High school recruiting still the key to success for St. Thomas men’s basketball

NBA scouts showed up to watch North Dakota State senior big man Jacksen Moni on an early February weekend at St. Thomas' Schoenecker Arena.

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch and President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly were also in attendance.

The best player on the floor that day, though, was Tommies freshman Nolan Minessale, who had a game-high 23 points in the win. He also held the 6-10 Moni in check despite being five inches shorter.

As the second-seeded Tommies (22-9) open the Summit League tournament Thursday vs. Denver in Sioux Falls, Minessale is the latest example of how their program still recruits the old-fashioned way under longtime coach Johnny Tauer. He relies heavily on high school recruiting and developing younger players.

“We’re always open to what the best fit is for St. Thomas,” Tauer said. “But I do think part of development in today’s age of college basketball is if you’re going to have a strong culture, longevity is not everything. But part of a culture is you get the right people and they perpetuate your values.”

St. Thomas' transition from Division III to Division I basketball is unprecedented and few could have expected the men’s program to perform this well this quickly. Imagine how difficult that can be in the transfer portal and NIL world.

Hall of Famer Rick Pitino said in a recent interview at Big East champion St. John’s that he no longer recruits from the prep ranks, which might soon be a practice for other major conference coaches, too.

“I know you see a lot of sound bites where you see high school coaches say, ‘[College coaches] are just not recruiting high school guys anymore,‘” Tauer said. “I’m not saying that’s the wrong approach. If you have millions and millions of dollars and you say, we’re just going to get another 22-year-old and another 22-year-old, and we’re just going to stay old. That is a way to do it. I think we’re going to build more with high school kids.”

The Tommies, who finished with a 12-4 record in the Summit League, are led in scoring (14.7 ppg) by junior Miles Barnstable, a D-III Wisconsin Whitewater transfer.

But Tauer and his staff recruited 11 players on their roster out of high school, including starters Minessale, Kendall Blue and Carter Bjerke. In comparison, the Gophers have three players (freshmen Isaac Asuma and Grayson Grove and sophomore Kadyn Betts) on their roster recruited from high school.

A 6-5 wing from Brookfield, Wis., Minessale averages 11.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and leads the team with 1.1 steals and blocks.

Minessale led Marquette University High to a small-school state title last year with a dislocated finger, but he was a no-star prospect. St. Thomas was his first of only three D-I offers.

“The main thing for me was the coaching staff and the freedom in our offense,” said Minessale on why he picked the Tommies. “It’s how the ball moves, I think it’s really special. I don’t think there’s really another place like this one.”

This season, St. Thomas has been the only D-I team ranked in the top 20 in two-point, three-point and free-throw percentage.

Five years ago, Tauer’s offense attracted Wisconsin native Ben Nau, now a senior guard. Nau was the first player to commit to St. Thomas as a Division I recruit.

Tauer’s second D-I recruiting class was ranked No. 1 in the Summit League in 2022. Minnesota natives Blue (East Ridge), Bjerke (Wayzata) and Ahjany Lee (Totino-Grace) joined Wisconsin native Andrew Rohde.

Rohde led St. Thomas in scoring in 2022-23 (17.1) and earned freshman of the year honors before transferring to Virginia. Lee transferred to Houston Christian after his sophomore year.

But with Blue and Bjerke growing into impact players, Tauer didn’t sour on leaning on prep recruits. He continued to find underrated talent to thrive in his system.

Minessale and fellow freshman Ben Oosterbaan from Illinois were part of the rotation this season. Pewaukee (Wis.) senior Luka Momcilovic, brother of Iowa State’s Milan Momcilovic, signed with St. Thomas in November.

“My game will translate there pretty quickly,” the 6-7 Luka Momcilovic said. “[Tauer’s] still willing to develop high school guys when a lot of coaches are just picking up a bunch of transfers and building a team that way. Their player development is something big for me.”

In the final season at Schoenecker Arena, the Tommies invited local prep targets, including Hopkins senior guard Anthony Smith III and East Ridge junior guard Cedric Tomes, who has an offer from the Gophers.

Don’t be surprised to see high school recruits continue to fill St. Thomas' roster even with the new arena and NCAA tournament eligibility on the horizon next season.

Five Minnesota ballers who stood out:

Dain Dainja, Memphis

The Park Center product recently averaged 21 points and 12.7 rebounds in three consecutive victories. That included a career-high 25 points and 10 rebounds vs. Rice and 16 points and a career-high 17 rebounds vs. UAB.

Tessa Johnson, South Carolina

The former St. Michael-Albertville star had 16 points on 7-for-9 shooting and four rebounds for the defending champion Gamecocks in a 78-66 win vs. No. 16 Kentucky on Sunday.

Jo Langbehn, St. Thomas

The 6-2 senior had 28 points on 10-for-13 shooting and 8-for-8 free throws in 79-76 win against Oral Roberts. The Tommies women open Summit League tourney play Friday vs. North Dakota.

Paige Meyer, South Dakota State

The 5-6 senior from Albany had 27 points, six rebounds, six assists and five steals in Saturday’s win vs. St. Thomas that helped SDSU finish Summit League play 16-0.

Anthony Smith III, Hopkins

The senior guard became the fifth player in Hopkins boys program history to score 40 points last week in a win vs. Buffalo. He shot 15-for-20 from the field.

Numbers game

2,000 Career points milestone for Creighton senior guard and Lakeville native Lauren Jensen.

14-0 Home record for the St. Thomas men to finish the regular season, one of eight Division I teams with a perfect home record this year.

5 Road wins in the Big Ten by Gophers men’s basketball, tied for the most since 2016-17.

4.1 Seconds left to play when Gophers senior Brennan Rigsby nailed the go-ahead three-pointer in Saturday’s 67-65 win at Nebraska.

Basketball Across Minnesota will be published weekly on startribune.com. Don’t be a stranger on X after reading, as chatting about these stories makes them even more fun to share. Thanks, Marcus (@Marcus_R_Fuller on X).