St. John’s Fights, but Falls to No. 2 UConn, 65-55

Friday, November 23

St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands

7:30 P.M.

St. John's University

3-1

No. 2 University of Connecticut

4-0

UCONN

St. John's

St. John’s Fights, but Falls to No. 2 UConn, 65-55

11/24/2018 12:13:00 AM | Women's Basketball

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Johnnies give Huskies their toughest test of the season

By: Victoria Lanza

The St. John's women's basketball team handed No. 2 UConn its toughest test of the young season but fell short, 65-55, to the Huskies on Friday evening at the Paradise Jam.

"We showed a lot of heart tonight against one of the best teams in the country," St. John's Women's Basketball Coach Joe Tartamella said. "We will take this and continue to improve as we get ready for our game tomorrow night."

The St. John's defense continued to be a key component in the its battle with the nationally ranked Huskies, as this was just the fifth time in the last four seasons that UConn has been held to less than 70 points in a game. The Red Storm contained the Huskies to a 43.8 (21-of-48) shooting clip from the field for UConn's lowest of the season.

St. John's saw four players finish in double figures for the second-straight game. Stamford, Conn., native Tiana England paced the team with 13 points, six assists and six rebounds in 40 minutes of action.

Alisha Kebbe netted 12 points, shooting 5-of-10 from the field. BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year Kadaja Bailey was just shy of notching her second double-double, recording 11 points and nine rebounds in the toughest battle of her young career. Qadashah Hoppie rounded out the double-digit scoring for the Red Storm with 10 points. The sophomore also added a trio of assists.

The Johnnies proved that they can compete at the highest level, and they did so early delivering a stellar first half effort. St. John's outscored the Huskies, 16-12, in the first 10 minutes of action becoming the first team to do so since Notre Dame outplayed them en route to a 91-89 victory in the 2017-18 NCAA Semifinals.

UConn got on the board first with a three-pointer on its opening possession, but St. John's wasted little time on the response. Just seconds later, Hoppie answered with back-to-back shots, including one from deep to give the Johnnies their first lead of the game, 5-3. The Huskies would jump ahead for the last time in the first quarter at the 6:15 mark before Kebbe netted back-to-back attempts from downtown to give the Red Storm an 11-6 advantage halfway through the opening frame. UConn hit four shots from the charity strip to pull the game within one but the Johnnies continued to battle on both sides of the ball as Hoppie and Bailey executed shots over the final seconds of the first quarter to send St. John's into the second with a 16-12 edge.

UConn opened up the second stanza with a pair of shots to knot the game at 16. Just seconds later Curteeona Brelove put up a jumper to help St. John's get back on top with a two-point advantage, 18-16, at the 8:12 mark. The Red Storm then buckled down defensively and held the Huskies scoreless for nearly three minutes before UConn rattled off a 10-0 run to take control of lead, 26-18. The Johnnies continued to fight, taking off on a 5-0 tear over the final minutes of the first half to cut the Huskies' lead to four at the intermission, 29-25.

Coming out of the break, England made a drive through traffic to make it a one-score game. UConn added three more points to its lead before the Johnnies embarked on a 6-0 run to lead, 33-32. The Huskies added four more points to the scoreboard before the Johnnies connected on back-to-back jumpers by Kebbe and Hoppie as St. John's led 37-36, with 5:13 left in the third quarter. The two programs continued to trade off buckets over the final minutes, to enter the fourth quarter knotted at 47.

With 10 minutes to play, Bailey fired off back-to-back shots setting the Johnnies up for a 51-47 lead early in the fourth quarter. However just as the momentum seemed to be on St. John's side, The Huskies made a pair of 8-0 runs over the final 10 minutes of action to ultimately lift UConn to a 10–point victory.

The Johnnies will wrap up play at the Paradise Jam tomorrow evening as the Red Storm takes on SEC foe Ole Miss at 5:30 p.m. ET. This will mark the second all-time meeting between the two teams, with the Rebels winning the last contest, 62-56, in 1992. Ole Miss is currently 0-2 at the Paradise Jam, most recently coming off a 70-59 loss to Purdue.