University of St. Thomas Athletics
14-9,5-5Summit League
South Dakota State
11-10,6-3Summit League
Team Stats
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Men's Hoops snaps skid, gets rare win over Jackrabbits
1/26/2023 10:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball
St. Paul, Minn. – Thursday evening at Schoenecker Arena started with a special moment for Tommie Men's Basketball coach Johnny Tauer and his wife Chancey as they shared a heartfelt message with the crowd on Coaches Against Cancer Night.
The night ended with more cheers and smiles for the home fans as the Purple closed out a hard-fought conference victory to remain perfect at home this season.
The Toms (14-9 overall, 5-5 Summit) made their last 11 free throws on the night -- including 4-of-4 in the final 15 seconds from Riley Miller and freshman Andrew Rohde -- and closed out a 60-54 victory over second-place South Dakota State in Summit League play on the their home court.
In extending their home-floor win streak to 11, the Purple ended their own three-game losing skid and halted a four-game win streak for the Jackrabbits.
A D-I home record crowd of 1,505 watched Tauer's team record a 16-0 edge in bench points and avenge a seven-point New Year's Eve road loss to SDSU.
Thursday's win also gave St. Thomas its first Division I head-to-head win over South Dakota State in any traditional team sport. The Summit's two-time defending all-sport winners, SDSU came into the day 21-0 against the Tommies combined over the last 18 months in men's and women's basketball, baseball, softball, women's soccer and volleyball. That included two double-digit wins in men's hoops last season. St. Thomas now has beaten every Summit League foe at least once head-to-head in these six team sports.
Inconsistent Shooting
Miller connected on the team's first three-point attempt to open a 5-2 lead before the team went cold from deep. St. Thomas went on to make just three of its next 12 attempts from behind the arc and found itself in a 24-19 hole with seven minutes to play in the first half.
But St. Thomas went on an 11-5 run to regain the lead, 30-29 with a second-consecutive layup from freshman Ahjany Lee. The Tommies added a pair of free-throws in the final minutes of the opening half to take a 32-29 lead into intermission.
The Purple's lead was propelled by a stifling defensive effort in the first half with five steals forcing eight Jackrabbit turnovers. The Tommies committed only three first-half turnovers and posted 10 assists on 11 made first-half field goals.
Lee led the team with 10 first-half points and three rebounds in 10 minutes of action off the bench. Eight different Tommies made their way into the scoring column in the first half.
Late Surge
Both teams struggled to put together consistent offense for most of the second half. Neither team could pull away in a game that included three ties and 12 lead changes.
SDSU's Zeke Mayo sank a 3-pointer with 7:46 to play to give the Jackrabbits their last lead at 47-46. But Lee's jumper and 3-point baskets by Rohde and Miller capped an 8-0 Tommie run for a 54-47 advantage with 5:01 remaining.
South Dakota State hung around but never got closer than four points down the stretch. Despite starting the day ranked third nationally at the foul line at 80 percent, SDSU missed the front end of 1-and-1 chances twice in the final 1:40 and saw the Purple get the rebounds. The Toms, who rank 10th nationally at the foul line at 78 percent, finished the night 11-of-12.
Rohde closed with 15 points, eight assists and four steals. Lee had 12 points, eight boards and three blocks. Brooks Allen chipped in nine points, nine rebounds and three assists. Freshman Kendall Blue and Miller each had eight points.
Mayo sank five treys and scored a game-high 23 points for the Jackrabbits, who were missing one starter and had four players log 37 or more minutes.
Next Up
St. Thomas is home Saturday to play South Dakota (7 p.m.).
