University of St. Thomas Athletics
Friday, November 21
Portland, Ore.
6:30 p.m. CT
4-2,0-0Summit League
73
vs
72
Northern Colorado
3-1,0-0Big Sky
1
2
F
Northern Colo.
36
36
72
St. Thomas (MN)
29
44
73
Minessale makes magic with half-court game-winner over Northern Colorado
11/21/2025 9:44:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The sophomore’s sixth straight game with 20+ points leads Tommies to 73-72 win in Portland, Ore.
PORTLAND, Ore. – Sophomore Nolan Minessale took every second to extend his season-opening 20-point scoring streak Friday night as his buzzer-beating, half-court shot lifted St. Thomas men's basketball to a 73-72 win over Northern Colorado to open the Portland Invitational. Minessale has now scored at least 20 points in all six games of the season as the Tommies improve to 4-2 on the season while handing the Bears their first loss of the season.
SCORING SUMMARY:
First Half: St. Thomas opened with contributions from three different scorers before Northern Colorado caught fire from deep, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers, a layup and another triple to take an 11-5 lead into the first media timeout. The Tommies endured a nearly three-minute scoring drought before Ryan Dufault ended it with a mid-range jumper, but UNC immediately responded with a 6-0 burst to stretch its advantage to 18-7.
Through the first 8:28, St. Thomas started just 3-of-13 from the field and missed all four of its early 3-point attempts, while the Bears shot 60 percent and hit 4-of-6 from long range. Trailing 26-13 with 7:14 left, Ben Oosterbaan drained the Tommies' first 3-pointer of the night, sparking a 7-0 run ignited by a steal-and-score from Isaiah Johnson-Arigu and a transition layup from Austin Herro to pull within six.
St. Thomas continued to chip away as Johnson-Arigu powered through the lane for a contested finish at the 3-minute mark, the start of another 7-0 run capped by a Dufault floater and a quick steal-and-layup to make it 30-29. After UNC finally broke a scoring drought with 1:04 left, the Bears closed the frame on a 6-0 stretch to take a 36-29 halftime lead. The Tommies shot 33 percent and hit just one 3-pointer on 14 attempts in the half, while UNC cooled late but still shot 43 percent.
Second Half: St. Thomas came out with energy as Carter Bjerke converted a second-chance basket and Nolan Minessale followed with a driving layup in the first minute to close the gap to 36-33. After the Bears answered with three free throws, Minessale attacked again with back-to-back finishes before Nick Janowski buried his first 3-pointer to bring the Tommies within one, 41-40.
Northern Colorado held a two-possession cushion through the under-12 timeout, 54-48, but St. Thomas continued to apply pressure. Bjerke and Minessale combined for a quick 4-0 run to stay within reach, and Minessale's first 3-pointer of the night brought him to 17 points and kept the deficit at four. The Tommies trimmed the margin to three multiple times—highlighted by an Oosterbaan 3-pointer, an offensive putback from Johnson-Arigu and another Janowski triple with 5:46 remaining.
Following a UNC hook shot, St. Thomas began its decisive push. The Tommies forced three misses and two turnovers, converting them into a 7-0 run to take their first lead since the opening seconds at 70-68. UNC tied the game on its next possession, and after a Tommie turnover with 26 seconds left, the Bears sank two of three free throws to go ahead 72-70.
With two seconds to play, the inbound found Minessale at midcourt. The sophomore guard raced ahead and banked in a half-court buzzer-beater to deliver a stunning 73-72 win. St. Thomas shot 54.8 percent in the second half and 50 percent from deep to complete the comeback.
TOMMIE TIDBITS
THE GAME-WINNER IS EVEN BETTER WITH THE CALL ?? #RollToms pic.twitter.com/vO5hcVbygO
— St. Thomas Men's Basketball (@TommieMBBall) November 22, 2025
SCORING SUMMARY:
First Half: St. Thomas opened with contributions from three different scorers before Northern Colorado caught fire from deep, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers, a layup and another triple to take an 11-5 lead into the first media timeout. The Tommies endured a nearly three-minute scoring drought before Ryan Dufault ended it with a mid-range jumper, but UNC immediately responded with a 6-0 burst to stretch its advantage to 18-7.
Through the first 8:28, St. Thomas started just 3-of-13 from the field and missed all four of its early 3-point attempts, while the Bears shot 60 percent and hit 4-of-6 from long range. Trailing 26-13 with 7:14 left, Ben Oosterbaan drained the Tommies' first 3-pointer of the night, sparking a 7-0 run ignited by a steal-and-score from Isaiah Johnson-Arigu and a transition layup from Austin Herro to pull within six.
St. Thomas continued to chip away as Johnson-Arigu powered through the lane for a contested finish at the 3-minute mark, the start of another 7-0 run capped by a Dufault floater and a quick steal-and-layup to make it 30-29. After UNC finally broke a scoring drought with 1:04 left, the Bears closed the frame on a 6-0 stretch to take a 36-29 halftime lead. The Tommies shot 33 percent and hit just one 3-pointer on 14 attempts in the half, while UNC cooled late but still shot 43 percent.
Second Half: St. Thomas came out with energy as Carter Bjerke converted a second-chance basket and Nolan Minessale followed with a driving layup in the first minute to close the gap to 36-33. After the Bears answered with three free throws, Minessale attacked again with back-to-back finishes before Nick Janowski buried his first 3-pointer to bring the Tommies within one, 41-40.
Northern Colorado held a two-possession cushion through the under-12 timeout, 54-48, but St. Thomas continued to apply pressure. Bjerke and Minessale combined for a quick 4-0 run to stay within reach, and Minessale's first 3-pointer of the night brought him to 17 points and kept the deficit at four. The Tommies trimmed the margin to three multiple times—highlighted by an Oosterbaan 3-pointer, an offensive putback from Johnson-Arigu and another Janowski triple with 5:46 remaining.
Following a UNC hook shot, St. Thomas began its decisive push. The Tommies forced three misses and two turnovers, converting them into a 7-0 run to take their first lead since the opening seconds at 70-68. UNC tied the game on its next possession, and after a Tommie turnover with 26 seconds left, the Bears sank two of three free throws to go ahead 72-70.
With two seconds to play, the inbound found Minessale at midcourt. The sophomore guard raced ahead and banked in a half-court buzzer-beater to deliver a stunning 73-72 win. St. Thomas shot 54.8 percent in the second half and 50 percent from deep to complete the comeback.
TOMMIE TIDBITS
- The victory marks St. Thomas' largest comeback since rallying from 14 down to beat South Dakota on Feb. 17, 2024.
- The Tommies shot 43.8 percent overall and 26.9 percent from 3 while holding UNC to 45.3 percent shooting and 29.2 percent from deep.
- St. Thomas forced 18 UNC turnovers, converting them into 22 points, and outscored the Bears 42-34 in the paint.
- Nolan Minessale extended his season-opening streak of 20-point games to six, finishing with 20 on 8-of-14 shooting along with five rebounds and five assists.
- Nick Janowski added 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting with three 3-pointers, and tied for the team lead with five boards.
- Ben Oosterbaan reached double figures with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, hitting two threes and adding four rebounds.
UP NEXT
St. Thomas continues the Portland Invitational Saturday at 4:30 p.m. CT as it takes on Cal State Fullerton.
FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Men's Basketball, follow along on X at @TommieMBBall and Instagram at @tommiehoops. Tommie Athletics is now on TikTok at @tommiesports.
JOIN US
To reserve your seat to be a part of the Tommie's 2025-26 season, click HERE to view ticketing information and purchase options.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
Team Stats
UNC
UST
FG%
.453
.438
3FG%
.292
.269
FT%
.810
.625
RB
33
31
TO
18
11
STL
3
10
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
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