St. John’s Defeats Georgetown in OT Thriller (photos)
By • January 6, 2019 0 1351
The St. John’s University Red Storm (14-1) defeated the Georgetown Hoyas (11-4) 97-94 in an overtime thriller in men’s Big East Conference basketball action on Saturday, Jan. 5, at the Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. The announced crowd was 11,115.
St. John’s, which is enjoying its fastest start since 1985-6, had not defeated the Hoyas in the nation’s capital since Jan. 18, 2003, a string of 13 straight defeats.
The Hoyas moved to an 11-point lead in the first half and had a four-point advantage with only 28 seconds to go in regulation time when the Johnnies’ premiere guard, Shamorie Ponds, sank a pair of free throws. In the game’s key moment, the Hoyas succombed to a full court press as LJ Figueroa of St. John’s came up with a steal, was fouled, and sank two free throws to knot the game at 85. Georgetown failed on its final possession to force an overtime.
The Johnnies carried the momentum into overtime, taking a quick eight-point lead. Figueroa and Justin Simon kicked things off dramatically with alley-oops to one another on consecutive offensive possessions. But the Hoyas fought back. A four-point play by Jessie Govan from the corner and a pair of missed St. John’s three throws gave the Hoyas a final chance to tie, down three with 22 seconds remaining, but a shot by James Akinjo followed by a last second three-pointer off a rebound by Jahvon Blair both missed the mark.
Shamorie Ponds of St. John’s led all scorers with 37 points. Jessie Govan led Georgetown scoring with 25 points to go with his 11 rebounds, and Josh LeBlanc put together another double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.
For the third consecutive game, the Hoyas played without starters Mac McClung (sprained left ankle) and Trey Mourning (concussion protocol). Both players are listed as day-to-day.
“We just have to find a way to close out the game,” said Coach Patrick Ewing to reporters after the game.
The loss brings the Hoyas’ Big East record to an even one win and one loss. They next face conference opponent Xavier in an away game on Wednesday, Jan. 9. Their next home game will be a noontime start on Saturday, Jan. 12, vs. Providence.
View Jeff Malet’s photos from courtside by clicking on the photo icons below.
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- James Akinjo (3) of Georgetown drives to the basket early in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Jessie Govan (15) had a team high 25 points for Georgetown, here going up for an easy score early in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Kaleb Johnson (32) of Georgetiown positions himself for a rebound against Marvin Clark II (13) and Mustapha Heron (14) of St. John’s. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Kaleb Johnson (32) of Georgetiown positions goes up for a rebound against Marvin Clark II (13) of St. Johns in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Jahvon Blair (0) of Georgetiown shoots over Greg Williams Jr.(4) of St. Johns in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Jamorko Pickett (1) of Georgetiown with the ball in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- James Akinjo (3) of Georgetown with the ball is guarded by Shamorie Ponds (2) of St. John’s in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- While the Hoyas are known for wearing blue and grey, the lighter blue uniform was used as the primary away color during the 1980’s. They wear the pink shoes to bring attention to breast cancer awareness. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- James Akinjo (3) of Georgetown drives past Justin Simon (5) of St. John’s early in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- James Akinjo (3) of Georgetown with the ball is challenged by Shamorie Ponds (2) of St. John’s in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Jessie Govan (15) had a team high 25 points for Georgetown, here going up for an easy score early in the first half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Greg Malinowski (11) of Georgetown with the ball is challenged by Justin Simon (5) of St. John’s in the first half. Malinowski had 13 points and 7 assists, his highest as a Hoya. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Shamorie Ponds (2) of St. John’s drives past James Akinjo (3) of Georgetown early in the 2nd half. Ponds would lead all scorers in the game with 37 points, (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Mustapha Heron (14) of St. John’s positions himself against Josh LeBlanc (23) of Georgetown (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Shamorie Ponds (2) of St. John’s drives to the hoop past Greg Malinowsk iof (11) of Georgetown in the 2nd half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Justin Simon (5) of St. John’s tries to keep the ball from going out of bounds during the 2nd half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Shamorie Ponds (2) of St. John’s drives to the hoop past Jagan Mosely (4) of Georgetown in the 2nd half. Ponds would lead all scorers in the game with 37 points. Photo by Jeff Malet.
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- Justin Simon (5) of St. John’s is hooked by Greg Malinowski (11) of Georgetown in the 2nd half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Jessie Govan (15) of Georgetown blocks out Marvin Clark II (13) of St. John’s under the defensive boards in the 2nd half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Shamorie Ponds (2) of St. John’s is defended by Jagan Mosely (4) of Georgetown in the 2nd half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Justin Simon (5) of St. John’s is guarded by Jahvon Blair (0) of Georgetown in the 2nd half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Shamorie Ponds (2) of St. John’s drives by Jagan Mosely (4) of Georgetown in the final moments of the 2nd half. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- In the opening moments of overtime, LJ Figueroa (30) of St. John’s takes an alley-oop pass from teammate Justin Simon (5) for a slam dunk to give the Johnnies a lead they would not relinquish. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Jamorko Pickett (1) and Josh LeBlanc (23) of Georgetown box out for a rebound during the overtime period. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
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- We just have to find a way to close out the game said Coach Patrick Ewing to reporters after the game. (Photo by Jeff Malet)
