University of St. Thomas Athletics
Thursday, December 11
St. Paul, Minn.
7:00 p.m. CT
vs
Saint John's (MN)
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St. Thomas hosts Saint John’s Thursday, travels to UNC Asheville Saturday
12/10/2025 1:44:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Tommies rekindle 102-year-old series against Johnnies before playing Bulldogs for first time ever
ST. PAUL, Minn. – St. Thomas men's basketball welcomes in once familiar foe Saint John's Dec. 11 before traveling to Asheville, N.C., to face UNC Asheville Dec. 13. The Tommies tip-off against the Johnnies at 7 p.m. Thursday at Lee & Penny Anderson Arena before a 1 p.m. tip-off against the Bulldogs on the East coast.
TUNE IN
vs. Saint Johns
Watch | Live Stats | Listen
at UNC Asheville
Watch | Live Stats | Listen
SERIES HISTORY | SAINT JOHN'S
St. Thomas and Saint John's rekindle a 102-year series history that first began on Feb. 7, 1923, according to available records, a 23-19 Tommie win in Collegeville, Minn. UST owns a 111-56 record dating back to 1936, including a 55-28 mark since 1985. The two teams last faced off with a pair of games played during the 2020-21 COVID-shortened season, both wins by the Purple (76-64 in St. Paul and 82-80 in Collegeville).
Prior to the 2020-21 season meetings, St. Thomas and Saint John's were set to meet in the second round of the 2019-20 NCAA Division III postseason, both ranked among the top 10 nationally. The national COVID outbreak ended the 2019-20 season just two days before the teams were set to play in front of a sold-out crowd in Collegeville.
Thursday's game will serve as a regular season game for St. Thomas and as an exhibition for Saint John's.
SERIES HISTORY | UNC Asheville
St. Thomas and UNC Asheville have never played. The Tommies have never played a team from the Big South Conference.
A LOOK BACK AT THE DIII RIVALRY
When both programs were in Division III, there was arguably no bigger rivalry in the state of Minnesota than St. Thomas versus Saint John's. The two programs consistently drew their largest crowds when playing each other with the game against the Johnnies being the most attended for the Tommies in St. Paul each regular season under Johnny Tauer.
Between 1965-66 and 2020-21 (55 seasons), the programs combined to win or tie for 40 regular season MIAC championships, including 31 by the Tommies. That trend continued when the MIAC Playoffs began in 1985 as the two programs combined to win 20 postseason championships, including 13 by St. Thomas and 7 by Saint John's over a 30-season span.
St. Thomas went 7-3 all-time against Saint John's in the MIAC Playoffs (7-2 in MIAC championship games) while UST is 32-14 at home against SJU since 1982-83, going undefeated at home in the series between 2004-11.
Johnny Tauer is 12-10 against Saint John's since taking over as head coach in 2011, 18-6 as an assistant coach from 2000-10 and 10-2 as an athlete from 1991-95 (both losses coming as a junior in 1993-94).
The rivalry will be making an appearance in its sixth different venue in St. Paul with the opening of Lee & Penny Anderson Arena. The series first began in the Armory until 1939 when the team moved to O'Shaughnessy Hall. The team played there until moving into the old Schoenecker Arena for the 1981-82 season. During the construction of the new Schoenecker Arena during the 2009-10 season, St. Thomas moved its games to the Gangelhof Center on the campus of Concordia-St. Paul. The Tommies moved into the new Schoenecker Arena in 2010-11 before beginning play with the first full season of NCAA Division I at Lee & Penny Anderson Arena in 2025-26.
ST./SAINT SIMILARITIES
Johnny Tauer and Saint John's head coach Pat McKenzie have forged similar paths towards their current positions. Both are four-season basketball alums of their current program, took over for coaches who were with the program for over 40 seasons each, served as assistant coaches for their current programs for at least nine seasons, and had fathers who both graduated from their current school.
Through his first 10 seasons as head coach at St. Thomas, Tauer went 218-50 (.813), 157-28 (.849) in the MIAC and totaled eight MIAC regular season titles, three MIAC playoff titles, eight NCAA Tournament appearances and one NCAA Championship. Through McKenzie's first 10 seasons as head coach at Saint John's, he went 199-57 (.777), 146-34 (.811) in the MIAC, and recorded five MIAC regular season titles, four MIAC playoff titles and five NCAA Tournament appearances.
READY TO DANCE
With the transition in the rear-view mirror, St. Thomas is beginning its first season as a fully postseason-tournament-eligible program within NCAA Division I. Initially a five-year transition period, the NCAA Division I Council voted in January in favor of a reduction to the department's provisional period from five to four years. The NCAA later announced in June that St. Thomas had completed its reclassification process and is fully eligible to compete in postseason play. St. Thomas made its first Summit League postseason appearance in 2022-23 and have gone 4-3 in those games, including a trip to its first title game last season against eventual champion Omaha.
THE FIRST OF MANY RANKINGS
The initial NET Rankings for the 2025-26 season were released Sunday, Nov. 30, placing St. Thomas 138 among 365 teams. The mark landed as the highest Summit League team (SDSU: 178, NDSU: 179) and ahead of 12 Power 5 programs (Big Ten: 4, ACC: 3, Big 12: 3, Big East: 3, SEC: 1).
Since the initial rankings, St. Thomas has gone 1-1 and now ranks 143, first among all Summit League teams. The Tommies currently slot ahead of North Dakota State (159), South Dakota State (165), and Denver (213).
BIG SKY-SUMMIT SUCCESS
Over each of the first two Big Sky-Summit Challenges, St. Thomas was the only program between the two conferences to remain undefeated. UST came away with wins at Northern Colorado (87-75) and at home against Montana (88-81) last season after beginning the series in 2023-24 with wins at Idaho (75-67) and against Sacramento State (63-50). The first loss of the challenge came Dec. 3, 82-74, at Montana State before bouncing back with an 88-65 win over Weber State on Dec. 7 in St. Paul. St. Thomas is now 10-4 all-time against the Big Sky.
BIG SKY BOUNCE BACK
St. Thomas answered its first loss in the Big Sky-Summit Challenge with a convincing 88-65 win over Weber State on Dec. 7 at home. Nolan Minessale topped 20 points for the first time in three games to tie the program's Division I era single-game scoring record of 32 points, 21 in the first half. He shot 12-of-16 from the field, with 2-of-3 from 3-point range, with 5 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks. The Tommies used two decisive scoring bursts in the first half to seize control, a 10-0 run from 14:55-13:37 followed by a 13-0 surge spanning nearly four minutes to hold a 36-12 lead. The Purple shot 59.4 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes. The Wildcats could only cut the Tommie lead to 16 a few times as St. Thomas sealed the win with 26 points off 17 Weber State turnovers. Nick Janowski scored 14 points, reaching at least 10 points against all Division I opponents this season, along with 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Carte Bjerke added 11 points with a team-high three 3-pointers along with 5 rebounds. After totaling just one game above 10 points through the first seven of the season, Bjerke now has at least 11 in three of the last four. Isaiah Johnson-Arigu scored nine points with a team-high six rebounds while Ryan Dufault led with six assists and no turnovers.
DRAMA IN PORTLAND
St. Thomas finished as Portland Invitational Champions following a 2-1 weekend Nov. 21-23, taking wins over Northern Colorado and Portland. Nolan Minessale and Nick Janowski were each named to the All-Tournament Team with Minessale being named the Most Valuable Player. Minessale averaged 23.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, shooting 43.4 percent from the field. He scored 20 points in each game, extending his season-opening streak of 20-point games to eight with the help of a half-court, buzzer beater to beat Northern Colorado.
The Tommies opened with a dramatic 73-72 victory over Northern Colorado on Minessale's half-court buzzer-beater. Minessale later poured in 26 points, one shy of a career high, during an 88-80 setback to Cal State Fullerton after leading by six points with less than four minutes to play. St. Thomas regrouped Sunday, racing out to a 14-0 start and closing strong to defeat host Portland, 76-66, behind 24 points from Minessale.
TOMMIE TRIFECTA
Nolan Minessale's historic start to the season earned him back-to-back Summit League Peak Performer of the Week honors on Nov. 18 and 25 before adding another on Dec. 9, the first Tommie to earn multiple weekly honors for the program since joining in 2021. His 32-point performance helped him average 22.5 points on a Summit League-high 68.0 percent shooting between Dec. 1-7. Minessale tied Parker Bjorklund and Raheem Anthony for the DI era single-game high, which is also the first 30-point game in the Summit League this season.
THE NATION'S LONGEST WINNING STREAK CONTINUES
St. Thomas extended its home winning streak to 22 games, dating back to Feb. 8, 2024, after an 88-65 win over Weber State on Dec. 7. The 22-game streak is tied with Duke for the longest home streak in NCAA Division I.
The Tommies went a perfect 14-0 during its last season at Schoenecker Arena in 2024-25, marking the second undefeated home season in the venue since 2010. The streak is the second longest for the program under Johnny Tauer, previously winning 32 games between Feb. 2012 and Feb. 2014. The Tommies have now won 42 of 46 home games over the past four seasons, among the top 15 highest winning percentages nationally over that span.
LOVE THAT HOME COOKING
Through its home games during the DI era, St. Thomas has won its home games by an average margin of 21.5 points, including a margin of 15.0 points against DI opponents. Twelve of the program's 32 home wins against DI opponents since that time have been by more than 20 points while 10 were decided by fewer than 10 points.
MAKING ST. THOMAS HOME
St. Thomas is just one of four programs among NCAA Division I with five or fewer undergrad transfers since the 2021-22 season. The Tommies have bid farewell to five athletes by way of the transfer portal, joining American, Bucknell and Navy as the only programs nationally with five or fewer.
LIVING UP TO THE HYPE
Through the first 11 games of the season, Nolan Minessale has shown why he was chosen as the Summit League Preseason Player of the Year. The sophomore put up eight straight 20-point performances to begin the season, becoming the first Tommie to do so under Head Coach Johnny Tauer, since at least the 2005-06 season and the first player in NCAA DI to do so since at least 2021-22, according to available records. Dating back to the 2025 Summit League Championship title game, Minessale scored at least 20 points in nine straight games, the first Tommie to do so under Head Coach Johnny Tauer. Minessale is second among all of NCAA Division I in field goals and third in total points, and is 11th in points per game. He leads the Summit League in field goals, points per game, points, free throws made and free throw attempts, is second in field goal percentage and assists per game, and fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio.
20/20 VISION
A pair of 20-point scorers powered the St. Thomas offense for the second time this season as Nolan Minessale (24) and Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (21) led the team in scoring during its first road win of 2025-26 at Ohio Valley Conference favorites SEMO, 84-72. The Tommies started the game with a 10-0 run and led by as many as 23, 57-34, thanks to their best overall shooting percentage of the season (58.7%). UST won the rebound margin for the first time this season while the offense featured two 20-point scorers for the second time, totaling just two such games all of last season. Minessale (20) and Nick Janowski (22) previously topped the scoring mark during the team's loss at Washington State.
1,026 DAYS IN THE MAKING
Since Jan. 17, 2023 when the Lee & Penny Anderson Arena was announced for the first time, St. Thomas men's basketball has been waiting for the day to play in its new home. The Tommies came away with an 83-76 win over Army when the arena finally opened for basketball on Nov. 8, 2025.
Nolan Minessale led St. Thomas to an 83-76 victory over Army in the inaugural game at LPA, marking the Tommies' nation-leading 19th straight home win. Minessale scored 20 points for the second consecutive game. St. Thomas (1-1) shot 50 percent from the field and dominated inside with a 50-28 advantage in paint points. The Tommies used a 17-0 first-half run to build a commanding lead and maintained control despite several Army rallies. Nick Janowski added 16 points and five rebounds, while Carter Bjerke (12 points) and Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (11) also reached double figures. The win improved Head Coach Johnny Tauer's record to 14-1 in home openers.
A TEST OF METTLE TO BEGIN
St. Thomas opened the season Monday, Nov. 3 with an 84-58 loss at (RV) Saint Mary's (CA), one of the premier mid-major programs in the nation. Nolan Minessale led all scorers with 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting, while Nick Janowski added 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting. St. Thomas shot 46.3 percent from the field, but struggled from deep and at the line, going 5-of-21 from three and 3-of-10 at the stripe, while the Gaels pulled away with a 49-point second half fueled by 65 percent shooting. St. Thomas outscored Saint Mary's 38-32 in the paint and 17-7 on fastbreak points. The Gaels' size proved decisive, holding a 41-24 rebounding edge, including 11 offensive boards that led to 10 second-chance points.
THE SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON FAVORITES
Coming off its first trip to the Summit League Championship game, St. Thomas was voted to finish first in the 2025-26 Summit League Preseason Poll. The Tommies received a league-best 17 first-place votes and 501 total points, ahead of last season's league champion Omaha with 13 first-place votes and 495 points. South Dakota State was slotted third with five first-place votes and 450 points followed by North Dakota State with 358 points.
Sophomore Nolan Minessale was voted as the Summit League Preseason Player of the Year, the first sophomore to earn the honor since Mike Daum of South Dakota State in 2016-17 and the first true sophomore since at least the 2006-07 season. The guard from Brookfield, Wis., started all 34 games and quickly established himself as one of the Summit League's top two-way players. He led the league in blocks per game, ranked sixth in steals, and paced the Tommies with a .562 field goal percentage. Minessale averaged 11.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game, scoring in double figures 16 times with four 20-point outings.
Redshirt junior Carter Bjerke was picked to the All-Summit League First Team after emerging as one of the league's top perimeter shooters and a cornerstone of the Tommies' offense. The Plymouth, Minn., native has played in all 67 games of his career, leading St. Thomas in 3-pointers made in each of his first two seasons. In 2024-25, he averaged 9.8 points and 3.3 rebounds per game while ranking fifth in the league in made 3-pointers, scoring in double figures 17 times, including a career-high 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting from deep against NCAA Tournament qualifier Wofford.
PRIMETIME TOMMIES
St. Thomas will again be exclusively broadcast on the CBS Sports Network as its Feb. 1 matchup against Kansas City and Feb. 4 game at South Dakota State were announced as part of the league's seven-game lineup for men's basketball on the network. The Lee & Penny Anderson Arena will be the backdrop of the game against Kansas City, a team St. Thomas has won five straight games against, while the Tommies will look to win their first game in Brookings, S.D., over the Jackrabbits on CBS Sports Network. Last season, St. Thomas came away with a 79-62 win over North Dakota State on CBS Sports Network's Feb. 2 broadcast.
POLL TOMS
The Purple began the 2025-26 season receiving 78 votes in the Mid-Major Top 25 Poll and totaled 10 in the most recent poll, the only Summit League team to receive votes. St. Thomas landed on the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll for the first time in program history in January 2025, debuting at No. 25 before reaching as high as No. 19 on January 20.
In addition to the CollegeInside.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, St. Thomas was selected among a handful of media polls: No. 6 on Ryan Hammer's Mid-Major Top 20 Poll, No. 13 on Field of 68's Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, No. 13 on T3Bracketology's Top 32 Poll. While the Tommies were the only Summit League team among those polls, they were also the highest ranked Summit League team in Sports Illustrated's Complete Division I Preseason Rankings, slotting in at No. 124.
THE SUMMIT OF WINS
St. Thomas continues to rank at the top of the Summit League in overall wins over the past four seasons, totaling 70 victories since the start of the 2022-23 season. Following behind UST is South Dakota State with 67 wins, North Dakota State with 59 and Oral Roberts with 53. In addition, the Tommies also lead the Summit League with 42 home wins over that span, ahead of SDSU with 37, and NDSU and ORU with 35.
A BOLSTERED SQUAD
Six newcomers - five with at least three years of eligibility - join the Tommies, including three Power Four transfers and two ESPN four-star recruits. The group combines local roots, championship experience, and national-level pedigree.
• #0 Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (F, 6-7, 215, So., Miami/Iowa) – Four-star ESPN recruit, back-to-back state titles at Totino-Grace; No. 2 ranked player in Minnesota out of high school.
• #10 Tommy Humphries Jr. (G, 6-5, 205, R-So., Furman) – Totino-Grace graduate and two-time state champion; ranked No. 5 in Minnesota coming out of high school.
• #11 Austin Herro (G, 6-3, 180, R-So., South Carolina) – Brother of NBA All-Star Tyler Herro; played AAU with Milan Momcilovic.
• #13 Luka Momcilovic (F, 6-7, 220, Fr.) – Averaged 16.8 PPG and 8.1 RPG in high school; multiple-time all-conference pick with two state titles and one runner-up finish.
• #20 Jack Tauer (G, 6-2, 200, Gr.) – Played two seasons at St. Norbert College before serving as a student manager; a Cretin-Derham Hall graduate.
• #23 Nick Janowski (G, 6-4, 210, R-Fr., Nebraska) – Four-star ESPN recruit; former teammate of Luka and Milan Momcilovic.
BACK-TO-BACK 20 WINS/BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK 19 WINS
St. Thomas has recorded at least 20 wins in back-to-back seasons, joining only Grand Canyon as teams since 2000 to do so in years 3 and 4 of their transition to Division I. The Tommies join SDSU as the only Summit League teams with back-to-back 20-win seasons since 2021-22 and the Purple are the only transition team with three consecutive 19+ win seasons. UST is one of six teams in all of Division I to improve its win total (with a minimum of 19 wins) each season since 2022-23. Overall, St. Thomas is one of 12 teams in the country to improve its winning percentage over the past four seasons (min. 60 wins).
A CULTURE OF CHAMPIONS
The Tommies' roster carries a winning pedigree: 16 high school state championships between nine athletes and seven runner-up finishes across seven athletes. Newcomer Nick Janowski was a three-time state champion at Pewaukee High School, while teammate and fellow newcomer Luka Momcilovic was part of two of those championships. Newcomers Tommy Humphries Jr., (2022, 2023) and Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (2023, 2024) both won back-to-back championships at Totino-Grace High School, Kyle Counts won two Oregon state titles at Wilsonville High School while Hayden Tibbits won two Minnesota State titles, including one with Carter Bjerke at Wayzata High School. Ryan Dufault hit the game-winning shot to clinch the 2021 Minnesota state title at Waseca High School while Nolan Minessale led Marquette University to a Wisconsin state title in 2024. That group along with Austin Herro and Adam and Jack Tauer also combined for eight runner-up finishes.
In addition to the athletes' championships, the coaching staff has also combined for five state championships in various sports. Head Coach Johnny Tauer won high school state titles in basketball and baseball for Cretin-Derham Hall, assistant coach Cameron Rundles won a state title in basketball for DeLaSalle, and director of operations Josh Rodenbiker won two state titles in football at Fargo Shanley.
BACK TO 24
The Tommies extended its DI single-season record with 24 wins following its Summit League Championship semifinal win over North Dakota. It's the sixth season of 14 under Head Coach Johnny Tauer with as many wins and the 11th with at least 19. The Tommies' 12 wins in Summit League play also extended a single season record after totaling nine in each of the past two seasons.
A TRANSITION LIKE NO OTHER
St. Thomas produced one of the most successful transitions to Division I. With the win over Denver in the Summit League Championship semifinal, St. Thomas has the second most wins by a transition team through its first four seasons (73), trailing only Grand Canyon with 81. The Purple are the only transition team with three consecutive 19-win seasons, became the second team with back-to-back 20-win seasons in years 3 and 4 (Grand Canyon) and the fourth transition team overall with 23 wins in a season since 2000. Among all transition teams since 2000, St. Thomas recorded the largest Ken Pom Ranking and NET Ranking improvements from the end of year one through year four, jumping 181 spots in the KP and 196 in the NET through four seasons.
TAKE CARE OF THE BALL
Tauer's teams have historically taken care of the basketball, and the first four seasons of DI play were no different. The Tommies finished tied for 13th nationally in turnovers per game (9.5) last season, ninth in 2023-24 (9.2), and ranked tied for 11th nationally in the fewest total turnovers (327) in 2022-23 and led the category in 2021-22 (243). St. Thomas is one of three teams nationally to record fewer than 10.0 turnovers per game in each of the past four seasons, joining Iowa and Wisconsin. The Purple recorded five or fewer turnovers in six games last season after totaling 10 such games over the previous three seasons.
Through 11 games in 2025-26, St. Thomas has turned the ball over 10 or fewer times in eight games and rank 40th in the country with 10.1 per game. The Tommies began the season with 10 turnovers given to (RV) Saint Mary's, followed by 7 to Army, 9 to Washington State and 9 to Green Bay, before giving away a season high 16 at SEMO.
A WINNING TRADITION
Winning has been the tradition at St. Thomas with the trend continuing under Head Coach Johnny Tauer. Since 2011, the Tommies have finished with nine 20-win seasons, 11 19-win seasons and 12 nine-win conference seasons. The only seasons to not win 19 games or nine conference games included the COVID season and the 2021-22 inaugural DI season.
Tauer has averaged 20.8 wins per season at St. Thomas and became the fastest coach in program history to reach 250 career wins, doing so in 337 career games.
SUSTAINED EXCELLENCE
Head Coach Johnny Tauer's excellence within the Tommie Men's Basketball program dates back to his days as an Academic All-American that led to his induction to the St. Thomas Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001. As a student-athlete from 1991-95, Tauer was an All-MIAC player, first team All-West Region, and as a senior led the 1994-95 Toms to a school-record 27-0 start, including an MIAC Championship with an unprecedented 20-0 record. He helped the Toms to NCAA DIII Tournament berths in 1992-93, 1993-94, and 1994-95, including a run to the Final Four in 1993-94. Tauer ranks 27th in career scoring (1,219 points) and 24th in career rebounding (482) at St. Thomas and was the school 3-point leader until 1999-2000.
After earning master's and PhD degrees at Wisconsin, Tauer joined the Tommie Men's Basketball coaching staff as an assistant coach and ran the St. Thomas defense for two seasons (2001-03) and also directed the Tommies' offensive sets that had consistently ranked among the best in NCAA basketball in overall offensive efficiency, field-goal percentage, 3-point proficiency, fewest turnovers, and assist-to-turnover ratio. With Tauer serving as an assistant, the Toms won the 2010-11 DIII National Championship title, made a run to the 2008-09 Final Four, and totaled seven DIII National Tournament runs.
With the retirement of longtime head coach Steve Fritz in 2011, Tauer took over the program as just the third head coach for the program since 1954 and continued its storied tradition with another national title in 2015-16, a Final Four run in 2012-13, and eight DIII National Tournament appearances.
As a student-athlete, assistant coach, and head coach at St. Thomas, Tauer has helped the Tommies to 630 wins overall in 30 seasons, averaging out to over 20 wins per season. He has been involved in 831 games combined with 717 coming as a coach along with 19 conference titles, 15 national tournament appearances, three Final Fours, and two national championships with the Purple and Gray.
FOLLOW ALONG
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-- St. Thomas Athletics --
TUNE IN
vs. Saint Johns
Watch | Live Stats | Listen
at UNC Asheville
Watch | Live Stats | Listen
SERIES HISTORY | SAINT JOHN'S
St. Thomas and Saint John's rekindle a 102-year series history that first began on Feb. 7, 1923, according to available records, a 23-19 Tommie win in Collegeville, Minn. UST owns a 111-56 record dating back to 1936, including a 55-28 mark since 1985. The two teams last faced off with a pair of games played during the 2020-21 COVID-shortened season, both wins by the Purple (76-64 in St. Paul and 82-80 in Collegeville).
Prior to the 2020-21 season meetings, St. Thomas and Saint John's were set to meet in the second round of the 2019-20 NCAA Division III postseason, both ranked among the top 10 nationally. The national COVID outbreak ended the 2019-20 season just two days before the teams were set to play in front of a sold-out crowd in Collegeville.
Thursday's game will serve as a regular season game for St. Thomas and as an exhibition for Saint John's.
SERIES HISTORY | UNC Asheville
St. Thomas and UNC Asheville have never played. The Tommies have never played a team from the Big South Conference.
A LOOK BACK AT THE DIII RIVALRY
When both programs were in Division III, there was arguably no bigger rivalry in the state of Minnesota than St. Thomas versus Saint John's. The two programs consistently drew their largest crowds when playing each other with the game against the Johnnies being the most attended for the Tommies in St. Paul each regular season under Johnny Tauer.
Between 1965-66 and 2020-21 (55 seasons), the programs combined to win or tie for 40 regular season MIAC championships, including 31 by the Tommies. That trend continued when the MIAC Playoffs began in 1985 as the two programs combined to win 20 postseason championships, including 13 by St. Thomas and 7 by Saint John's over a 30-season span.
St. Thomas went 7-3 all-time against Saint John's in the MIAC Playoffs (7-2 in MIAC championship games) while UST is 32-14 at home against SJU since 1982-83, going undefeated at home in the series between 2004-11.
Johnny Tauer is 12-10 against Saint John's since taking over as head coach in 2011, 18-6 as an assistant coach from 2000-10 and 10-2 as an athlete from 1991-95 (both losses coming as a junior in 1993-94).
The rivalry will be making an appearance in its sixth different venue in St. Paul with the opening of Lee & Penny Anderson Arena. The series first began in the Armory until 1939 when the team moved to O'Shaughnessy Hall. The team played there until moving into the old Schoenecker Arena for the 1981-82 season. During the construction of the new Schoenecker Arena during the 2009-10 season, St. Thomas moved its games to the Gangelhof Center on the campus of Concordia-St. Paul. The Tommies moved into the new Schoenecker Arena in 2010-11 before beginning play with the first full season of NCAA Division I at Lee & Penny Anderson Arena in 2025-26.
ST./SAINT SIMILARITIES
Johnny Tauer and Saint John's head coach Pat McKenzie have forged similar paths towards their current positions. Both are four-season basketball alums of their current program, took over for coaches who were with the program for over 40 seasons each, served as assistant coaches for their current programs for at least nine seasons, and had fathers who both graduated from their current school.
Through his first 10 seasons as head coach at St. Thomas, Tauer went 218-50 (.813), 157-28 (.849) in the MIAC and totaled eight MIAC regular season titles, three MIAC playoff titles, eight NCAA Tournament appearances and one NCAA Championship. Through McKenzie's first 10 seasons as head coach at Saint John's, he went 199-57 (.777), 146-34 (.811) in the MIAC, and recorded five MIAC regular season titles, four MIAC playoff titles and five NCAA Tournament appearances.
READY TO DANCE
With the transition in the rear-view mirror, St. Thomas is beginning its first season as a fully postseason-tournament-eligible program within NCAA Division I. Initially a five-year transition period, the NCAA Division I Council voted in January in favor of a reduction to the department's provisional period from five to four years. The NCAA later announced in June that St. Thomas had completed its reclassification process and is fully eligible to compete in postseason play. St. Thomas made its first Summit League postseason appearance in 2022-23 and have gone 4-3 in those games, including a trip to its first title game last season against eventual champion Omaha.
THE FIRST OF MANY RANKINGS
The initial NET Rankings for the 2025-26 season were released Sunday, Nov. 30, placing St. Thomas 138 among 365 teams. The mark landed as the highest Summit League team (SDSU: 178, NDSU: 179) and ahead of 12 Power 5 programs (Big Ten: 4, ACC: 3, Big 12: 3, Big East: 3, SEC: 1).
Since the initial rankings, St. Thomas has gone 1-1 and now ranks 143, first among all Summit League teams. The Tommies currently slot ahead of North Dakota State (159), South Dakota State (165), and Denver (213).
BIG SKY-SUMMIT SUCCESS
Over each of the first two Big Sky-Summit Challenges, St. Thomas was the only program between the two conferences to remain undefeated. UST came away with wins at Northern Colorado (87-75) and at home against Montana (88-81) last season after beginning the series in 2023-24 with wins at Idaho (75-67) and against Sacramento State (63-50). The first loss of the challenge came Dec. 3, 82-74, at Montana State before bouncing back with an 88-65 win over Weber State on Dec. 7 in St. Paul. St. Thomas is now 10-4 all-time against the Big Sky.
BIG SKY BOUNCE BACK
St. Thomas answered its first loss in the Big Sky-Summit Challenge with a convincing 88-65 win over Weber State on Dec. 7 at home. Nolan Minessale topped 20 points for the first time in three games to tie the program's Division I era single-game scoring record of 32 points, 21 in the first half. He shot 12-of-16 from the field, with 2-of-3 from 3-point range, with 5 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks. The Tommies used two decisive scoring bursts in the first half to seize control, a 10-0 run from 14:55-13:37 followed by a 13-0 surge spanning nearly four minutes to hold a 36-12 lead. The Purple shot 59.4 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes. The Wildcats could only cut the Tommie lead to 16 a few times as St. Thomas sealed the win with 26 points off 17 Weber State turnovers. Nick Janowski scored 14 points, reaching at least 10 points against all Division I opponents this season, along with 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Carte Bjerke added 11 points with a team-high three 3-pointers along with 5 rebounds. After totaling just one game above 10 points through the first seven of the season, Bjerke now has at least 11 in three of the last four. Isaiah Johnson-Arigu scored nine points with a team-high six rebounds while Ryan Dufault led with six assists and no turnovers.
DRAMA IN PORTLAND
St. Thomas finished as Portland Invitational Champions following a 2-1 weekend Nov. 21-23, taking wins over Northern Colorado and Portland. Nolan Minessale and Nick Janowski were each named to the All-Tournament Team with Minessale being named the Most Valuable Player. Minessale averaged 23.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, shooting 43.4 percent from the field. He scored 20 points in each game, extending his season-opening streak of 20-point games to eight with the help of a half-court, buzzer beater to beat Northern Colorado.
The Tommies opened with a dramatic 73-72 victory over Northern Colorado on Minessale's half-court buzzer-beater. Minessale later poured in 26 points, one shy of a career high, during an 88-80 setback to Cal State Fullerton after leading by six points with less than four minutes to play. St. Thomas regrouped Sunday, racing out to a 14-0 start and closing strong to defeat host Portland, 76-66, behind 24 points from Minessale.
TOMMIE TRIFECTA
Nolan Minessale's historic start to the season earned him back-to-back Summit League Peak Performer of the Week honors on Nov. 18 and 25 before adding another on Dec. 9, the first Tommie to earn multiple weekly honors for the program since joining in 2021. His 32-point performance helped him average 22.5 points on a Summit League-high 68.0 percent shooting between Dec. 1-7. Minessale tied Parker Bjorklund and Raheem Anthony for the DI era single-game high, which is also the first 30-point game in the Summit League this season.
THE NATION'S LONGEST WINNING STREAK CONTINUES
St. Thomas extended its home winning streak to 22 games, dating back to Feb. 8, 2024, after an 88-65 win over Weber State on Dec. 7. The 22-game streak is tied with Duke for the longest home streak in NCAA Division I.
The Tommies went a perfect 14-0 during its last season at Schoenecker Arena in 2024-25, marking the second undefeated home season in the venue since 2010. The streak is the second longest for the program under Johnny Tauer, previously winning 32 games between Feb. 2012 and Feb. 2014. The Tommies have now won 42 of 46 home games over the past four seasons, among the top 15 highest winning percentages nationally over that span.
LOVE THAT HOME COOKING
Through its home games during the DI era, St. Thomas has won its home games by an average margin of 21.5 points, including a margin of 15.0 points against DI opponents. Twelve of the program's 32 home wins against DI opponents since that time have been by more than 20 points while 10 were decided by fewer than 10 points.
MAKING ST. THOMAS HOME
St. Thomas is just one of four programs among NCAA Division I with five or fewer undergrad transfers since the 2021-22 season. The Tommies have bid farewell to five athletes by way of the transfer portal, joining American, Bucknell and Navy as the only programs nationally with five or fewer.
LIVING UP TO THE HYPE
Through the first 11 games of the season, Nolan Minessale has shown why he was chosen as the Summit League Preseason Player of the Year. The sophomore put up eight straight 20-point performances to begin the season, becoming the first Tommie to do so under Head Coach Johnny Tauer, since at least the 2005-06 season and the first player in NCAA DI to do so since at least 2021-22, according to available records. Dating back to the 2025 Summit League Championship title game, Minessale scored at least 20 points in nine straight games, the first Tommie to do so under Head Coach Johnny Tauer. Minessale is second among all of NCAA Division I in field goals and third in total points, and is 11th in points per game. He leads the Summit League in field goals, points per game, points, free throws made and free throw attempts, is second in field goal percentage and assists per game, and fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio.
20/20 VISION
A pair of 20-point scorers powered the St. Thomas offense for the second time this season as Nolan Minessale (24) and Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (21) led the team in scoring during its first road win of 2025-26 at Ohio Valley Conference favorites SEMO, 84-72. The Tommies started the game with a 10-0 run and led by as many as 23, 57-34, thanks to their best overall shooting percentage of the season (58.7%). UST won the rebound margin for the first time this season while the offense featured two 20-point scorers for the second time, totaling just two such games all of last season. Minessale (20) and Nick Janowski (22) previously topped the scoring mark during the team's loss at Washington State.
1,026 DAYS IN THE MAKING
Since Jan. 17, 2023 when the Lee & Penny Anderson Arena was announced for the first time, St. Thomas men's basketball has been waiting for the day to play in its new home. The Tommies came away with an 83-76 win over Army when the arena finally opened for basketball on Nov. 8, 2025.
Nolan Minessale led St. Thomas to an 83-76 victory over Army in the inaugural game at LPA, marking the Tommies' nation-leading 19th straight home win. Minessale scored 20 points for the second consecutive game. St. Thomas (1-1) shot 50 percent from the field and dominated inside with a 50-28 advantage in paint points. The Tommies used a 17-0 first-half run to build a commanding lead and maintained control despite several Army rallies. Nick Janowski added 16 points and five rebounds, while Carter Bjerke (12 points) and Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (11) also reached double figures. The win improved Head Coach Johnny Tauer's record to 14-1 in home openers.
A TEST OF METTLE TO BEGIN
St. Thomas opened the season Monday, Nov. 3 with an 84-58 loss at (RV) Saint Mary's (CA), one of the premier mid-major programs in the nation. Nolan Minessale led all scorers with 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting, while Nick Janowski added 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting. St. Thomas shot 46.3 percent from the field, but struggled from deep and at the line, going 5-of-21 from three and 3-of-10 at the stripe, while the Gaels pulled away with a 49-point second half fueled by 65 percent shooting. St. Thomas outscored Saint Mary's 38-32 in the paint and 17-7 on fastbreak points. The Gaels' size proved decisive, holding a 41-24 rebounding edge, including 11 offensive boards that led to 10 second-chance points.
THE SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON FAVORITES
Coming off its first trip to the Summit League Championship game, St. Thomas was voted to finish first in the 2025-26 Summit League Preseason Poll. The Tommies received a league-best 17 first-place votes and 501 total points, ahead of last season's league champion Omaha with 13 first-place votes and 495 points. South Dakota State was slotted third with five first-place votes and 450 points followed by North Dakota State with 358 points.
Sophomore Nolan Minessale was voted as the Summit League Preseason Player of the Year, the first sophomore to earn the honor since Mike Daum of South Dakota State in 2016-17 and the first true sophomore since at least the 2006-07 season. The guard from Brookfield, Wis., started all 34 games and quickly established himself as one of the Summit League's top two-way players. He led the league in blocks per game, ranked sixth in steals, and paced the Tommies with a .562 field goal percentage. Minessale averaged 11.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game, scoring in double figures 16 times with four 20-point outings.
Redshirt junior Carter Bjerke was picked to the All-Summit League First Team after emerging as one of the league's top perimeter shooters and a cornerstone of the Tommies' offense. The Plymouth, Minn., native has played in all 67 games of his career, leading St. Thomas in 3-pointers made in each of his first two seasons. In 2024-25, he averaged 9.8 points and 3.3 rebounds per game while ranking fifth in the league in made 3-pointers, scoring in double figures 17 times, including a career-high 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting from deep against NCAA Tournament qualifier Wofford.
PRIMETIME TOMMIES
St. Thomas will again be exclusively broadcast on the CBS Sports Network as its Feb. 1 matchup against Kansas City and Feb. 4 game at South Dakota State were announced as part of the league's seven-game lineup for men's basketball on the network. The Lee & Penny Anderson Arena will be the backdrop of the game against Kansas City, a team St. Thomas has won five straight games against, while the Tommies will look to win their first game in Brookings, S.D., over the Jackrabbits on CBS Sports Network. Last season, St. Thomas came away with a 79-62 win over North Dakota State on CBS Sports Network's Feb. 2 broadcast.
POLL TOMS
The Purple began the 2025-26 season receiving 78 votes in the Mid-Major Top 25 Poll and totaled 10 in the most recent poll, the only Summit League team to receive votes. St. Thomas landed on the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll for the first time in program history in January 2025, debuting at No. 25 before reaching as high as No. 19 on January 20.
In addition to the CollegeInside.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, St. Thomas was selected among a handful of media polls: No. 6 on Ryan Hammer's Mid-Major Top 20 Poll, No. 13 on Field of 68's Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, No. 13 on T3Bracketology's Top 32 Poll. While the Tommies were the only Summit League team among those polls, they were also the highest ranked Summit League team in Sports Illustrated's Complete Division I Preseason Rankings, slotting in at No. 124.
THE SUMMIT OF WINS
St. Thomas continues to rank at the top of the Summit League in overall wins over the past four seasons, totaling 70 victories since the start of the 2022-23 season. Following behind UST is South Dakota State with 67 wins, North Dakota State with 59 and Oral Roberts with 53. In addition, the Tommies also lead the Summit League with 42 home wins over that span, ahead of SDSU with 37, and NDSU and ORU with 35.
A BOLSTERED SQUAD
Six newcomers - five with at least three years of eligibility - join the Tommies, including three Power Four transfers and two ESPN four-star recruits. The group combines local roots, championship experience, and national-level pedigree.
• #0 Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (F, 6-7, 215, So., Miami/Iowa) – Four-star ESPN recruit, back-to-back state titles at Totino-Grace; No. 2 ranked player in Minnesota out of high school.
• #10 Tommy Humphries Jr. (G, 6-5, 205, R-So., Furman) – Totino-Grace graduate and two-time state champion; ranked No. 5 in Minnesota coming out of high school.
• #11 Austin Herro (G, 6-3, 180, R-So., South Carolina) – Brother of NBA All-Star Tyler Herro; played AAU with Milan Momcilovic.
• #13 Luka Momcilovic (F, 6-7, 220, Fr.) – Averaged 16.8 PPG and 8.1 RPG in high school; multiple-time all-conference pick with two state titles and one runner-up finish.
• #20 Jack Tauer (G, 6-2, 200, Gr.) – Played two seasons at St. Norbert College before serving as a student manager; a Cretin-Derham Hall graduate.
• #23 Nick Janowski (G, 6-4, 210, R-Fr., Nebraska) – Four-star ESPN recruit; former teammate of Luka and Milan Momcilovic.
BACK-TO-BACK 20 WINS/BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK 19 WINS
St. Thomas has recorded at least 20 wins in back-to-back seasons, joining only Grand Canyon as teams since 2000 to do so in years 3 and 4 of their transition to Division I. The Tommies join SDSU as the only Summit League teams with back-to-back 20-win seasons since 2021-22 and the Purple are the only transition team with three consecutive 19+ win seasons. UST is one of six teams in all of Division I to improve its win total (with a minimum of 19 wins) each season since 2022-23. Overall, St. Thomas is one of 12 teams in the country to improve its winning percentage over the past four seasons (min. 60 wins).
A CULTURE OF CHAMPIONS
The Tommies' roster carries a winning pedigree: 16 high school state championships between nine athletes and seven runner-up finishes across seven athletes. Newcomer Nick Janowski was a three-time state champion at Pewaukee High School, while teammate and fellow newcomer Luka Momcilovic was part of two of those championships. Newcomers Tommy Humphries Jr., (2022, 2023) and Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (2023, 2024) both won back-to-back championships at Totino-Grace High School, Kyle Counts won two Oregon state titles at Wilsonville High School while Hayden Tibbits won two Minnesota State titles, including one with Carter Bjerke at Wayzata High School. Ryan Dufault hit the game-winning shot to clinch the 2021 Minnesota state title at Waseca High School while Nolan Minessale led Marquette University to a Wisconsin state title in 2024. That group along with Austin Herro and Adam and Jack Tauer also combined for eight runner-up finishes.
In addition to the athletes' championships, the coaching staff has also combined for five state championships in various sports. Head Coach Johnny Tauer won high school state titles in basketball and baseball for Cretin-Derham Hall, assistant coach Cameron Rundles won a state title in basketball for DeLaSalle, and director of operations Josh Rodenbiker won two state titles in football at Fargo Shanley.
BACK TO 24
The Tommies extended its DI single-season record with 24 wins following its Summit League Championship semifinal win over North Dakota. It's the sixth season of 14 under Head Coach Johnny Tauer with as many wins and the 11th with at least 19. The Tommies' 12 wins in Summit League play also extended a single season record after totaling nine in each of the past two seasons.
A TRANSITION LIKE NO OTHER
St. Thomas produced one of the most successful transitions to Division I. With the win over Denver in the Summit League Championship semifinal, St. Thomas has the second most wins by a transition team through its first four seasons (73), trailing only Grand Canyon with 81. The Purple are the only transition team with three consecutive 19-win seasons, became the second team with back-to-back 20-win seasons in years 3 and 4 (Grand Canyon) and the fourth transition team overall with 23 wins in a season since 2000. Among all transition teams since 2000, St. Thomas recorded the largest Ken Pom Ranking and NET Ranking improvements from the end of year one through year four, jumping 181 spots in the KP and 196 in the NET through four seasons.
TAKE CARE OF THE BALL
Tauer's teams have historically taken care of the basketball, and the first four seasons of DI play were no different. The Tommies finished tied for 13th nationally in turnovers per game (9.5) last season, ninth in 2023-24 (9.2), and ranked tied for 11th nationally in the fewest total turnovers (327) in 2022-23 and led the category in 2021-22 (243). St. Thomas is one of three teams nationally to record fewer than 10.0 turnovers per game in each of the past four seasons, joining Iowa and Wisconsin. The Purple recorded five or fewer turnovers in six games last season after totaling 10 such games over the previous three seasons.
Through 11 games in 2025-26, St. Thomas has turned the ball over 10 or fewer times in eight games and rank 40th in the country with 10.1 per game. The Tommies began the season with 10 turnovers given to (RV) Saint Mary's, followed by 7 to Army, 9 to Washington State and 9 to Green Bay, before giving away a season high 16 at SEMO.
A WINNING TRADITION
Winning has been the tradition at St. Thomas with the trend continuing under Head Coach Johnny Tauer. Since 2011, the Tommies have finished with nine 20-win seasons, 11 19-win seasons and 12 nine-win conference seasons. The only seasons to not win 19 games or nine conference games included the COVID season and the 2021-22 inaugural DI season.
Tauer has averaged 20.8 wins per season at St. Thomas and became the fastest coach in program history to reach 250 career wins, doing so in 337 career games.
SUSTAINED EXCELLENCE
Head Coach Johnny Tauer's excellence within the Tommie Men's Basketball program dates back to his days as an Academic All-American that led to his induction to the St. Thomas Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001. As a student-athlete from 1991-95, Tauer was an All-MIAC player, first team All-West Region, and as a senior led the 1994-95 Toms to a school-record 27-0 start, including an MIAC Championship with an unprecedented 20-0 record. He helped the Toms to NCAA DIII Tournament berths in 1992-93, 1993-94, and 1994-95, including a run to the Final Four in 1993-94. Tauer ranks 27th in career scoring (1,219 points) and 24th in career rebounding (482) at St. Thomas and was the school 3-point leader until 1999-2000.
After earning master's and PhD degrees at Wisconsin, Tauer joined the Tommie Men's Basketball coaching staff as an assistant coach and ran the St. Thomas defense for two seasons (2001-03) and also directed the Tommies' offensive sets that had consistently ranked among the best in NCAA basketball in overall offensive efficiency, field-goal percentage, 3-point proficiency, fewest turnovers, and assist-to-turnover ratio. With Tauer serving as an assistant, the Toms won the 2010-11 DIII National Championship title, made a run to the 2008-09 Final Four, and totaled seven DIII National Tournament runs.
With the retirement of longtime head coach Steve Fritz in 2011, Tauer took over the program as just the third head coach for the program since 1954 and continued its storied tradition with another national title in 2015-16, a Final Four run in 2012-13, and eight DIII National Tournament appearances.
As a student-athlete, assistant coach, and head coach at St. Thomas, Tauer has helped the Tommies to 630 wins overall in 30 seasons, averaging out to over 20 wins per season. He has been involved in 831 games combined with 717 coming as a coach along with 19 conference titles, 15 national tournament appearances, three Final Fours, and two national championships with the Purple and Gray.
FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Men's Basketball, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) at @TommieMBBall and on Instagram at @TommieHoops
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-- St. Thomas Athletics --
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/ Men's BasketballTommie Men's Basketball Intro Video 2025
Wednesday, November 12
Tommie Men's Basketball: Summit League Tournament Cinematic Recap 2025
Thursday, March 20
Press Conference: Tommie Men's Basketball Postgame vs Kansas City 03-01-25
Sunday, March 02
Press Conference: Tommie Men's Basketball Postgame vs Omaha 02/15/25
Sunday, February 16
