St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
(14-4, 5-2BE)
Villanova
(12-6, 6-2BE)
St. John's Falls to Villanova, 58-54
1/17/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
VILLANOVA, Pa. - Despite shooting 49 percent from the floor and forcing one of the nation's best ball-handling team into 11 turnovers, St. John's fell to Villanova on Sunday afternoon by a score of 58-54 at The Pavilion.
The Red Storm had trouble keeping the Wildcats off the offensive glass, as Villanova's 15 offensive rebounds led to 20 second-chance points. Overall, St. John's lost the battle of the boards, 33-23.
Danaejah Grant led the way for the Red Storm in the loss, tallying 20 points on nine-of-13 shooting from the floor. The senior from Piscataway, N.J., knocked down her lone three-point attempt and added two steals.
Jade Walker also finished in double figures, registering 14 points to go along with three boards.
Aliyyah Handford and Aaliyah Lewis each recorded eight points and three assists for the Red Storm. Sunday marked only the third time this season that Handford has failed to reach double figures in the scoring column.
Freshman Akina Wellere played solidly in 29 minutes of action, grabbing five boards and dishing out three assists. Imani Littleton also pulled down four boards for the Red Storm.
Villanova, who now sits at 5-2 in BIG EAST play, has beaten DePaul, Seton Hall and St. John's in its last three contests. All three of those opponents are ranked or receiving votes in the national polls.
St. John's came out firing to start the game, taking a 6-1 lead less than three minutes into the contest. Handford registered a fast-break layup and an assist during that stretch.
Villanova quickly battled back, using an 11-2 run to take a 14-10 lead following a Samantha Wilkes and-one with 1:55 remaining in the opening quarter.
After one quarter, the Wildcats led the Red Storm by a score of 16-13.
Grant kicked off the scoring in the second period, draining a three-ball from the top of the key to knot the count at 16.
The Red Storm regained the lead, 17-16, on a Lewis free throw just over a minute later, and held that advantage for nearly three minutes before Caroline Coyer put the Wildcats back on top, 23-21, with four and a half minutes to go in the half.
Following a Walker jumper to tie the game at 23, Villanova rattled off six unanswered to take its largest lead of the game at that point, 29-23, with 2:35 remaining until the break. The Wildcats carried that margin into the intermission, leading the Red Storm, 33-27, after two quarters.
The Red Storm shot 55 percent to the Wildcats' 42 percent in the first half, but Villanova pulled down eight offensive rebounds that led to 12 second-chance points. The Red Storm, on the other hand, had just two offensive boards for four points.
St. John's rattled off the second half's first four points, cutting the deficit to just two, 33-31, less than a minute into the action.
Up 37-33 a few minutes later, Villanova kicked off a 7-0 run, moving ahead by 11, 44-33, with 4:21 to go in the third quarter.
Facing its largest deficit of the game, the Red Storm did not back down, outscoring the Wildcats 8-3 the rest of the way to enter the final period down by six, 47-41.
Walker netted the fourth quarter's first basket to narrow the disadvantage to four, 47-43, but the Wildcats repelled the Red Storm's advances for the next eight minutes, as St. John's got within four on three occasions but could not get any closer.
The Red Storm finally got within three, 57-54, on a Lewis layup with 1:20 to play.
St. John's came up with a stop on the ensuing possession and gave the Red Storm an opportunity to tie the game in the closing minute. Unfortunately, St. John's could not find the bottom of the bucket and Villanova escaped with a 58-54 victory.
The Red Storm will be back in action at Carnesecca Arena next weekend, hosting Butler on Friday night before facing off against Xavier on Sunday afternoon.
