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 enjoy the sounds of 1979 coming straight at ya … right now … on "No Place I'd Rather Be ..."

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 regular season conference title and the top seed heading into the conference tournament. But first, the Johnnies host Bethel tonight in a valentines day duel at Sexton Arena, right here, in Collegeville. And speaking of hosting, the Johnnies begin their post season Thursday, Feb. 22 as they welcome one of the winners from Tuesday's two quarterfinal matchups, which is the same night coach Jim Smith will receive a very special honor. From the St. John's University newsroom: “Hall of Fame Coach Jim Smith to receive Saint John's University Presidential Medal. Please join us for a very special award presentation to Hall of Fame Coach Jim Smith during halftime of the Johnnies upcoming MIAC basketball playoff semi-final contest at Sexton Arena on Thursday evening, Feb. 22. Game time is 7 p.m. CSB+SJU President Brian Bruess will present Jim with the Saint John’s University Presidential Medal in recognition of his commitment to inspiring his players to achieve their highest potential as athletes, as students and as principled men educated in the Benedictine tradition over his extraordinary 51-year career. Congratulations Jim!”

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.

Are you a member of the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association? You should be! Sign up right now to join the Johnnie Basketball Nation and connect with teammates and friends, flip through old photos, even listen to episodes of the podcast. Founded and managed by SJU basketball alumni and friends, the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association exists to foster the already formidable Johnnie Basketball Nation. Go to johnniebasketballalumni.org to see what it's all about.

Thank you as always to Coach Jim Smith, whose new book with former player '69 grad Paul Bernabei chronicling the history of 123 seasons of basketball in Collegeville is available for purchase through the Saint John’s University Bookstore. Proceeds from the book are donated to the Jim Smith Endowment Basketball Leadership Program Fund to enhance and strengthen the SJU basketball experience. Get yourself a copy today.

Take a look through the record books, watch live games and stay up-to-date on all Johnnies sports action at gojohnnies.com.

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 imagine? But that was all with good reason as Weiss was selected to the all-conference team his junior and senior seasons and was conference mvp and first-team all-region his senior year. Which was the season he set the NCAA all-divisions record for field goal percentage in a season at 76.6 percent, a record that stood until the 2008-2009 season.

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And that's a wrap on season two of "No Place I'd Rather Be ..." But don't fret ... your favorite podcast about Johnnie Basketball will be back next week with another brand new episode of "On the Court." And the Benchwarmers team has lots of great bonus content planned for the very near future. We cannot give a big enough thank you to all of you out there listening for the tremendous support this season. We love what we and we are grateful for the opportunity. So to everyone who makes that possible, thank you.

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 you to Travis Weiss for all the great stories and to Bob Alpers for making the time to join us on short notice. Thank you, as always, to Johnnie alum Steve Cummings, ‘83, at Nova Consulting, for the use of their beautiful facilities.

Are you a member of the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association? You should be! Sign up right now to join the Johnnie Basketball Nation and connect with teammates and friends, flip through old photos, even listen to episodes of the podcast. Founded and managed by SJU basketball alumni and friends, the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association exists to foster the already formidable Johnnie Basketball Nation. Go to johnniebasketballalumni.org to see what it's all about.

Thank you as always to Coach Jim Smith, whose new book with former player '69 grad Paul Bernabei chronicling the history of 123 seasons of basketball in Collegeville is available for purchase through the Saint John’s University Bookstore. Proceeds from the book are donated to the Jim Smith Endowment Basketball Leadership Program Fund to enhance and strengthen the SJU basketball experience. Get yourself a copy today.

Take a look through the record books, learn more about the success-filled history of Johnnie basketball, watch live games and stay up-to-date on all Johnnies sports action at gojohnnies.com.

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 school record set by Larry Bassett at Macalester in February 1992. Vaughn was 12 of 17 from the field and made all three of his free throws to finish with 38 points. He grabbed five boards and had one assist and one steal. Which I'm pretty sure all adds up to one of the all-time great performances in Johnnie basketball history. Accentuated only by the 101-62 final score. Which was followed up with a heartbreaking loss at home Monday night to Concordia by the thinnest of margins – 79-80.

Conference play continues tonight as the Johnnies welcome St. Olaf for their penultimate home game of the regular season and then travel to Gustavis Saturday, with the regular season finale against Bethel set for one week from today at sexton arena. right here in Collegeville. Catch all the exciting live action right on their website at gojohnnies.com.

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.

Are you a member of the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association? You should be! Sign up right now to join the Johnnie Basketball Nation and connect with teammates and friends, flip through old photos, even listen to episodes of the podcast. Founded and managed by SJU basketball alumni and friends, the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association exists to foster the already formidable Johnnie Basketball Nation. Go to johnniebasketballalumni.org to see what it's all about.

Thank you as always to Coach Jim Smith, whose new book with former player '69 grad Paul Bernabei chronicling the history of 123 seasons of basketball in Collegeville is available for purchase through the Saint John’s University Bookstore. Proceeds from the book are donated to the Jim Smith Endowment Basketball Leadership Program Fund to enhance and strengthen the SJU basketball experience. Get yourself a copy today.

Take a look through the record books, watch live games and stay up-to-date on all Johnnies sports action at gojohnnies.com.

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 graced the halls of St. John’s and St. Ben’s. Along the way, Bassett became a fixture of the Johnnie basketball program, fostering a friendship with the head coach that continues to this day.

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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 you to Jim Bassett for all the great stories and years of support for Johnnie basketball. And thank you to Johnnie alum Steve Cummings, ‘83, at Nova Consulting, for the use of their beautiful facilities.

Are you a member of the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association? You should be! Sign up right now to join the Johnnie Basketball Nation and connect with teammates and friends, flip through old photos, even listen to episodes of the podcast. Founded and managed by SJU basketball alumni and friends, the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association exists to foster the already formidable Johnnie Basketball Nation. Go to johnniebasketballalumni.org to see what it's all about.

Thank you as always to Coach Jim Smith, whose new book with former player '69 grad Paul Bernabei chronicling the history of 123 seasons of basketball in Collegeville is available for purchase through the Saint John’s University Bookstore. Proceeds from the book are donated to the Jim Smith Endowment Basketball Leadership Program Fund to enhance and strengthen the SJU basketball experience. Get yourself a copy today.

Take a look through the record books, learn more about the success-filled history of Johnnie basketball, watch live games and stay up-to-date on all Johnnies sports action at gojohnnies.com.

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 Enterprises, creating a state of readiness. Thank you for making this project possible.

Are you a member of the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association? You should be! Sign up right now to join the Johnnie Basketball Nation and connect with teammates and friends, flip through old photos, even listen to episodes of the podcast. Founded and managed by SJU basketball alumni and friends, the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association exists to foster the already formidable Johnnie Basketball Nation. Go to johnniebasketballalumni.org to see what it's all about.

Thank you as always to Coach Jim Smith, whose new book with former player '69 grad Paul Bernabei chronicling the history of 123 seasons of basketball in Collegeville is available for purchase through the Saint John’s University Bookstore. Proceeds from the book are donated to the Jim Smith Endowment Basketball Leadership Program Fund to enhance and strengthen the SJU basketball experience. Get yourself a copy today.

Take a look through the record books, watch live games and stay up-to-date on all Johnnies sports action at gojohnnies.com.

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. Sort of pushing the sand back up through the hourglass. And again, thanks to the hosts for doing such a good job of keeping it on the rails during this conversation so we could just let it roll from start to finish.

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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 you to Phil Johnson and John Wiehoff for sharing their time and stories. And thank you to Johnnie alum Steve Cummings, ‘83, at Nova Consulting, for the use of their beautiful facilities.

Are you a member of the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association? You should be! Sign up right now to join the Johnnie Basketball Nation and connect with teammates and friends, flip through old photos, even listen to episodes of the podcast. Founded and managed by SJU basketball alumni and friends, the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association exists to foster the already formidable Johnnie Basketball Nation. Go to johnniebasketballalumni.org to see what it's all about.

Thank you as always to Coach Jim Smith, whose new book with former player '69 grad Paul Bernabei chronicling the history of 123 seasons of basketball in Collegeville is available for purchase through the Saint John’s University Bookstore. Proceeds from the book are donated to the Jim Smith Endowment Basketball Leadership Program Fund to enhance and strengthen the SJU basketball experience. Get yourself a copy today.

Take a look through the record books, learn more about the success-filled history of Johnnie basketball, watch live games and stay up-to-date on all Johnnies sports action at gojohnnies.com.

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.

Are you a member of the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association? You should be! Sign up right now to join the Johnnie Basketball Nation and connect with teammates and friends, flip through old photos, even listen to episodes of the podcast. Founded and managed by SJU basketball alumni and friends, the Johnnie Basketball Alumni Association exists to foster the already formidable Johnnie Basketball Nation. Go to johnniebasketballalumni.org to see what it's all about.

Thank you as always to Coach Jim Smith, whose new book with former player '69 grad Paul Bernabei chronicling the history of 123 seasons of basketball in Collegeville is available for purchase through the Saint John’s University Bookstore. Proceeds from the book are donated to the Jim Smith Endowment Basketball Leadership Program Fund to enhance and strengthen the SJU basketball experience. Get yourself a copy today.

Take a look through the record books, watch live games and stay up-to-date on all Johnnies sports action at gojohnnies.com.