Johnnies lead MIAC standings

The basketball team is on top of the MIAC. Despite falling to St. Olaf 77-70 on Feb. 9, the Johnnies have clung onto their MIAC lead.

Augsburg handed the Johnnies their other MIAC loss earlier in the season on Jan. 15 and stay close at their heels for the conference championship.

Going into that Augsburg contest, the Johnnies were 7-0 and firing on all cylinders. In a hard-fought game with the Auggies, the Johnnies lost by a mere point with the game coming down to the final seconds.

That game opened the Johnnies’ eyes to some of the improvements they needed to make before playoffs.

In the first nine MIAC games of the season, the Johnnies allowed 62 points per game. Since then, the Johnnies have allowed only 52 points per game.

This difference can be attributed to a change in the identity of the team.

“We decided that the identity of our team was going to be playing good defense, getting energy from getting stops, and carrying that energy over to the offense,” senior wing Alex Rasmussen said. “Defense is something we can control every game and we like our chances of winning if we can hold our opponent under 60 points.”

Since the Augsburg game, the Johnnies have been a great second half team. In those games, the Johnnies have outscored teams by 16.7 points per game in the second half, compared to only 3.7 points per game in the first half.

Second half surges have been a recurring theme for the Johnnies.

In the past two weeks, they trailed Carleton by five at half before winning by 15; trailed Concordia by two at half before winning by 15; only led Bethel at half by four before winning by 21; and only led Macalester by one at half before winning by 14.

So some sort of sorcery must happen at halftime in the Johnnie locker room. While some may argue that it’s the Johnnie magic that we’ve seen many times throughout the years, it actually may be due to head coach Pat McKenzie and the rest of the Johnnie coaching staff.

“The first half gives us a chance to get a feel for what the other team is doing,” Rasmussen said. “Coach McKenzie comes up with a great game plan at halftime that allows us to make adjustments to what the other team is doing.”

A coach can make an outstanding game plan, but it is useless if the players don’t understand it and can’t execute it.

“Our players have used halftime to talk through what they’re seeing and how we might be able to attack it better,” McKenzie said. “Sometimes it takes time to get comfortable with how to attack something.”

The Johnnies have been exceptional at shooting the three pointer.

Among all DIII teams in the country, the Johnnies have the third highest three-point field goal percentage, shooting an astonishing 40% from beyond the arc.

In this department, the Johnnies are led by first-year Zach Longueville (47.4%), sophomore Jared Rainey (47.1%), junior Carson Schoeller (46.2%), senior Colton Codute (46.1%), and first-year Kooper Vaughn (41.1%).

To have a team that is successfully shooting the three-pointer, you need more than just good shooters. You need a good offensive scheme that enables shooters to get open, and you need players who are willing to put the team before themselves.

The Johnnies have all the aforementioned factors.

“We get a lot of shots by playing inside-out, playing through our posts and letting them find open shooters,” Codute said. “A lot of guys are willing to make an extra pass to a shooter more open than themselves. One of our greatest strengths is having the ability to find the guy with the hot hand.”

Currently, the Johnnies are in first place in the MIAC at 15-2. The next closest team is Augsburg at 11-2. If the Johnnies win the rest of their games, they would be the MIAC champions.

If they lose another game, they would need an Augsburg loss somewhere down the road for them to remain conference champions. On the off-chance that both teams collapse, Carleton could win out and be the MIAC conference champions.

With the Johnnies’ winning ways this season, they don’t believe they will slow down.

“We have a lot of momentum. If we can continue to play well defensively and build on our successes, we will be in a good spot going forward,” Rasmussen said.

During this hot streak, the Johnnies have been very locked in, so they see no reason to make any substantial changes going forward.

“We approach each game and day the same way,” McKenzie said. “If our habits are in place, then our practices and approach won’t be any different going forward.”

Having already lost parts of two seasons, this Johnnie senior class of Jake Binley, Zach Hanson, Codute and Rasmussen want to leave a legacy on the program.

“Ultimately, you want to be remembered, but it’s tough to be remembered if you don’t win,” Codute said. “We want to leave the program better than when we got here because it’s a blessing to be able to play for St. John’s.”