COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Led by a season-high 27-point performance from senior Kobe Kirk, the St. Olaf College men's basketball team opened Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) play with a 77-69 road victory over Saint John's University on Wednesday evening at Sexton Arena.

Kirk shot 9-for-19 from the field, 4-for-8 from three-point range, and 5-for-6 at the free-throw line to lead four double-figure scorers for St. Olaf (4-4, 1-0 MIAC), which snapped an 11-game road losing streak to Saint John's (2-4, 0-1 MIAC) with the win. Prior to Wednesday, the last win for the Oles in Collegeville was an 84-73 victory on Dec. 10, 2014. The johnnies had also won 16 of the last 19 meetings overall.

In addition to Kirk's 27-point night, sophomores Rex Lamb, AJ Uhl, and Liam Madigan were also in double figures for St. Olaf, which committed a season-low five turnovers in the victory. Lamb was 7-for-8 at the free-throw line as part of a 14-point outing, Uhl had an 11-point, 12-rebound double-double, and Madigan neared a double-double of his own with 10 points and eight rebounds. The Oles were 18-for-21 (85.7 percent) from the charity stripe as a team, compared to 5-for-6 (83.3 percent) for the Johnnies, who held a commanding 46-18 advantage in points in the paint.

After Saint John's scored the first four points of the night, St. Olaf went on an extended 19-4 run over the span of nearly seven minutes to take a 19-8 lead, a run that concluded with back-to-back three-pointers from Kirk and first year Max Kraay. The 11-point lead was the largest of the half for the Oles, who went 5-for-12 (41.7 percent) from beyond the arc in the half, compared to 0-for-12 for the Johnnies. Kirk had 12 first-half points to lead all scorers and give St. Olaf a 36-27 lead at the break.

In the second half, Saint John's cut its deficit to 46-40 with 13:53 remaining before Kirk exploded for all 12 points in a 12-0 run that lasted less than three minutes and gave the Oles their largest lead of the night at 58-40. St. Olaf maintained a double-digit lead until the final five minutes and made 9-of-12 free throws down the stretch to hold off the Johnnies. Kirk and Lamb combined for 26 second-half points for the Oles.

St. Olaf will be back at home on Monday, Dec. 8 for a 7 p.m. start against Augsburg University.