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We're back! Today, the boys caught up with junior guard A.J. McCleery and freshman post Evan Weichert. Thanks, guys, for making the time!

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Hello! We're taking a break from publishing new episodes over the holidays. We'll be back with brand new episodes in January. Until then, happy holidays!

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Thanks to Charlie, Parker and Eli for making the time to talk to the guys! 

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We’re back to our regularly scheduled programming this week as they guys caught up with sophomore guard Liam Farniok and redhsirt freshman Henry Tschetter. Thanks guys for making the time!

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We're off this week, but wanted to stay on track with our weekly updates on the latest with the Cardinal and Blue. So we decided to re-air one of our favorites from past seasons in anticipation of the return of the rivalry. Enjoy! Happy Thanksgiving!

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Today, the boys caught up with juniors Vincent Hillesheim and Baiden Bean, who talked some early-season ball with the guys, their roles on the team and some academic success stories. Thanks Vinnie and Baiden for taking the time!

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Today, the boys caught up with new assistant coach Zach Filzen, who was nice enough to take some time to talk a bit about the path that led him to SJU. Thanks, Zach, for making the time! 

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We're back! Season four starts today with a portion of the second annual Tip-Off Party at Basement Bar. Today's show includes interviews with Kyle Johnson, Thomas Menk and Vincent Hillesheim as well as with head coach Pat McKenzie. The full video is available at our YouTube page @benchwarmersmediamn. 

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Hello everyone and welcome back! We’re here today with assistant coach Danny Quinn, who was nice enough to take some time Wednesday evening between team activities in Chicago to talk with the guys about the team’s travel plans changing due to the winter storm, some sight-seeing while in the windy city and the proper way to prepare a hot dog from a Chicago area native. Thanks, Danny!

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Hello and welcome to the Season 3 finale! Today, we welcome Jubie Alade, Lucas Walford, Colton Codute, Kyle Sorensen, Oakley Baker, Ethan Novacinski and Sean Ryan from the 2020 team who were generous enough to tell us about their experience with the covid-shortened 2020 season and NCAA tournament -- with a couple assists from Mark Lewandowski. 

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we welcome back Griffin Rushin and Luke Budzyn to the program, who were nice enough to take some time Tuesday morning to get into the weeds on defensive philosophies, post graduation plans and a little breakdown of the final two regular season games.

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we welcome a handful of parents of this year’s team for our second installment of our version of The Parent Trap. We can’t thank Dave Scwhob, Cathy Budzyn, Heather Bean, Brian Healy, and Jeanine Wagner enough for their willingness to put into words what their experience with Johnnie Basketball has been from the perspective of a parent.

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we welcome back Luke Healy and Kyle Johnson to the program to talk about the last couple games of the regular season and how practices can differ from early in the season to now. Thanks guys for making the time!

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we revisit a fairly notable piece of the legacy of one of our previous guests this season … Fr. Roman Paur and his relationship with The Rats. Along the way we have some contributions from Joe Deignan, Troy Bigalke and Mike Dady along with the usual crew. Thanks to those guys for their contributions!

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we have the pleasure of welcoming back Andrew Wagner, Kooper Vaughn and Zach Longueville to the program to talk about their senior season. Thanks guys for making the time!

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we feature the voice of Johnnie sports over the last quarter century -- Mark Lewandowski -- who talked with the guys about his start in radio, his transition to St. John's and some of his observations as he's had a front row seat for some memorable moments over that past 25 years. Thanks Mark for sitting down and talking with the guys!

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we have the pleasure of welcoming back Ryan Thissen, Blake Berg and Connor Schwob to the program to talk about their collective decision to return for a fifth year. Thanks guys for making the time! 

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we focus on the tail end of Smitty’s incredible run as head coach of St. John's basketball and welcome the only other person to occupy the coach’s office since 1964 Head Coach Pat McKenzie. Which ties directly to the very first episode of this podcast. Some of this might sound familiar, but this time with some fresh perspective from longtime voice of Johnnie football and basketball -- Mark Lewandowski -- who had a front row seat to the changing of the guard. Not much more to say that...

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we pulled from the archives to find some never before heard parts of our conversation with Smitty and longtime thorn in the Johnnies side, legendary St. Thomas coach Steve Fritz where they get into some of the finer points of their coaching philosophies, other coaches around the conference and some of the insights they gained while athletic directors at their respective institutions. Let’s get to it. Here’s Coach Steve Fritz with Coach Smith, Tom Connell and John Russett. 

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Hello and welcome back! Today, there’s a bit of a different bent in store as we shift the perspective from the court to carpet row as we welcome ‘71 grad Mike Dady, who played for coach smith during his student days and served as Board of Regents chair from 1992-1995 as well as President of the Alumni Association and is the founding partner of Dady and Gardner PA, along with Fr. Roman Paur, who received both an undergrad and masters of divinity from Saint John's, was ordained in 1966, completed graduate degrees in clinical and...

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Hello and welcome back! Today, senior manager Andrew Nerud joins the show to talk about his decision to come to St. John's, the transition from player to manager and some of the unique insights he has gained from seeing the game from a different perspective. Thanks Andrew for making the time!

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Hello and welcome back! Today, we have one of the most successful teams in St. John's history in the same room to turn back the clock and reminisce about their time together. Usually reserved for later in the episodes, we’re going straight to the source for some context before we begin. From The Record, Thursday March 1, 2001, page 14.
"Basketball Success Leads to Windfall of Awards. In the wake of its recent 15-game winning streak and conference titles, several members of the SJU basketball team received awards Monday. Junior forward Mike Nester was na...

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Hello! Today, we're back with Coach McKenzie for our mid-season update. 

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Thanks to Coach McKenzie for taking the time to talk with the guys. 

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Today, we welcome another J-Club Hall of Honor member. This 2001 grad is the third-most prolific scorer in St. John's history with 1,568 career points, trailing only '57 grad Dick Matchinksky and '79 grad Frank Wachlarowicz. He is one of a handful of players to crack the starting lineup as a freshman during Smitty’s five decades at the helm, earning MIAC all-rookie honors that season. And, he followed that up with three consecutive years as an All-MIAC selection, earning the conference MVP his junior and senior seasons -- one of only five players to re...

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Hello Johnnie basketball fans and welcome back to No Place I'd Rather Be, the podcast about St. John's University basketball and the legacy of Minnesota’s all-time collegiate wins leader Coach Jim Smith. Today, we’re back with our regularly scheduled programming as we continue to traverse the decades of Smitty’s 51-year career. But unlike our first two seasons, season three has a little something different … by the time we get to the end of this season we will have entered a new era of St. John's basketball as we get an insider’...

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This week we welcome assistant coach and former player Lucas Walford to the show. Lucas was nice enough to sit down and talk with the guys about his path through basketball, how he got to St. John's and his role with the team. Thanks, Lucas!

The Johnnies wrapped up their trip to our nation's capital with a couple convincing wins, bringing their win total to 10 on the season. Up next, a nice holiday break before a Jan. 4 matchup against Hamline.

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This week for our On the Court feature we welcome junior Thomas Menk, who was nice enough to find some time to sit down and talk with the guys about some injury updates, his role with the team and what to grab at Kwik Trip for a solid late-night snack. Thanks for taking the time, Thomas! The Johnnies picked up two road wins against Minnesota-Morris and St. Mary's to move to 8-2 (3-0 MIAC) on the season in advance of their trip to the nation's capital for a couple games next week. 
Duration: 00:18:24

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This week, we welcome Andrew Wagner, senior guard from Prospect Heights, Ill., to the show as he was kind enough to carve out some time Thursday morning following the Johnnies first conference game of the season ... a 75-60 win over St. Olaf to bring the win total to five (1-0 in conference play, 5-2 on the season) for your favorite basketball team. A big thanks goes out to Andrew for being willing to chat with the guys. 

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First of all, we hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! We’re back today with Head Basketball Coach Pat McKenzie as he was kind enough to talk with the guys first thing Monday morning after the team’s second consecutive weekend on the road, going 2-0 in Iowa and 1-1 at last weekend’s great lakes invitational in Grand Rapids, Michigan. 

As always, we are very appreciative of Coach McKenzie's time. Be sure to tune in each week as we continue with our "On the Court" series and shift the focus to curr...

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Welcome back to "No Place I’d Rather Be," the podcast about Johnnie basketball and the legacy of Minnesota’s all-time collegiate wins leader coach Jim Smith. We have a very special episode of the show to bring you today. While we’re hard at work getting the rest of season 3 of the podcast ready to go, the basketball season starts Saturday with a 5 p.m. tip against UW Oshkosh at Sexton Arena, right here in Collegeville. We wanted to make sure everyone was as excited as we are for the start of anothe...

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Hey Johnnie Basketball fans! While we're hard at work getting season 3 of "No Place I'd Rather Be" all ready to go we didn't want you to miss out on the chance to get together with current players, Head Coach Pat McKenzie and his staff, reconnect with old teammates and meet some new Johnnie alums at the Johnnie Basketball 2024-25 Season Tip-Off Party from 6-9 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 30 at The Basement Bar, 511 N. Washington Ave., Minneapolis.
Hosted by the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association, this is a great opportunity to show your support...

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45 years ago today, "Norma Rae" was just released and number one at the box office, Rod Stewart’s "Do Ya Think I’m Sexy" topped the charts of the Billboard Hot 100, and the St. John’s University basketball team was on its way to Mankato for what we have already established as one of the greatest contests in St. John's athletic history. Today we bring it to you as it was heard over the air waves all those years ago … unadulterated, straight from the mouth of the legendary Connie O … so sit back, relax, and...

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This week, as the johnnies wrap up the regular season, we welcome Luke Budzyn and Griffin Rushin to the program to talk with the guys about the recruitment process, their approach off the bench, some housing plans for senior year, and Gary’s Pizza takes one from the top rope on our weekly late night food debate. 
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And that was Luke Budzyn and Griffin Rushin. Thanks guys for taking the time. 

The Johnnies picked up a pair of wins against St. Olaf and at Gustavus to secure the regu...

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We are very excited to bring you today's program as we close out season two with '94 grad Travis Weiss along with the last minute addition of our very special guest Bob Alpers, who aside from being athletic director and a hall of fame golf coach was an assistant basketball coach for 20 years and had a front row seat to just how humble and team-oriented Weiss was. They changed the offense because of his particular set of skills and Coach Smith had to implement rules to get him to shoot more. Can you...

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This week senior manager Ethan Youso took a few minutes before Monday's game to talk to the guys about his plans after graduation, why he came to St. John's and his role with the team. 

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Thanks Ethan for taking the time.

The Johnnies put on a show Saturday for all those in attendance for alumni/senior day. with a record-setting performance from behind the arc in a win over St. Scholastica. with 21 threes made on 34 attempts. A staggering 11 of those threes came from Kooper Vaughn, who tied a...

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Today, we step off the court and welcome one of the staunchest and longest-tenured supporters of St. John's basketball, ‘58 grad Jim Bassett, who is the 2024 recipient of the Father Walter Reger Distinguished Alumnus Award, which recognizes outstanding service to the Saint John's community and is the highest honor given by the Alumni Association. And, as we’ll hear all about on today’s episode, the former alumni board president didn’t find much to enjoy during his initial encounters with the university. But all that changed. And six sons and two daughters have since gr...

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This week sophomore Kyle Johnson and junior Luke Healy were kind enough to take some time to talk with the guys about game prep, their approach as they come off the bench as well as how they got to St. John’s in the first place. And the late night food debate rages on as we elicit a spirited defense of Gary's Pizza.

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This season of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." is sponsored by the Sexton Family Foundation, helping usher in the next generation of leaders. And Sixth Man En...

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Today we get to the conclusion of our conversation with ‘87 grad Phil Johnson and ‘84 grad John Wiehoff. Both of whom played key roles in making the ‘80s one of the most successful decades in Johnnie basketball history. With a couple more timely interjections from one of our hosts, Tom Connell, ‘84, whose no slouch himself. But that’s for another time. And this being part two, as always, part one is highly recommended. I mean, nothing hits quite like nostalgia and that just so happens to be what we do best here at Benchwarmers Media. Sor...

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This week we circle back with head basketball coach Pat McKenzie as he joins the guys from the road for a mid-season check-in. 

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This season of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." is sponsored by the Sexton Family Foundation, helping usher in the next generation of leaders. And Sixth Man Enterprises, creating a state of readiness. Thank you for making this project possible.

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On today’s episode we are lucky enough to have Phil Johnson and John Wiehoff. Two seminal figures in SJU basketball history during what was one of the most sustained stretches of on-court success seen in Collegeville. From 1976 to 1988 the Johnnies appeared in the national tournament 10 of those 12 years. Wiehoff and Johnson were right in the middle of that run through the ‘80s. Johnson was All-MIAC and All-Region (both first team) in ‘85-’86 and ‘86-’87, with an MVP-caliber year in ‘85-’86, which is not hyperbole since he was voted MIAC Most Valuable Player for that year. W...

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This week juniors Zach Longueville and Kooper Vaughn sit down with the guys to talk about the team, what makes them such a tight group and a little about their own paths to collegeville.

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This season of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." is sponsored by the Sexton Family Foundation, helping usher in the next generation of leaders. And Sixth Man Enterprises, creating a state of readiness. Thank you for making this project possible.

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Today, we venture into new territory as we welcome Steve Fritz … yes, that Steve Fritz … the one who played at St. Thomas University from 1967-71 … joined the coaching staff under Tom Feely … took over the program in 1980 … won an NCAA Division III championship in his final season as head coach in 2011 after 40 seasons on the bench … 31 of those as head coach … during that tenure he had a decorated playing career and his 1,944 career points … a school record at the time and remains second in school history. His 915 career rebounds is still third all-time in school histor...

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We are back and excited to bring you the conclusion of our time with Bill Sexton and his son Jim. If you haven’t listened to the first part of our conversation you should know how this works by now. What are you waiting for? Do it now … go ahead. For the rest of you, today we hear more from the man who has left an indelible mark in Collegeville from the time he first graced the campus in the the early 50s all the way to present day. A kid from the lumb...

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Happy Holidays! We’re off this week, but wanted to take the time to say we hope you all are getting exactly what you need from this holiday season. We’ll be back next week to bring to you the conclusion of our two-part episode with Bill Sexton, which leaves you plenty of time to get all caught up before then. All episodes of No Place I'd Rather Be ...  are available on your favorite podcast app or at benchwarmersmedia.com. Speaking of websites with lots of cool stuff to check out are you a mem...

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From time to time certain names carry certain reputations which tend to to precede their owner. There are fewer names, however, which are so ubiquitous it’s hard to imagine them being attached to an actual human being. The subject of the next two episodes of our show happens to be among the latter. When it comes to St. John’s University, the Sexton name can be found all over campus, from the Sexton Commons to Sexton Arena ... and we'll just leave it at that for now. But the first place Bill Sexton’s name...

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Senior team managers Ryan Engel and Tommy Ornburg take some time during their trip to Florida to talk to the guys about their journey to Collegeville, the responsibilities and challenges of the manager role, what makes it all worth it as well as some plans for after graduation. 

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This season of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." is sponsored by the Sexton Family Foundation, helping usher in the next generation of leaders. And Sixth Man Enterprises, creating a state of readiness. Thank you for making this project possible.

Th...

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Last week we heard all about what set the class of '79 apart from the rest. If you haven’t, go back and listen to last week’s episode first. Because today, as the conversation shifts to their senior season, we get a glimpse at just how special that group was, as we relive one of the greatest games during one of the greatest seasons in the history of basketball in Minnesota. And there’s a good chance even that is selling it short.

Same lineup as last time. Let’s get back...

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St. John's University seniors Brandon Adelman, J.T. Gaffney and Connor Schwob sit down with the guys this week to talk continue with the theme of new offense and scoring a bunch as well what to do over the holiday break and plans for after graduation.

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This season of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." is sponsored by the Sexton Family Foundation, helping usher in the next generation of leaders. And Sixth Man Enterprises, creating a state of readiness. Thank you for making this project possible.

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Frank Wachlarowicz … John Patterson … Dan Smith … Ted Nowak … Pat McKenzie … Paul Wotta … and John Harvey … never before or since has a single class contributed to more on-court success than that of the class of '79. It’s the stuff of legends. Running the table in the conference all the way to 27-straight wins. Frank breaking the all-time scoring record during what has been hailed by those in attendance as one of the greatest college basketball games ever played … an overtime win over Mankato State to send the victorious Johnnies to the national tournament in Kansas City bac...

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Today, we break new ground as we welcome two current players to the show. Ryan Thissen and Blake Berg take some time to talk to the guys about the team's new offensive approach, their own telepathic defense and what got them to Collegeville in the first place.

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This season of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." is sponsored by the Sexton Family Foundation, helping usher in the next generation of leaders. And Sixth Man Enterprises, creating a state of readiness. Thank you for making this project possible.

Thank y...

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Frank Wachlarowicz's accomplishments on the court set him in a class all by himself. His 2,357 career points remained the pinnacle of Minnesota collegiate basketball for roughly four decades and is still atop the MIAC and SJU record books. His 1,093 career rebounds and 162 free throws in a season also remain as school and conference records. And his 640-point season and 565 career free throws are still more than anyone else in school history. Put all that together and you get back-to-back MIAC MVP honors his junior and senior seasons, the only two-time basketball All-American selection...

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Welcome everyone to season two of No Place I'd Rather Be ... we kick things off today as we debut a new segment "On the Court" with St. John's University head basketball coach Pat McKenzie as he breaks things down after the first four games of the season. Check back each Wednesday for a new episode featuring Coach McKenzie, assistant coaches and players. 

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We're back! Season two of No Place I'd Rather Be is just around the corner and we wanted give you all a preview of what's in store this season. 

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Coach Smith and Paul Bernabie talk about their new book "St. John's University Basketball: Building a Tradition of Team and answer some questions during a September book signing event in the Twin Cities.

Their book is available for purchase through the St. John's University Bookstore. Click here to order online. 

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Frank Wachlarowicz rewrote the record books at St. John's, the MIAC and the state  during his four years as a starter for Coach Smith, leaving Collegeville with the most points ever by a collegiate basketball player in the state of Minnesota. But his legacy will always be much more than numbers on a stat sheet. Today, on the season one finale of No Place I'd Rather Be, we try to stay out of your way and let the two-time All-American speak for himself. In the first of two episodes dedicated to the man f...

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Tim McNamara, class of '77, worked closely with Coach Smith for four years.  He saw it all while in his role as team manager and remembers it all as well. An incredible wealth of information on Johnnie basketball in general and a bonafide expert on the happenings during his tenure, Tim Mac indulges us with just some of those stories and gives a little insight into the behind-the-scenes of the program for today's Fast Break episode.  

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With the regular season wrapped up and only two episodes left in season one, we get right to it for today's episode. The Johnnies vs. the Tommies. We hear from Dave Johnson, class of '69, Vic Moore, class of '72, and Steve Ward, class of '75 about some of the glory days of the rivalry.  We get three first-hand accounts of an event from March 1972 that stands as potentially the most outrageous from a rivalry that spanned decades. 

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Athletic director, golf coach, assistant basketball coach just to name a few of the spaces today's guest has occupied over the course of his long-tenured St. John's career. Those who know St. John's, know Bob Alpers. In this fast break episode, we hear about Bob's first experience at SJU, joining the basketball program and some creative weight distribution. 

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It wasn't just a basketball coach St. John's hired back in 1964. It was much more. It was the Family Smith. The Smiths were just as much a part of the basketball program as the players throughout the years. On today's episode we hear from a very special guest with a unique perspective of St. John's basketball over the decades -- Adrienne Smith -- who is joined by her husband Jim and daughter Meghan. But first, we have head coach Pat McKenzie back with us for another timely update on the season. 

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For today's Fast Break episode we have one of the very first people to meet Coach  Smith during the interview process for the head basketball coaching position at St. John's -- Joe Mucha. Joe was an instrumental piece in the foundation of what Johnnie basketball would be in the coming decades. In today's Fast Break episode, we hear from Joe about his decision to come to Collegeville, some of his other suitors, and the team's style of play before Coach Smith showed up on campus. 

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Context is important. Despite what this podcast may have led you to believe so far, there was much more going on besides basketball. The world at large, as it tends to do, forced students to grow their awareness and social consciousness well beyond the basketball court. In this episode, we learn what that looked like for those involved with Johnnie basketball through the late 60s and 70s. But first, we get an update on this year's SJU squad from first-year assistant coach Alex Rasmussen.


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Paul Bernabei was one of the first players to play four full years under Coach Smith. League MVP his senior season, Bernabei was a crucial piece of the Johnnies'  first MIAC Basketball Championship during the 1968-69 season. In this Fast Break episode you will hear Paul talk about his journey to Saint John's, the support he received from his parents as well as some of his favorite memories of Johnnie Basketball. 

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No introduction necessary. Includes some content not quite suitable for children. Enjoy.

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Everyone who was kind enough to sit down and share their stories left us with the best kind of problem -- too many great stories. With so much amazing content from all of our guests, we've decided to share with you all a shorter, singularly focused episode featuring one of the many integral members of the Johnnie Basketball family. Look for Fastbreak episodes every Thursday for the remainder of the season. 

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On today's episode, we delve into some of the influences Coach Smith had as he made his way through the ranks as a player, assistant coach and eventually head coach at St. John's. But first, we talk to assistant coach Sam Dittberner, who gives us an update on Johnnie basketball.  

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The conversation on culture continues as we hear more from Paul Bernabei and Joe Mucha -- as well as Bob Alpers and Frank Wachlarowicz -- about just what it was that made playing for Coach Smith so special. But first, we talk to second-year assistant coach and former player Sean Ryan. 

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Before Coach Jim Smith accepted the head coaching position at SJU, the program was regularly trailing the standings in the competitive MIAC. Shortly after Smith arrived, however, that began to change. On today's episode, we talk to first year assistant coach Danny Quinn about his introduction to Johnnie Basketball. Then, we dig into the program's complete culture shift from the mid to late '60s as we hear from a couple of instrumental figures in Coach Smith's early days in Collegeville and how they put the program on a path to success that...

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Basketball was not a foregone conclusion in the young life of Jim Smith. On today's episode -- the first of two featuring Coach Smith's formative years -- he hearkens back to days of yore as he enlightens us on his childhood. 

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Since 1964, St. John's University Basketball has had two head coaches. Jim Smith and Pat McKenzie. On today's episode, we hear from both as they lend a little insight into what brought them -- and possibly some others -- to Collegeville. 

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A preview of season one of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." an inside look at St. John's University basketball and the legacy of Minnesota's collegiate wins leader Jim Smith, who took over a lagging program in 1964 and by the end of the decade had turned it into what would be a perennial powerhouse over his 51 years at the helm of Johnnie basketball. A tradition that continues today under head coach and Johnnie basketball alum Pat McKenzie.