Comeback Effort Falls Short against No. 15/17 DePaul, 74-69

Sunday, January 12

Chicago, Ill. (McGrath-Phillips Arena)

1:00 p.m.

St. John's University

10-7,3-3Big East

No. 15/17 DePaul

15-2,5-0Big East

St. John's (NY)

DePaul

Comeback Effort Falls Short against No. 15/17 DePaul, 74-69

1/12/2020 4:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Johnnies hold DePaul to its lowest field goal percentage of the season

By: Victoria Lanza

Trailing No. 15/17 DePaul by as many as 13 in the second quarter, the St. John's women's basketball team put forth a stellar comeback effort to claim the lead entering the final frame. The Blue Demons, however, outscored the Johnnies, 27-19, in the last stanza to cement a 74-69 victory on Sunday.

Coming into the game, DePaul (15-2, 5-0 BIG EAST) ranked first in the conference and third in the nation in scoring offense. The Red Storm locked in defensively, holding the Blue Demons to just 74 points to tie for their lowest scoring output of conference play. St. John's (10-7, 3-3 BIG EAST) also yielded DePaul to a 35 percent shooting performance from the floor, its fewest of the season.

Qadashah Hoppie, the Red Storm's leading scorer, paced the squad with 20 points on the afternoon. The Staten Island native has now finished with 20-plus points in seven games this season, including back-to-back contests with Marquette and DePaul.

Two other Johnnies reached double figures, as Alissa Alston finished just shy of 20 points, scoring 19 against the Blue Demons. Leilani Correa drained 16 points and tied Alisha Kebbe for team-best eight rebounds.

Tiana England, who ranks third in the league in assists, dished out a team-best eight dimes on the afternoon.

The top two offensive teams in the conference kicked off play doing what they do best, scoring. The Johnnies and the Blue Demons traded blows in the early going with the home team leading, 17-15, with just under five minutes to play.

With the Red Storm keeping it close for most of the first quarter, DePaul exploded down the stretch, unleashing a 9-0 run to take a double-digit lead, 26-15, after 10 minutes of action.

The home team turned it into an 11-0 run as Chante Stonewall converted on a jumper to begin the second. Alston responded, snapping the Johnnies' recent scoring drought with back-to-back buckets before assisting on a layup to Kebbe. Correa closed out the Red Storm's run with a buzzer-beating trey to trim the Red Storm's deficit back down to four with just under seven minutes to play in the half.

DePaul netted five quick points, extending its lead back up to nine, 33-24, before the Red Storm's defense locked in. The Johnnies held the nationally ranked Blue Demons scoreless over the next three minutes, using a 7-0 run of their own to make it a one possession game, 33-31.

DePaul outscored St. John's, 7-3, over the final few minutes to lead, 40-34, at the break. After 20 minutes of action, Correa led the team in scoring with 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the floor. Alston was not far behind, logging 12 first-half points, banking on five of her 10 tries from the field.

Coming out of the locker room, the Johnnies continued to fight, pulling the contest within four, 44-40, midway through the third quarter. The Red Storm's defense continued to hold the Blue Demons at bay, keeping DePaul without a field goal over the final 6:44 of the third stanza.

In the third quarter, the Johnnies held DePaul to just seven points for its lowest scoring performance in a 10-minute period all season.

Offensively, the Johnnies took off on a 9-1 run down the stretch, claiming their first lead since the early seconds of the opening quarter. Alston capped off the Red Storm's third-quarter surge with a beyond-the-arc shot for her third three of the afternoon, giving St. John's a 50-47 advantage after 30 minutes of action.

The two teams continued to battle into the fourth quarter with DePaul knotting the score twice in the opening 67 seconds. With under three minutes to play in regulation, the home team converted on four shots at the charity stripe to regain the lead, 65-61.

The Blue Demons never looked back, as the two teams turned in nine points apiece over the final few minutes with DePaul coming out on top.

The Johnnies will return to action on Friday afternoon when they welcome Providence to Carnesecca Arena for an 11 a.m. meeting, as part of the program's annual kid's day.