St. John’s Falls to IUPUI, 85-78, on Saturday at Cox Pavilion

Saturday, November 30

Las Vegas, Nev. (Cox Pavilion)

4:30 p.m. ET

St. John's University

4-2,0-0Big East

IUPUI

3-3,0-0Horizon

IUPUI

St. John's (NY)

St. John’s Falls to IUPUI, 85-78, on Saturday at Cox Pavilion

11/30/2019 8:22:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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Alissa Alston records a team-high 18 points in Red Storm’s setback

By: Victoria Lanza

Despite an 18-point performance from Alissa Alston, the St. John's women's basketball team fell short to IUPUI, 85-78, on Saturday at Cox Pavilion.

St. John's (4-2) will play UNLV (1-4) in the tournament's consolation game at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Alston scored 12 of her team-high 18 points in the opening half to lead the Johnnies in double figures. The redshirt senior knocked down seven of her 11 attempts from the field converting all three of her tries from distance.

Qadashah Hoppie tallied 14 points to go along with a team-high six assists. Emma Nolan finished in double figures for the second-straight game with 12 points, converting on six of her seven attempts from the charity stripe.

Kadaja Bailey added 10 points and three rebounds for the Red Storm, while Leilani Correa pulled down a team-high eight boards.

The early going was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams before the Johnnies unleashed a 6-0 run to take a 13-7 lead with just under six minutes to play in the opening stanza. The tradeoff began again down the stretch of the first quarter with the Johnnies leading, 20-18, after 10 minutes of action.

IUPUI jumped ahead, 21-20, with a shot from distance to kick off the second quarter. The two programs traded blows over the next several minutes before Sophia Nolan drained a shot from deep to put the St. John's back on top, 27-26, with just under six minutes to play in the half. The Red Storm's lead was short lived, as the Jags made one last push to take a 42-38 advantage at the intermission.

After 20 minutes of action, Alston paced the way for the Red Storm with 12 points, knocking down five of her six tries from the field including a perfect 2-for-2 from deep. The two programs saw 11 lead changes and three ties in the first half alone.

On the other end of the break, the Johnnies continued to chip away at the Jags' lead, pulling the game within one, 48-47, at the 6:18 mark. The Jaguars would not let the Johnnies get any closer as they continued to build upon their advantage, taking a 64-60 edge after 30 minutes of action.

The duo of Hoppie and Tiana England converted on a pair of early attempts from the field to start the fourth quarter and tie the game at 64 but that was as close as the Johnnies would get, as IUPUI cemented the victory.

The St. John's women's basketball team will return to action tomorrow in the consolation game against UNLV. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. ET and will be available to live stream via YouTube.