The High Point guard who became one of the biggest stories of March Madness in his teams shocking win as an underdog says he chose his unique No. 99 as a subtle way to share the gospel and represent Christ on the court.
Chase Johnston scored 14 points – including 11 in the final five minutes – to help lift 12th-seeded High Point to an 83-82 win over fifth-seeded Wisconsin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, marking the first tourney victory in school history.
Johnston finished the game four of six on three-pointers, including a lengthy logo shot in transition that cut Wisconsin’s lead to five points with 4:52 left in the game. Johnston’s layup with 11 seconds left – incredibly, his first two-point basket of the season – gave High Point the lead.
“First and foremost, I just want to give all glory to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It’s been an unbelievable season,” an enthusiastic Johnston told TBS after the game. “…We serve each other, we love each other, and we’d die for each other. I’m so grateful.”
He also wrote “Acts 20:24” on the backs of his shoes.
A 6-foot-3 senior guard, Johnston averaged 6.4 points per game as a key reserve during the regular season – but on Thursday was the difference-maker.
He changed his number from 2 to 99 during the offseason as an expression of his faith.
“It has everything to do with Jesus leaving the 99 to find the one,” he said during a separate interview. “I was trying to find any other way to share the gospel, and 99 came to my mind.
“It’s a unique number. Not a lot of people wear it. So I chose that because there’s two parables in the Bible where Jesus is talking to His disciples, and He gives a story of a man who has 99 sheep. He leaves those 99 righteous sheep to find that one lost sheep that went away. And he finds more joy in finding that one lost sheep that came back home than the 99 that remained righteous. That’s the gospel right – we are all sinners. We are dead in our sin. And Jesus Christ left the 99 – He went to the cross humbly. He became a slave for us. …He died on the cross for our sins.”
His number, 99, “represents our calling as Christians to go out and proclaim the gospel to the lost ones, and the gospel that Christ went to the cross and died for us,” Johnston added.
Johnston has continued to point to his faith since the game. Hours after the big win, he wrote on X/Twitter that High Point is a team “truly built on John 15:13.” He added, “2,000 years ago Jesus Christ went to the cross for our sake and showed us what true sacrifice and servanthood is. He laid down His life for ours.”