Seton Hall
Seton Hall gets eliminated by St. John's, 76-51 in first round of BE Tournament
Date: March 9, 2019By Michael Daly
The Seton Hall women’s basketball team fell to St. John’s 76-51 in their first game of the Big East Tournament on Saturday afternoon in Wintrust Arena.
Inja Butina put the Pirates on the board 31 seconds into the game with a three-point shot on the right wing to give the Pirates a 3-0 lead. 24 seconds later, Curteeona Brelove scored the first basket for St. John’s, as the Red Storm trailed 3-2. At the 8:12 mark, Selena Philoxy’s layup under the basket extended the Pirates lead to 5-2. After a Red Storm turnover, Nicole Jimenez stretched the floor for a three-pointer, extending the Pirates’ lead to 8-2 with 7:26 left in the first.
Following a turnover by Butina under Seton Hall’s basketball, Qadasha Hoppie went coast to coast for a layup that tied the game at 8 with 5:26 remaining. Shadeen Samuels’s three-pointer on the left arc gave the Pirates a 14-9 advantage over St. John’s at the 3:46 mark. Tiana England’s fast break layup with 42 seconds to go made it a 17-14 game, in favor of St. John’s. The quarter finished with two free throws by Philoxy and the score was 17-16 heading into the second.
18 seconds into the second quarter, Desiree Elmore retook the lead for the Pirates with a layup and the score was 18-17. England knocked down a three-point shot thanks to a rebound by Brelove, as the Red Storm led 20-18 at the 9:16 mark.
Jasmine Sina’s deep-ball from the left wing gave the Red Storm a 23-22 edge over Seton Hall at the 6:42 mark. With 2:53 to go in the half, Butina was fouled on a fast break and she sank both attempts at the line, giving Seton Hall a 31-29 lead. Hoppie connected on a three-point shot with 1:52 on the clock and Seton Hall trailed St. John’s 34-31. Trailing 38-32 with four seconds left, Elmore drilled a mid-range jumper on the left side, which put the Pirates within four points, 38-34.
Akina Wellere’s layup extended St. John’s lead over Seton Hall to seven points, 43-36 at the 7:38 mark in the third quarter. With 4:28 to go, Jimenez drilled a three-pointer on the right wing to cut the deficit to four points, 45-41. Hoppie padded St. John’s lead with a three-point shot and the score was 55-43 with 1:57 left. Kadaja Bailey made a layup with eight seconds left in the quarter, as St. John’s had a 59-43 at the conclusion of the third quarter.
3:22 into the fourth quarter, Wellere hit a straight-away jump shot that gave the Red Storm a 61-45 lead over the Pirates. Following an errant pass by England, Samuels took advantage of the opportunity and scored on a fast break layup, which made the score 63-49 with 5:31 left.
Wellere added onto St. John’s margin with a three-pointer on the left wing with 2:02 remaining, and the score was 71-49. Seton Hall’s Kimi Evans scored on a layup underneath the basket, as the Pirates were behind 73-51 at the 1:05 mark. St. John’s would later score a three-point to seal the 76-71 victory.
Following the victory for St. John’s, head coach Joe Tartamella spoke on what went well for his team, “I thought we were more aggressive in the lane and made some great passes. Having 21 assists in a game usually goes well for you.”
Conversely, coach Bozzella addressed the problems his team faced against St. John’s, including Samuels’s performance. “St. John’s did a nice job of crowding Shadeen and made it hard for her to get open on the floor. They made it difficult for her to succeed and she was not as crisp as she wanted to be. They did a nice job of forcing us into shooting jump shots.”
St. John’s advances in the Big East Tournament to face off against Marquette at noon on Sunday. The loss gives Seton Hall a 15-15 record, which ended their Big East Tournament appearance early.
Michael Daly can be reached at michael.daly@student.shu.edu.
Posted in: Sports, Women's Basketball, WSOU
