DePaul and St. John’s each have been involved in quite a few close games this season, but more often than not the outcome has gone the wrong way.
So, if Sunday’s game in Chicago proves to be tight down the stretch, at least one of them will emerge victorious.
At numerous points this season, the Red Storm (15-12, 7-9 Big East) and Blue Demons (13-14, 4-13) have left the arena on the short end of a close game, and those results have dampened their seasons.
With Wednesday’s 81-78 home loss to Creighton, St. John’s fell to 4-6 this season in games decided by five or fewer points (or overtime). DePaul improved to 5-7 in that department by defeating host Georgetown 68-65 on Thursday.
St. John’s squandered a nine-point lead Wednesday, faltering even as Creighton star Ryan Nembhard sustained an injury. The Red Storm had their chances down the stretch: Trailing by a point, Montez Mathis missed a runner with five seconds to play, and after Creighton corralled the rebound and hit two free throws, Aaron Wheeler’s desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer was off the mark.
“If you look at the last five possessions, I don’t think we executed what we wanted to do,” Red Storm coach Mike Anderson said. “I thought defensively we were good, but you got to be able to make plays. That’s what big-time teams do, big-time players do.”
Stef Smith scored 13 points against Creighton.
“I don’t think it’s one particular thing,” Smith said. “It could be a big offensive rebound the team gets or it could be a turnover. The positive is that we know we can play with these teams.”
When these teams met on Jan. 5 in New York, St. John’s edged DePaul 89-84 behind Julian Champagnie’s 34 points and 16 rebounds. Since then, St. John’s is 1-4 in close games.
DePaul had lost three consecutive close ones before pulling out the game against last-place Georgetown.
“We’ve been in some close possession games and they haven’t come out in our favor,” Blue Demons coach Tony Stubblefield said, “so that’s something we really focused on in the last week of practice, finishing and executing.”
DePaul leading scorer Javon Freeman-Liberty had 25 points against the Hoyas, his fourth straight game in double figures since returning from a groin injury that sidelined him for seven games.
Freeman-Liberty’s layup and two free throws in the final minute helped the Blue Demons hold on to snap a three-game skid.
–Field Level Media
