St. John's University Athletics
Cook Leads St. Johns to 86-80 Win in Exhibition
11/3/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Red Storm started three freshman Cook, guard Willie Shaw (Bronx, N.Y./John F. Kennedy) and forward Kyle Cuffe (Bronx, N.Y./Rice) along with senior forward Reggie Jessie (Queensbridge, N.Y./Bishop Loughlin) and junior forward Anthony Glover (Bronx, N.Y./Rice). St. Johns also had five reserves play at least six minutes, as Head Coach Mike Jarvis gave a young, but talented team, its first game experience.
Early in the first half, the Red Storm held the lead, but the All-Stars, led by former Georgia Tech star Drew Barry, kept pace and tied the game on three occasions. At the 11:31 mark, however, Cook took over, scoring 14 points during a 19-9 run over an 8:13 span, giving the Red Storm a 36-26 lead. St. Johns led 40-35 at the break. In the second half, Cook got his teammates involved, dishing out seven assists, as St. Johns took its biggest lead, 57-42, on a jumper by Jessie with 13:33 left to play. The Red Storm maintained the lead, connecting on 52.8 percent of their field goals in the second half (19-of-36).
Led by Barry, who scored 22 points, taking all of his shots from three-point land (6-of-15), the All-Stars cut the deficit below 10 points, but it was not enough. Former Stanford star Kris Weems scored 19 points.
I had a good night, Cook said afterward. I was looking to come out and contribute. These guys Coach Jarvis, Reggie and Glover helped me along and picked me up when I was down. I dont need to worry about mistakes as much when theyre out there.
Jessie finished the night with 17 points and seven rebounds, while Shaw and Glover each chipped in 10 points. Sophomore Alpha Bangura (Lanham, Md./Roosevelt) added six points, sophomore Abe Keita (Tolland, Conn./Winchendon [Mass.] Academy) chipped in four points, while juniors Sharif Fordham (Far Rockaway, N.Y./Milford Academy) and Donald Emanuel (Houston, Texas/Jones) each scored three points. For the game, the Red Storm connected on 43.2 percent of their field goals (32-of-74), and controlled the boards, outrebounding the All-Stars 42-39. Led by Cook, the team connected on 36.4 percent of its three-point shots (8-of-22), recorded 12 assists, 26 steals and only 10 turnovers, while forcing 26. St. Johns connected on only 60.9 percent of its free throw attempts (14-of-23).
Were not going to see many teams that has two or three great shooters like they do with Barry and (Kris) Weems, Jarvis said. Weve got to be very aggressive. We missed some defensive assignmentsall the little things that come with playing more games.
St. Johns, the defending BIG EAST Tournament Champions, open the regular season on Thursday, November 9, playing Kentucky in the opening round of the Coaches vs. Cancer Ikon Classic at Madison Square Garden.
