St. John’s Closes out the Decade with a 67-42 Victory at Butler

Tuesday, December 31

Indianapolis, Ind. (Hinkle Fieldhouse)

4:00 p.m.

St. John's University

9-4,2-0Big East

Butler

8-5,0-2Big East

St. John's (NY)

Butler

St. John’s Closes out the Decade with a 67-42 Victory at Butler

12/31/2019 6:37:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Hoppie ties for a career-high 24 points against the Bulldogs

By: Victoria Lanza

The St. John's women's basketball team put forth a stellar effort on Tuesday afternoon at Hinkle Fieldhouse, defeating the Butler Bulldogs, 67-42, in the team's final contest of the decade.

"Really pleased with our focus and energy tonight," Head Coach Joe Tartamella said. "Everyone contributed, and to get two wins on the road is always tough. We saw some great growth and we will need to continue to play with the same intensity and focus as we head into this homestand."

Qadashah Hoppie led the way offensively for the Johnnies, matching a career-high 24 points for her fifth 20-plus effort of the season. The Staten Island native converted on nine of her 12 tries from the floor, banking on a career-high six shots from beyond the arc. Hoppie has seen success against Butler over her Red Storm career, as her last 24-point performance also came against the Bulldogs a season ago.

Kadaja Bailey joined Hoppie in double figures with 11 points for St. John's. In addition, the sophomore guard grabbed four rebounds and dished out an assist on the afternoon.

As a team, St. John's (9-4, 2-0 BIG EAST) shot 46.3 percent from the field in the victory, knocking down nine triples. On the other end, the Red Storm held the Bulldogs to just 42 points and a 32.7 percent shooting clip, both of which were season-lows for St. John's opponents.

The Red Storm won the battle of the boards, pulling down 35 rebounds to the Bulldogs' 25. Alisha Kebbe, Tiana England and Raven Farley grabbed six boards apiece for the Johnnies.

Butler (8-5, 0-2 BIG EAST) jumped out to an early lead, knocking down the game's first five points. Hoppie finally snapped the Red Storm's scoreless drought at the 7:53 mark with a shot from deep to make it a one possession game, 5-3.

The two team's traded buckets over the next few minutes, as the tail end of the first frame featured three lead changes with the Johnnies ahead, 14-10, at the conclusion of the quarter.

Hoppie controlled the Red Storm's offense in the opening stanza, knocking down 11 of the team's 14 points on a 4-of-5 shooting clip and a 3-for-4 showing from three-point range.

The tradeoff continued into the second frame until Bailey went off for a 7-2 run of her own to give St. John's a 25-18 advantage midway through the quarter.

The Bulldogs began to chip away at the Johnnies' lead over the next few minutes, pulling the contest within four, 31-27, in the final seconds. With the clock winding down, Hoppie pulled up from downtown to beat the buzzer and drain her fourth triple of the half. With a team-high 16 points from the junior guard, the Red Storm entered the locker room leading, 34-27, after 20 minutes of action.

The Bulldogs came out of the intermission and made their first bucket of the half, trimming St. John's lead to five, 34-29. Hoppie continued to light it up from beyond the arc, knocking down a triple that ignited a 19-1 run for St. John's. The visiting team's offensive surge was an all-around team effort, as six different Johnnies registered points to give St. John's a commanding 23-point lead, 53-30, after 30 minutes of play.

St. John's continued its run into the final quarter as Unique Drake made a drive to the basket extending its lead to 25, 55-30. Butler began to battle over the remainder of the fourth quarter but could not complete the comeback as the Johnnies outscored the Bulldogs, 14-12, in the final 10 minutes.

The Red Storm will return home to Carnesecca Arena on Friday night for its BIG EAST home opener with Georgetown. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. on BEDN.