St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
7-4
UMass
5-3
Lawrence, Spears Lift Red Storm Over Minutemen, 51-49
12/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 28, 2005
Box Score | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery
NEW YORK (AP) - Aaron Spears made a layup with 32 seconds left to give St. John's the lead, then blocked Massachusetts' final shot and the Red Storm beat the Minutemen 51-49 on Wednesday night to win the Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden for the second straight year.
Spears, a junior college transfer, scored on a pass inside from fellow big man Lamont Hamilton to break a 49-all tie. On Massachusetts' final attempt, guard Chris Lowe drove but Spears got a piece of the shot from behind and the buzzer sounded while there was a scramble for the rebound.
Hamilton had 12 points for the Red Storm (7-4), who were making their 40th appearance in the Christmas-week tournament. The win gave them a 64-39 overall record and a 13-11 record in championship games.
St. John's, which played both games without injured leading scorer Daryll Hill, beat then-No. 17 North Carolina State in last year's title game. Hill, averaging 13.7 points per game, reinjured his left knee in the loss at No. 1 Duke last week.
Stephane Lasme had 15 points for the Minutemen (5-4), who overcame a horrible first half to tie it twice in the last 3 minutes.
St. John's led 27-14 at halftime after Massachusetts went 5-for-27 from the field (18.5 percent).
Rashuan Freeman scored the first seven points of the second half and then assisted on Lasme's three-point play as the Minutemen got within 27-24. The Red Storm got the lead back to 45-37 on a layup by Eugene Lawrence with 8:16 to play, but Massachusetts answered with a 7-0 run capped by a 3-pointer by James Life with 6:19 left.
Lowe's short jumper with 2:06 left tied it at 49 and after an exchange of possessions, Spears, who finished with eight points, connected on the winning layup.
Massachusetts turned the ball over with 7.5 seconds left when Lasme was called for an illegal screen. The Red Storm didn't take advantage, however, as a crosscourt inbounds pass went out of bounds off Spears's hands with 6.5 to go.
Lawrence, selected the tournament MVP, finished with nine points, seven rebounds and four assists.
The Minutemen were trying to win their first regular-season tournament since the 1995 Rainbow Classic, the season they reached the Final Four. First-year coach Travis Ford was trying to become the first to win the Festival as a player and coach. He was the point guard on Kentucky's 1992 title team.
