Tommies offense shines in record-breaking 119-104 over Coyotes

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Behind a blistering offensive performance, St. Thomas rolled to a 119-104 win over South Dakota on Thursday night at Schoenecker Arena. The Tommies extended its winning streak to four to open Summit League play, improving to 14-5 on the season.

The Purple set season-high scoring marks in both halves this season, including its most against a Division I opponent with 60 in the first half, on its way to a DI era record 119 total points on the night. The total is the most for the program overall since scoring 122 in January 2018. Saturday also marked the seventh time St. Thomas has begun its conference season 4-0 since Head Coach Johnny Tauer took over in 2011.

The Tommies finished the game shooting 56.5 percent from the field, paced by 61.3 percent overall in the first half. It's the seventh time shooting above the 60 percent mark in a half this season, going 5-0 in those games. The Coyotes, the only team averaging more points per game than the Tommies in the conference this season, shot 47.6 percent overall while both teams were efficient in moving the ball. St. Thomas totaled 22 assists to just 9 turnovers compared to 20 assists and 11 turnovers for South Dakota.

The game, which lasted 2 hours and 23 minutes in front of a crowd of 1,583, featured 58 fouls (29 by each team) and 84 free throw attempts. St. Thomas made 35 of its 41 free throws (both DI single-game records) while South Dakota converted 31 of 43 free throws.

Miles Barnstable paced all scorers with 28 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including 8-of-9 from the charity stripe, while all five Tommie starters scored at least 15 points, the first instance for the Tommies in the DI era. Kendall Blue scored 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting, Carter Bjerke and Drake Dobbs each added 16, including nine assists and no turnovers from Dobbs, while Nolan Minessale finished with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting.

GAME RECAP
Blue got the Tommies on the board with a second-chance 3-pointer followed by a layup from Dobbs for a quick 5-0 lead. The Coyotes answered back less than two minutes later to tie, one of six ties in the first half and game, and hit a 3-pointer for its first lead of the game, 13-12. Both teams traded baskets on the next three possessions, the final of which on a 3-pointer by Ben Nau to give St. Thomas its final lead.

The Tommies lead stayed at no more than five until a driving layup by Blue sparked a 10-3 run for its first double-digit lead, 49-39, which 3:04 in the half. Bjerke later extended the lead to a first-half-high 12 points on free throws before Dobbs drained a step back jumper in the final seconds for a 60-51 lead at the halftime break.

Barnstable came out of the locker room on fire as he scored 10 points over the opening four minutes, making 3-of-3 field goal attempts, including two 3-pointers, and 2-of-2 free throws. His second 3-pointer gave his 24 points and the Tommies their largest lead of the night, 79-60.

USD slowly chipped away to bring the St. Thomas lead to single digits again, 97-88, with 7:14 to play. The Tommies shot 51.6 percent overall (16-31), including 7-of-13 from the 3-point line, and drained 20-of-24 free throws in the second half to hold off a Coyote comeback attempt, which reached its closest margin at 100-92 with 6:15 in the game.

TOMMIE TIDBITS

St. Thomas extends its unbeaten streak to start Summit League play to four games, the seventh time Johnny Tauer's teams have started conference play 4-0 or better since taking over in 2011.
Saturday was the seventh time the Tommies shot at least 60 percent from the field in a half, going 5-0 in those games. The Tommies knocked down 14 3-pointers on the night, its seventh game over the last eight with at least 10 and the fourth straight with at least 13.
The Tommies set a Division I single-game record 119 points, its most overall since scoring a program record 122 against Macalester in January 2018. It's also the 11th highest single-game output during a Summit League conference game ever.
The 60 points scored in the first half is the most for the Purple ever against a Division I opponent and the most since scoring 61 against North Central in November 2022. The Tommies scored a program record 71 points in a half in December 2021 against Northland.
The Tommies' DI era best home winning streak was extended to 12 games, also marking the second time over the last three seasons St. Thomas has opened its season with at least eight straight home wins. St. Thomas began the 2022-23 season with 10 straight wins at Schoenecker Arena. The Purple are now 33-4 at Schoenecker Arena since the final home game of the 2021-22 season.
Five Tommies scored at least 15 points for the first time during the Division I era, while no player averaged more than 15 points entering the game.
Miles Barnstable scored a game-high 28 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including a season high 4 3-pointers, to mark his third game with at least 20 points to start the Summit League schedule. He's averaging 19.7 points per game over his last six games.
Kendall Blue's 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting marked his eighth career game with at least 17 points.
Drake Dobbs scored 16 points on 4-of-7 shooting and 8-of-9 from the free throw line with nine assists, the most for a Tommie since Ryan Dufault totaled nine against North Central in November 2022, and no turnovers. He topped his previous career high of six assists set three times as his assist-to-turnover ratio over the past 11 games improved to 5.11.

QUOTABLES
Head Coach Johnny Tauer's opening statement following the record-setting win over South Dakota:
"We're thrilled to get a victory over a really talented, well-coached South Dakota team. It was an interesting game in a number of ways. We knew going in they play really up-tempo on both ends of the ball. They've got some prolific scorers. I think they have a clear identity that's unique in this conference and I think that's an interesting way to play. They're going to give a lot of people problems with it and I was pleased. I thought our guys handled their pressure well. To only have nine turnovers in a game like that, I think is outstanding.

"Our team showed really good composure and poise. We got up 19 and it looked like the game might get stretched out. To South Dakota's credit, they've got a myriad of guys who can score and they started putting their heads down going to the basket. When the lead got cut to seven or eight, I thought our guys, you know, one, made their free throws. 35 of 41 is outstanding. And, two, I just thought we had a toughness of, you know, we've got to get some stops, got to get some rebounds, and more than anything, believe in each other. They really have a great resolve and those huddles, I just love the way they believe in each other and they have a will to win and competitive joy that I think takes us a long way."

UP NEXT
St. Thomas will close its three-game homestand Saturday, Jan. 18 against Denver, its only game of the week.

JOIN US
To reserve your seat to be a part of the Tommies' 2024-25 season, click HERE to view ticketing information and purchase options.

FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Men's Basketball, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) at @TommieMBBall and on Instagram at @TommieHoops

-- St. Thomas Athletics --

Tommies offense shines in record-breaking 119-104 over Coyotes

Next Event

Team Stats

Miles Barnstable

Kendall Blue

Drake Dobbs

Carter Bjerke

Players Mentioned

Miles Barnstable

Carter Bjerke

Kendall Blue

Drake Dobbs

Ryan Dufault

Nolan Minessale

Ben Nau

University of St. Thomas Athletics