots and ended the first half at 73.1 percent (19-for-26) from the field for a 53-28 halftime lead and opened the second half with a 21-8 run.

Andy Stafford led Augsburg, which shot 36.4 percent (20-for-55) in the game, with 16 points.

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 71-60 against the Auggies since 1964-65, but just 29-38 in Minneapolis. SJU, however, has won 20 of the last 25 meetings overall and nine of the last 11 in Si Melby Hall.