SJU jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the first 4:30 of the game, but St. Thomas then went on a 23-2 run in the next 7:30 to take a 25-12 lead. SJU did cut the lead to 32-27 by intermission.
In the second half, St. Thomas scored the first 10 points of the half to take a commanding 42-27 lead. The Johnnies finally cut the lead less than 10 points with 21 seconds remaining.
UST senior Neal Anderson scored 29 points to lead all scorers. Sophomore Danny Peterson had 14 points and five assists, while sophomore Joey Shimek contributed 11 points and 11 rebounds. The Tommies shot 51.1-percent (23-of-45) from the field and made seven three-point field goals.
SJU was led by sophomore Paul Henrichs with 19 points and nine rebounds. Senior Pat McKenzie added 13 points and seven assists. SJU only made 2-of-10 free throw attempts in the game and shot 46.4-percent (26-of-56) from the field.
Both teams had 31 rebounds and committed 15 turnovers in the game.
SJU and St. Thomas are both 6-10 overall and 4-7 in the MIAC. As the MIAC enters the second half of the conference schedule, both SJU and UST find themselves tied for sixth place and the final MIAC playoff spot.
Newspaper Box Score Univ. of St. Thomas vs Saint John's University 01/21/04 7:30 p.m. at Sexton Arena, Collegeville, Minn. At Sexton Arena, Collegeville, Minn. UNIV. OF ST. THOMAS 65, SAINT JOHN'S UNIVERSITY 60 UNIV. OF ST. THOMAS (6-10, 4-7 MIAC) Neal Anderson 9-14 7-9 29; Danny Peterson 5-10 3-6 14; Joey Shimek 4-9 1-3 11; Nate Worrell 3-3 1-2 7; Nick Schader 2-5 0-1 4; Corey Guenther 0-3 0-0 0; Mike Dahlstrom 0-1 0-2 0. Totals 23-45 12-23 65. SAINT JOHN'S UNIVERSITY (6-10, 4-7 MIAC) Paul Henrichs 9-15 1-5 19; Pat McKenzie 6-12 0-1 13; Ryan Hinman 3-6 0-0 7; Matt Ohme 3-6 1-4 7; Brent Masica 2-3 0-0 6; Kevin Markling 2-7 0-0 5; Nate Kopetka 1-4 0-0 3; Jesse Ellens 0-1 0-0 0; Andrew Spaanem 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 26-56 2-10 60. Univ. of St. Thomas........... 32 33 - 65 Saint John's University....... 27 33 - 60 3-point goals-Univ. of St. Thomas 7-11 (Neal Anderson 4-7; Joey Shimek 2-3; Danny Peterson 1-1), Saint John's University 6-17 (Brent Masica 2-3; Pat McKenzie 1-4; Nate Kopetka 1-3; Kevin Markling 1-2; Ryan Hinman 1-3; Jesse Ellens 0-1; Matt Ohme 0-1). Fouled out--Univ. of St. Thomas-None, Saint John's University-None. Rebounds-Univ. of St. Thomas 31 (Joey Shimek 11), Saint John's University 31 (Paul Henrichs 9). Assists-Univ. of St. Thomas 16 (Danny Peterson 5), Saint John's University 18 (Pat McKenzie 7). Total fouls-Univ. of St. Thomas 12, Saint John's University 23. A-1045