Box Score (PDF)
QUEENS, N.Y. – Sophomore G D'Angelo Harrison scored 14 of his game-high 21 points after the break as St. John's erased a 14-point, second-half deficit for a 57-49 win over NJIT on Saturday at Carnesecca Arena. The win was the Red Storm's fourth in a row and snapped the Highlanders (4-3) winning streak at three.
St. John's (5-2) outscored NJIT in the second period by a 34-14 margin. The ferocious comeback was fueled by a second-half 33-21 rebounding edge -- which included 15 offensive boards – and the Red Storm's ability to hold the Highlanders to 6-30 shooting (20 percent) in the final 20 minutes.
"I thought we played very well and defended well in the first half, but their athletic ability seemed to wear us down in the second half." said Head Coach
Jim Engles, who grew up in Staten Island as a St. John's fan. "I thought we did a really nice job in the first half getting out in transition. But we didn't get enough clean stops in the second half to continue getting easy baskets in transition. They defended well and increased their activity on the glass."
Harrison entered the game as the second-leading scorer in the BIG EAST at 21.9 points per game -- a figure that ranked 21st in the nation.
Freshman F JaKarr Sampson also added 15 points and a game-high 17 rebounds – 12 in the second stanza – for his first career double-double. The 6-8 reining BIG EAST Rookie of the Week has averaged 15.0 ppg in his last six affairs.
NJIT was led by senior F
Ryan Woods, who netted 16 points to go along with eight rebounds and a career-high four blocks. Two other Highlanders scored in double-digits, as senior G
Chris Flores finished with 10 points and a game-high six assists and freshman
Terrence Smith registered the first double-double of his career with 10 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. The 6-6 Floridian also paced NJIT with a career-high four blocks.
The Highlanders, who led by a 35-23 score at halftime, tallied the first two points of the second half to go up by a game-high 14 points at 19:30. But the Red Storm erupted after that, going on a 19-5 run to take a two-point lead at 42-40 with 12:33 remaining. The run, which featured an 11-0 spurt during a 2:42 span, gave St. John's its first lead since a 10-8 advantage that was lost with 11:14 left in the opening period.
At that point, down 10-8, a Woods layup tied the game and a jumper 15 seconds later by Smith – both buckets assisted by Flores -- gave NJIT a 12-10 lead. After St. John's tied the game on a layup, NJIT went on a run of its own to build a lead that would last the next 16 minutes of the contest.
It started when Flores got into the scoring act, himself. The conference's leading scorer nailed back-to-back three-pointers and had eight of his 10 total points during a 14-3 run that put the Highlanders up by a then game-high 11 points, 26-15, with 5:26 left in the first. Up by nine exactly five minutes later, a third three-pointer by Woods gave the Highlanders a 12-point lead going into the half.
After that, the Red Storm defense flexed its muscle, holding Woods to five points in the second half and Flores to just one.
The nation's second-most prolific shot-blocking team also rejected nine attempts in the second period. St. John's finished with 12 blocks in the game – tying its season-high against Detroit on Nov. 13 and finishing one away from the program record of 13 set back in 1982. The Red Storm entered the day averaging 8.3 blocks per game, trailing just Kansas (8.8) in the D-I ranks.
Five of the blocks were credited to freshman F Chris Obeckpa, who entered the game third in the nation at 4.3 blocks per game. Starting at 3:24 remaining, the Nigerian also added four-straight points – including a thunderous dunk that brought the 4,314 fans to their feet – to extend the lead to five and help seal the victory.
The Highlanders are now 0-3 all-time against the Red Storm, with all three games being played in Queens. However, this one was much closer than an 18-point defeat in 2006 and the 28-point loss in 2008. In fact, the third installment of this rivalry featured seven score ties and 10 lead changes.
Although NJIT is winless in two tries against the BIG EAST this season, the Highlanders have lost by a total of nine points – with both contests occurring on the road. Previously, the Highlanders dropped their opener at Providence College, 64-63, on Nov. 10.
In fact, the Highlanders have only lost by a total of 12 points in their three losses this season, with all three defeats coming on the road. In those games, the Highlanders have had to work around a 72-38 foul deficit – which included a 24-12 mark on Saturday.
The Highlanders will next play the second of back-to-back BIG EAST road games against Seton Hall (4-2) on Tuesday in Newark. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Prudential Center.
Write-up courtesy of Matt Provence
