Published: February 17, 2007
QUEENS, N.Y.
Sophomore Monique McLean drained a 3-pointer
with two minutes remaining in the game that reclaimed the lead for
St. John’s and helped the Red Storm rally past Cincinnati, 72-66,
Saturday at Carnesecca Arena.
St. John’s (8-16, 4-9), which led by as many as 16 points early
in the second half, found itself forced to play catch-up when
Cincinnati went on a late 18-1 run to take a 64-60 lead with under
five minutes left to play.
After a driving jumpshot by Kia Wright pulled
the Red Storm within two, 64-62, Carla Jacobs turned the ball over
for the Bearcats to give St. John’s the ball back. On the ensuing
play, Tiina Sten found an open McLean on the wing,
and the Red Storm’s leading scorer knocked down the trey to put St.
John’s ahead, 65-64.
Another Bearcat turnover helped the Red Storm’s momentum, and
the next time down the floor Sten was on the receiving end of an
open look and drained a baseline jumper to give the Red Storm some
breathing room, 67-64, with 1:35 to play.
Wright hit clutch free throws down the stretch and the Red Storm
hung on for a 72-66 victory. The senior point guard finished with a
game-high 22 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals.
She was 10-for-12 from the free throw line.
McLean, meanwhile, scored in double figures for the
14th-straight game by netting 17 points. Angel
Tate contributed 12 points and eight rebounds and hit a
layup late in the game that helped seal the victory. Sten was the
fourth Red Storm player in double figures with 13 points and seven
rebounds.
For Cincinnati (13-12, 4-9), Shelly Bellman led the team with 16
points and eight rebounds.
St. John’s led 37-25 at halftime, in part due to Cincinnati’s
sluggish start. The Bearcats started the game 3-28 from the field
and didn’t hit their first field goal until over four minutes had
expired. For the half, UC shot 19.5 percent from the field,
compared to the Red Storm’s 39 percent.
The win, the Red Storm’s fourth in BIG EAST play, moved St.
John’s into 11th place in the league standings and kept hope alive
for a conference tournament berth. Next up for St. John’s is a
nationally televised contest at Louisville on Tuesday, Feb. 20.
Tipoff is 8 p.m.
NOTES
For the first time this season, the Red Storm was able to earn a
victory despite trailing at the 5:00 mark … Monique
McLean scored in double figures for the 14th straight game
… Kia Wright had her third 20-point game of the
season … the senior moved into a tie for 10th place on St. John’s
all-time charts with 1,119 career points … St. John’s improved to
2-0 all-time vs. Cincinnati.