St. John's Falls, Probably Ending NCAA Hopes
A furious second-half comeback by St. John's was not enough, as the Red Storm fell to Providence, 79-74, most likely ending their bid for an N.C.A.A. tournament appearance.
St. John's fell into a deep hole early in the second half and trailed by as much as 17 with 6 minutes 24 seconds remaining. Spurred by D'Angelo Harrison, though, the Red Storm went on an almost improbable 22-6 run to cut Providence's lead to 1 in the final minute.
Forward JaKarr Sampson missed a layup with 38.6 seconds remaining that could have given St. John's the lead. After two free throws by Bryce Cotton, Harrison had a 3-point attempt blocked, sending Lavin into a frenzy over what he thought was a foul. Providence added two more free throws to take a 5-point lead.
The Friars managed to make enough shots from the line down the stretch to hang on.
Both teams came into the game on the N.C.A.A. bubble, and it was largely believed that the loser of the matchup would be effectively eliminated. That would leave St. John's outside the tournament for the third straight year.
Providence may still need another victory to solidify their résumé, but Thursday's performance certainly did not hurt. Josh Fortune scored a game-high 24 points, and Kadeem Batts added 13 points and 12 rebounds.
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