Men’s Basketball caps 14-0 home season with win over Kansas City

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- For just the second time since Schoenecker Arena opened in 2010, St. Thomas men's basketball finished perfect at home following a 65-59 win over Kansas City on Saturday night. Kendall Blue led all scorers with a career high 22 points as the Tommies (22-9, 12-4 Summit League) completed a 14-0 record at home and solidified the No. 2 seed for the Summit League Championships.

The Purple overcame its lowest field goal percentage of the season (.356) to secure the eighth 22-win season under Head Coach Johnny Tauer. Despite losing the rebound margin (37-29), the Tommies turned the ball over eight times compared to 17 for the Roos and shot 93.3 percent (14-15) from the free throw line compared to 75.0 percent (12-16) for UMKC.

Blue helped the Tommies overcome a nearly four-minute dry spell to start the game with his first of four 3-pointers. UMKC followed with an 8-0 run for its largest lead of the game, 10-3, before St. Thomas came back to take the lead again four minutes later. Rich Byhre put in his first points of the game on free throws to take the lead as part of seven straight points for the Purple.

The Tommies took its 31-28 lead into halftime and held it until midway through the second half, despite leading by as many as six points six minutes into the half. UMKC hit a 3-pointer for its final lead of the night, 44-43, answered quickly by Blue with a driving layup and a 3-pointer off a Roos turnover.

Blue came up with another pivotal basket as he hit a 3-pointer to break a 56-56 tie for his 20th point of the game. Both teams put in a pair of free throws before the Tommies forced the Roos to miss two shots and a free throw over the final 20 seconds. Nolan Minessale and Blue knocked down two free throws each over the final seconds while an inbounding turnover by UMKC sealed the St. Thomas victory.

Saturday's win was the 163rd for the program at Schoenecker Arena while it will carry its 18-game home winning streak into the Lee & Penny Anderson Arena in 2025-26.

TOMMIE TIDBITS

The 2024-25 Tommies are the second team to go undefeated in Schoenecker Arena, joining the 2012-13 team that went 17-0. It's also the third team to go undefeated at home for the program since 2008-09, when that St. Thomas team went 16-0 during the final season at the old Schoenecker Arena.
Saturday's win was the 18th straight at home for the Tommies dating back to last season, joining St. John's (NY) for the longest active home winning streak in Division I. The Purple are one of two teams (South Dakota) in the Summit League with 14 home wins this season but the only team to have at least 12 home wins over each of the past three seasons.
St. Thomas went 163-30 in 15 seasons at Schoenecker Arena since it opened in 2010, including 148-29 record under Head Coach Johnny Tauer. His mark includes a 43-12 home record during the DI era and the nation's 16th highest winning percentage (.907/39-4) at home over the past three seasons.
The Purple's 22nd win, the eighth such season under Tauer, is tied for the second most by a transition team during its fourth season while the program holds the second most cumulative wins (71) during its four-year transition period.
The Tommies are the first Summit League team to go undefeated at home since Oral Roberts went 16-0 in 2022-23. St. Thomas' second place finish in the Summit League regular standings marks the 10th season under Tauer where the team has finished second or better.
Kendall Blue led all scorers with 22 points, tying a career high set Dec. 7, 2024 at home against Montana, on 8-of-11 shooting and 4-of-7 from long range. He added a team-high six rebounds, tying Carter Bjerke, and added one steal and one assist.
Miles Barnstable and Rich Byhre each scored nine points. Seven of Byhre's points came in the first half, as he finished the game 4-of-4 from the free throw line.

UP NEXT
St. Thomas enters the 2025 Summit League Championships as the No. 2 seed, set to face No. 7 seed Denver on Thursday, March 6 at the Denny Sanford Premier Center. Tip-off will be 25 minutes after the conclusion of the No. 1 vs. No. 8/9 game, set to start at 6 p.m.

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 --

Men’s Basketball caps 14-0 home season with win over Kansas City

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Team Stats

Kendall Blue

Miles Barnstable

Rich Byhre

Ben Nau

Players Mentioned

Miles Barnstable

Carter Bjerke

Kendall Blue

Rich Byhre

Nolan Minessale

University of St. Thomas Athletics