St. John's University Athletics
Hatten Leads St. John's to Sixth NIT Title
4/7/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Just over a month ago, the St. Johns mens basketball team was left for dead. The Red Storm were 12-12 when nationally-ranked Duke came to Madison Square Garden on March. In a game that was supposed to highlight Dukes readiness for the NCAA Tournament, St. Johns stole the show and upset the Blue Devils, 72-71, with senior guard Marcus Hatten (Baltimore, Md.) hitting a free throw with no time left to seal the win.
St. Johns proceeded to rattle off three wins after that before losing in the quarterfinals of the BIG EAST Tournament. And while an NCAA Tournament berth wasnt there, Head Coach Mike Jarvis and his team were eager to take their turn at the NIT. St. Johns reeled off four-straight wins against Boston University, Virginia, UAB and Texas Tech to advance to the programs ninth NIT Championship game.
It was Hatten, again, who led the charge for the Red Storm, scoring a team-high 22 points, including five three-pointers, as St. Johns came-from-behind to beat Georgetown, 70-67, in a thrilling game in front of 12,406 at Madison Square Garden Thursday night.
For St. Johns, it was the programs sixth NIT Championship, and its first since winning in 1989. For Hatten, it was his first championship of any kind in his last game in a St. Johns uniform.
At that time we were pronounced dead,'' St. John's coach Mike Jarvis said. This team did something very special.''
Boisterous St. John's fans rushed the court after the game as ``New York, New York'' played. Fans then crowded around Hatten and lifted him up on their shoulders. When Hatten was announced as the tournament MVP, fans chanted, ``Marcus Hatten!''
Afterward, St. John's cut down the nets and wore T-shirts that had ``6-time NIT champions'' on the back. There's no better feeling,'' Hatten said. Even if it's not an NCAA championship, it's an NIT championship. I'm just glad to be a part of history right now.'
Freshman guard Elijah Ingram (East Orange, N.J.) made two free throws with 4.1 seconds remaining to seal the game. Tony Bethel missed a 3-pointer that would have tied it as the buzzer sounded. No pressure, said Ingram, who added 19 points. I was looking forward to getting the ball and getting fouled.'
The game came down to the final two minutes. After the Hoyas (19-15) trailed for most of the second half, Bethel tied it at 67 with 1:27 remaining on a baseline jumper. Hatten made one of two free throws to give St. John's a 68-67 lead with 1:13 to go, but the Hoyas could not find Sweetney inside on the ensuing possession and Gerald Rileys jumper was off the mark. Ingram grabbed the rebound and was fouled, setting up his dramatics in the closing seconds.
St. John's won its first NIT title since 1989 and has the most victories in the tournament's history (45). The Red Storm expected to win another title, even posting a note in the locker room that said, "Know your ring size. St. John's goes for No. 6."
The Hoyas were up by as many as eight in the first half and led 38-34 at the break. But the Hoyas started the second half in a funk. It took nearly six minutes for them to score, and St. John's (21-13) took advantage. Hatten scored the Red Storm's first seven points, and they led 43-38 after a dunk by junior forward Grady Reynolds (Abbeyville, Ala.) five minutes into the half.
The Red Storm led by one, 53-52, when they used a mini 7-2 run, capped by a pair of Ingram free throws, to take a 60-54 lead with 7:40 remaining. Georgetown, however, charged back and tied the game on Bethels baseline jumper.
Our first-half defense gave up a lot of easy baskets," Hatten said. "All we wanted to do was limit those. We made everything difficult in the second half."
The Red Storm outrebounded Georgetown 43-34, including 20-8 on the offensive boards. Reynolds added 13 points.
Hatten finishes his two-year St. Johns career with 1,400 points, the 17th most in St. Johns history and the second-most in a two-year span. His career average of 21.2 is the best mark in school history. I kept having to wake myself up because I thought I was dreaming," Hatten said.
