Dominant performance vaults Toms over Golden Eagles, 85-63

ST. PAUL, Minn. – St. Thomas men's basketball came ready to play Thursday evening as the Tommies took down the defending Summit League Champion Oral Roberts, 85-63.

Graduate student Parker Bjorklund led the scoring efforts for the Toms with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting and sophomore Kendall Blue added on 18 points, connecting on 8-of-14 attempts. The Purple move to 16-9 on the season and 6-4 in conference play following the victory.

The Purple shot over 50 percent from the field for the 13th time this season, winning 10 of those games, and shot over 63 percent in the first half alone. St. Thomas won the points in the paint battle 38-26 and points off turnovers margin 17-1 along with committing only five turnovers to Oral Roberts' 10. The Toms also had 20 assists on a staggering 32 field goal makes and tonight marks the first game the Purple have connected on 30-plus made field goals since the last matchup against Oral Roberts on Jan. 13, 2023.

St. Thomas shot 53.3 percent overall (32-60) and 52.4 percent from 3-point range (11-21) while going 10-of-14 from the free throw line. Oral Roberts shot 36.9 percent (24-65) and 30.3 percent from beyond the arc (10-33). St. Thomas outscored the Golden Eagles 52-31 in the first half, shooting 63.6 percent from the field and 66.7 percent from the three-point line.

RECAP
Bjorklund jumped out to a fast start, scoring eight of the Tommies' first 10 points of the ball game to give them a 10-2 lead in the first five minutes of play. Back-to-back 3-pointers from redshirt freshman Carter Bjerke gave the Toms a 21-8 advantage eight minutes into the ball game.

Graduate student Brooks Allen entered the 3-point frenzy as he followed up with his own back-to-back three pointers, giving the Toms a 24-12 lead. A jumper by Bjorklund, a layup from graduate student Raheem Anthony, and a 3-pointer by junior Ben Nau extended the lead to 20 points, 41-21 with five minutes remaining in the half.

A good ole fashioned and-one by Blue followed up by two layups gave the sophomore a personal 7-0 run as the Tommies found themselves up 52-31 heading into the halftime break.

Coming out of half, the Tommies maintained their momentum as Bjorklund added on another and-one for the Purple. The Tommies and Golden Eagles traded baskets over the course of the next six minutes until back-to-back 3-pointers from Bjerke and Nau gave the Tommies a 28-point lead, 67-39, halfway through the second half.

A thunderous alley-oop from Blue to Bjorklund got the crowd on their feet, and a free-throw by senior Courtney Brown Jr., gave the Purple their largest lead of the ballgame of 30 points, 85-55, with 2:50 to play.

TOP TOMMIES

Graduate student Parker Bjorklund led the scoring efforts for the Tommies, recording 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting along with seven rebounds and four assists.
Sophomore Kendall Blue recorded his 13th double-digit performance of the season while he's now shot at least 50 percent from the field in 18 of the last 30 games. Blue added four rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and a steal in another all-around performance.
The starting five (Allen, Anthony, Blue, Bjorklund, Dobbs) scored 62 of the teams 85 points on an efficient 66 percent shooting night (27-41) from the field while recording a combined 21 rebounds, 17 assists, 7 steals, and four blocks in the Tommie victory.

QUOTABLES
Head Coach Johnny Tauer on Thursday's victory over the defending Summit League champions Oral Roberts:
"Really pleased tonight, I thought our guys played extremely well on defense and over the course of the season our veteran group has played with a connectedness with one another that has been really inspiring. One of our most complete, if not the most complete game we have played this year. Very exciting to get a victory over a powerhouse team that is very well coached."
"I was really proud of the first half we played against the team that won it all last year and I thought these guys played a complete game on offense, defense, and transition play. Turnovers are one of our key metrics, and to only have one in the first half shows how our guys value the ball. The way our guys move and understand their role and strengths has been fun to watch."

UP NEXT
The Tommies continue Summit League play on the road as they travel to Denver, Colo., to take on the Denver Pioneers (13-11, 4-5 Summit League) on Saturday, Feb. 10, with tipoff scheduled for 4 p.m. CT. St. Thomas is currently tied 2-2 in the all-time series against the Pioneers with the Toms winning the last matchup on Feb. 2, 2023, 68-57.

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Team Stats

Parker Bjorklund

Kendall Blue

Raheem Anthony

Ben Nau

Players Mentioned

Brooks Allen

Raheem Anthony

Carter Bjerke

Parker Bjorklund

Kendall Blue

Ben Nau