St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
11-10, 5-4
Georgetown
13-10, 4-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | OT 1 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgetown | 25 | 40 | 7 | 72 |
| St. John's | 34 | 31 | 11 | 76 |
St. John's Downs Georgetown In Overtime, 76-72
2/9/2013 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 9, 2013
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QUEENS, N.Y. - With four St. John's players in double figures, led by senior guard Shenneika Smith's 26, the Red Storm topped the visiting Georgetown Hoyas in overtime, 76-72, at Carnesecca Arena on Saturday afternoon.
"It's nice to be on the other end of this one today," remarked head coach Joe Tartamella. "We had some tough ones in the beginning of the year. I told them in the locker room, that this was such an important step for us as a team. They really came together and I told them this is a very big first step for us, especially a home win in our conference. We couldn't be prouder of the entire group."
A 3-pointer by Georgetown's Katie McCormick put the Hoyas ahead by two, 65-63, with 38 seconds left in regulation. Smith answered in the paint with a layup over two Hoya defenders taking 20 seconds off the clock. The Red Storm defense picked up the pressure and held Georgetown to an off-balance shot attempt by senior Sugar Rodgers with one second left. The rebound was picked up by no one as it bounced on the court and the buzzer sounded.
In overtime, the Hoyas took the first lead with two made free throws from Dominique Vitalis. On the Red Storm end, junior guard Briana Brown answered with a 3-ball assisted by Smith.
More free throws from Georgetown put the Hoyas ahead by one again, 69-68, with 4:05 remaining; but Smith answered again with a layup fed by senior guard Nadirah McKenith.
After a missed layup by Rodgers, Vitalis fouled Red Storm rookie guard Aliyyah Handford who was going in for a layup. Handford made both shots to put St. John's ahead by three, 72-69 with three minutes remaining in the extra period.
Another missed jumper by Georgetown was picked up by Smith on a defensive board. She got the ball to McKenith who set up Brown for another 3-pointer, extending the Red Storm lead to six, 75-69, with 2:10 on the clock.
This time, Rodgers answered with a 3 of her own and the Hoyas cut the Red Storm lead to three, 75-72.
With 1:14 left St. John's missed two opportunities to score, but kept up the defense on the other side of the court as the Red Storm forced forward Vanessa Moore into taking an off-balance 3-point shot attempt as time expired on the shot clock.
St. John's had possession with 16 seconds left and Georgetown was forced to foul. McKenith went to the line and made the first but missed the second icing the game for the Red Storm.
Along with Smith's 26 points, McKenith, Brown and Handford also added double-figure scoring. McKenith had a near triple-double with 16 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds. It was her second double-double of the season. Brown added 12 points, shooting 4-for-8 from the 3-point line, her second-straight game with four 3's. Handford had 10 points, helped by 8-for-8 shooting from the foul line. The rookie also added eight rebounds.
The Red Storm's 76 points were a season-high, as well as the 20-for-22 shooting from the free throw line (.909).
It was the fifth time a St. John's-Georgetown game went to overtime. St. John's is 4-1 when playing the Hoyas in extra minutes.
In the first half, Georgetown led by seven, 23-16, with 7:41 left in the period. St. John's went on an 18-2 run to take a 34-25 lead at the half.
In the second half, St. John's scored the first five points, capped by a 3-pointer by Brown, to lead by 14, 39-25.
The Hoyas cut the led to three by the 14:25 mark, 41-38, after a layup by Brittany Horne.
St. John's went back up by nine, 48-39, after two free throws by Handford and stayed ahead by 10 with 7:13 left in regulation.
Georgetown battled back and cut St. John's lead to three, 63-60, with 3:39 left after a jumper by Rodgers, who finished the contest with a game-best 29 points.
Next up, St. John's will travel to USF. The game was originally schedule for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 12. However, it has been postponed to Wednesday at 4 p.m. due to Winter Storm Nemo. Please check RedStormSports.com for more details on the change.
