Box Score
SUPERIOR, Wis. – Saint John's basketball shot 63.8 percent (37-for-58) from the field en route to a 100-89, season-opening win over No. 18 Wisconsin-La Crosse on Friday, Nov. 6, at Wisconsin-Superior's National Bank of Commerce Tip-Off Classic.
The two teams exchanged the lead a number of times in the first half before SJU ran away with it for the first time – scoring 19 points to the Eagles' five in a span of 4:46 that began with eight minutes left in the first half. The Johnnies were a perfect 7-for-7 with nine points from sophomore guard
Peyton Podany (Anoka, Minn.) during the stretch for a 43-30 lead.
UWL stormed back into the game with a run of its own, turning the tables with an 18-6 scoring sequence that left the Johnnies up by just one point at halftime, 49-48.
A dunk from senior post
Vincent Hillesheim (Minneapolis, Minn./Hopkins) turned on the gas for SJU, helping the Johnnies extend their lead beyond five points thanks to a 36-16 scoring run for 10 minutes in the second half. Hillesheim scored 10 of those points as SJU shot 13-for-19 in the span. The Eagles fell short from the field and turned the ball over six times to help the Johnnies run away.
SJU led by as many as 21 – 92-71 – before the three-ball went cold at the end of the game.
Podany picked up right where he left off in his freshman campaign, scoring 24 points for the 10th 20-point game of his career. Podany was 8 of 11 from the floor (72.7 percent) with a pair of three-pointers. He also hauled in a team-leading nine rebounds and had two assists.
Senior guard
Kyle Johnson (Prior Lake, Minn./DeLaSalle) made an emphatic return following an injury that kept him sidelined last season, totaling 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting (56.2 percent). Hillesheim finished with 14 points after scoring just two in the first half. He was 7 of 10 (70 percent) from the floor with three rebounds and five assists.
Senior guard Sam Grieger – the 2025-26 National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division III Player of the Year and a consensus All-American – led the Eagles with 33 points on 12-for-26 shooting. Seven of his points came from the free-throw line. He also turned the ball over four times.
SJU out-rebounded La Crosse 28-17 (7-4 on the offensive glass).
The Johnnies face the host Yellowjackets at 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7.
