St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
3-0
Marist
0-3
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. John's | 22 | 27 | 49 |
| Marist | 18 | 30 | 48 |
St. John's Tops Marist on The Road, 49-48
11/24/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - Playing in the home of the 11-time defending MAAC Regular-Season Champions, the St. John's Red Storm earned a resume-building road victory on Monday night, topping the Red Foxes, 49-48, at McCann Arena.
"I thought we showed tremendous resilience in winning tonight," said head coach Joe Tartamella. "This is a great win for our program on the road against a perennial mid-major power in Marist. I'm incredibly proud of our effort."
Amber Thompson tied a career-high with 17 rebounds in the victory, the last of which led to a crucial put-back in the closing minutes of the contest. Aided by 12 additional rebounds from Aliyyah Handford, the Red Storm (3-0) topped Marist (0-3) on the boards, 47-41.
Jade Walker paced the Red Storm with 14 points on 6-10 shoot and eight rebounds. Danaejah Grant also finished in double figures for St. John's, highlighted by the game-clinching shot in the final minute.
Aaliyah Lewis added eight points, six of which came on a pair of crucial three-pointers during the second half.
The Red Strom started off the contest with a hot hand, converting of five of its first eight field goal attempts to take a 10-4 lead at the game's first media timeout. Four different members of the Red Storm scored during that stretch.
Out of the stoppage, Thompson made sure that all five starters found their way onto the score sheet, giving the Red Storm a 12-4 lead with a floater in the lane.
The Red Storm continued to build its lead over the next several minutes, as eight-straight points from Walker made it 20-9 in favor of St. John's with just over nine minutes remaining in the half.
St. John's would lead by as many as 13 following an Imani Littleton layup off a feed from Grant less than two minutes later, but the shots soon stopped falling. Marist held St. John's off the board for the final 7:27 of the half, cutting the halftime deficit to just four, 22-18.
Despite the drop in offensive production, the Red Storm still held the lead as a result of its stellar defensive effort, limiting Marist to just 24 percent shooting in the opening half.
Marist came out of the locker room on fire, using a pair of threes to tie the contest at 26 just over three minutes into the half. The Red Storm quickly shored up its defense, holding Marist off the board for four minutes and taking a 30-26 lead at the 13:40 mark off a Thompson layup.
Down four, the Red Foxes began another steady run, outscoring St. John's 5-0 over the course of the next four minutes and taking their first lead of the game, 31-30, at the midway mark of the half.
The Red Foxes extended their lead to three less than a minute later and maintained an advantage in that range over the next several minutes of play. Madeline Blais bumped the Marist lead to six on an old-fashioned three-point play with 6:49 to go, but Lewis responded with a three-pointer on the Red Storm's next possession to narrow the Red Fox advantage back to three. Less than a minute later, Handford drove to the basket and converted, making it one-point game in favor of Marist.
A Marist free throw soon bumped the lead to two, 40-38, but Walker tied it up with a layup through contact and Grant gave the Red Storm its first lead in over six minutes with a jumper at 3:53.
The Red Storm would extend its lead to as many as four on a Lewis three-pointer with 2:50 to go, but Sydney Coffey rattled off four points in just 23 seconds to tie the game for the Red Foxes with 2:18 left on the clock.
On the ensuing possession for St. John's, Thompson pulled down an offensive board and recorded two hard-fought, second-chance points, giving the Red Storm a two-point edge, 47-45.
Over the next minute, the Red Foxes hit three free throws, moving ahead by one, 48-47, with a minute to go. Coming out of a timeout, the Red Storm ran a play for Grant, who nailed a jumper in the paint and gave St. John's a one-point lead with 42 seconds remaining on the clock.
The Red Storm got a stop on the ensuing Marist possession, forcing the Red Foxes to foul with less than 30 seconds remaining. With a chance to ice the game, the Red Storm missed a pair of free throws, giving the Red Foxes one last shot. As the buzzer sounded, a Brittni Lai layup fell off the rim, clinching the 49-48 Red Storm victory.
St. John's will next take the court on Friday, playing host to Binghamton at 2 p.m. in Carnesecca Arena.
