COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. — Bethel University Basketball dropped their second straight game Saturday afternoon against Saint John's University. The Royals (4-2, 0-2 MIAC) suffered a 63-79 loss to the Johnnies (4-1, 1-0 MIAC) and still remain in search of their first conference victory.

SJU opened the game on a 12-4 run but the Royals followed that with a 13-6 run of their own, taking a 18-17 lead with 8:02 remaining in the first half. The Johnnies ended the half on a 23-8 run and took a 14-point lead into the break. SJU shot 60.0 percent from deep in the first 20 minutes. Bethel was unable to get it going in the second half as the Johnnies held a double digit lead the rest of the game. Their largest lead being 21 points which they held three different times with under five minutes left.

The Royals were led by their sixth man, Matt Ambriz. The junior guard had 19 points including 5 three pointers. Derek Magnuson and SJU's Tyler Weiss battled in the paint all afternoon. Magnuson put up 16 points, came down with seven rebounds and blocked two shots. Weiss had 15 points and 12 boards. Granger Kingland had 13 points and Bridgeport Tusler scored nine points and had 5 rebounds. SJU had five players in double figures including 12 points off the bench from Brent Hentges.

Both teams received a big boost from their bench, but the Royals edged the Johnnies 23-21 in bench points. The Royals also had more offensive rebounds which led to a 16-13 advantage in second chance points. However, overall BU was outrebounded 28-35. Bethel was held to 37.5 percent shooting and 40.0 percent from beyond the arc. SJU had a 40-24 advantage in points in the paint.

Bethel returns home to play the University of St. Thomas Wednesday, December 6 at 7 p.m. Both teams look to bounce back from losses as Hamline beat UST 69-61 on Saturday. The Royals also hope to get their first conference win of the season.