St. John’s Shocks No. 4/5 UConn, 69-64

Tuesday, February 21

Hartford, Conn. (XL Center)

7 P.M.

St. John's University

20-7,11-7Big East

No. 4/5 Connecticut

24-5,16-2Big East

St. John's (NY)

UConn

2/22/2023 12:47:00 AM | Women's Basketball

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Red Storm earn their highest ranked win since Feb. 18, 2012

HARTFORD, Conn.— On a Tuesday night at the XL Center, the St. John's women's basketball prevailed in a monumental upset of No. 4/5 UConn, 69-64.

The marquee victory over the perennial power was the highest ranked win the program has had since it last beat then-No. 2 UConn, 57-56, on Feb. 18, 2012.

The crucial win advanced the Red Storm to an overall record of 20-7, the first 20-win season the program has logged since the 2016-17 campaign.

"It makes a huge impact for our program. Anytime you get a win over a top ten or top five team, especially on the road, it means a tremendous amount for the work these kids have put in," Head Coach Joe Tartamella said. "To see their enjoyment in the locker room is special as a coach.

Kadaja Bailey and Danielle Patterson led the charge for the Johnnies' tying for a game-high 20 points.

Patterson registered her highest scoring total this season and matched a career-high with the impressive offensive performance. The graduate student matched a career-best going 3-for-4 from beyond-the-arc.

Bailey reached the 20-point threshold since the season-opener against Monmouth on Nov. 7, 2022. The program record holder for most games played was clutch down the stretch, sinking 4-of-6 attempts from the charity stripe in the final 30 seconds to seal the victory.

Jayla Everett came up big in the road win finishing with 17 points and tied a career-high of eight rebounds. The shooting guard made a crucial pull-up jumper with :50 remaining on the clock. The redshirt senior registered game-high's with six assists and four steals.

Everett, Bailey and Patterson combined for 57 of St. John's 69 points (82.6 percent) at the XL Center.

Rayven Peeples pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds and played a key role defensively in the upset conference victory.

The Red Storm defense held the Huskies, who came into the game ranking second in the nation In field goal percentage (50.2) to just 22-for-62 (36.2 percent) from the field.

A Bailey 3-pointer got the Red Storm on the board first, nailing a triple for the first points of the game. The redshirt senior was on fire in the first 10 minutes, scoring 11 points in the initial frame.

In the opening moments of the second quarter, St. John's sprung out to its largest lead of the game a nine-point advantage, 24-15, after Patterson drilled an open triple from the top of the key. The triple marked makes from downtown on five of the first eight St. John's attempts

UConn (24-5, 16-2 BIG EAST) slowly closed the gap as a 3-pointer from Dorka Juhasz made it a one-possession game, 33-30. On its final offensive possession of the first half, Unique Drake threw a long pass into the post to Danielle Cosgrove, who finished a smooth lay-in to make it, 35-30 heading into the break.

The third quarter was one of runs as the contest swung back-and-forth. The Huskies charged back spurring a 13-0 run to open the second half and took their largest lead of the game, 43-35. The Red Storm responded as an Everett 3-pointer started an 8-0 run of their own which was finished off by a lay-up through contact from Drake to tie the game. In the final play of the third, Everett finished an and-one to take the lead back, 51-48, heading into the final 10 minutes.

In the final stanza, both teams were scoreless for the first 2:41 before a big time triple from Bailey propelled the Johnnies advantage back to six, 54-48. The Huskies continued to hang around and a quick 4-0 spurt made it just a two-point game, 62-60, with 2:09 to go. The Red Storm called on its leading scorer, Everett, to make the play and end a field goal drought that spanned nearly four minutes. The guard drove to the basket and sunk home a pull-up jumper over the outstretched arm of the 6-foot-5 Juhasz to put the squad up, 64-60, with under a minute to play.

UConn continued to keep it close as a Juhasz lay-up made it a one-possession game, 67-64. Bailey was clutch in sealing the victory knocking down a pair of free throws in the final 23 seconds.  Everett intercepted a pass with 10 seconds to go that led to Bailey's final make from the line to move the score line to 69-64 and earn the Johnnies' first top-five victory in over a decade.

The Red Storm will return home for Senior Night on Friday when it meets Georgetown at 7 p.m. Six players will be honored prior to the game at Carnesecca Arena.