Red Storm men’s basketball team moves to 1-1 in BIG EAST play before Wednesday showdown at UConn
Produced by: redstormsports.com
January 10, 2022
The St. John's men's basketball team fell to Providence, 83-73, in its BIG EAST road opener on Saturday afternoon.
The Red Storm (9-4, 1-1 BIG EAST) led by as many as seven early in the second half at The Dunkin' Donuts Center before Providence outscored the Johnnies 31-12 during a crucial stretch lasting 11 and a half minutes.
Dylan Addae-Wusu set a career scoring high for the second time in as many opportunities, posting 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting. The sophomore from the Bronx also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out five assists.
Aaron Wheeler matched a career-high with 15 points, a total that was originally set against Maryland during his freshman season at Purdue.
Posh Alexander scored 12 of his 14 points in the first half, finishing in double figures for the 12th time in 12 opportunities this season. Julian Champagnie reached double figures for the 37th consecutive outing, scoring 11 points despite going 0-for-8 from beyond the arc.
The Friars broke the game open at the free-throw line, converting on 26 of their 30 tries from the charity stripe while the Red Storm went just 8-for-17.
Nate Watson scored 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting and grabbed 11 boards to lead the way for Providence (14-2, 4-1 BIG EAST). Three other Friars finished in double figures, including an 18-point effort from Jared Bynum.
The first half of Saturday's game was everything one would expect from a classic BIG EAST battle. The Johnnies and the Friars traded leads eight times and were tied on 12 separate occasions. Neither team led by more than four in the opening 20 minutes.
Ahead by three at the intermission, St. John's scored the first four points of the second half to move ahead 42-35 and force a quick Providence timeout.
With the Johnnies ahead by five, 50-45, following an Addae-Wusu layup with 14:27 to go, the Friars ripped off an 8-0 run, reclaiming the lead by the 12-minute media timeout.
Wheeler responded with a personal 5-0 spurt, putting the Johnnies back on top by two, 55-53, with 10:32 to play. The back-and-forth affair continued with a 7-0 Friars burst before a three-point play from Addae-Wusu brought the Red Storm back within two, 60-58, with 7:36 remaining.
With the Red Storm back within a possession, Providence rattled off a 12-2 run to take its largest lead of the game, 72-60, with 4:25 to go in the game.
St. John's will return to action on Wednesday, traveling to Connecticut for an 8:30 p.m. tip-off against the Huskies.