QUEENS, N.Y.– St. John's vs Marquette
*Telecast Unavailable
The St. John's women's basketball team took down nationally-ranked No. 19/20 Marquette to earn a marquee victory on Wednesday night.
The two sides went back-and-forth in a closely contested battle that saw 14 ties and seven lead changes. Marquette (12-2, 1-2 BIG EAST) led by eight late in the third quarter but the Red Storm (8-7, 2-1 BIG EAST) clawed back to earn its first win over a ranked opponent this season.
Unique Drake went off for 24 points in a magnificent effort to lift St. John's, including the final nine points for St. John's, highlighted by a game-winning step-back jumper with 1:21 to play.
Coming into the game, Marquette was averaging 79.6 points per contest and scored a season-low 56 points. The Red Storm held the Golden Eagles scoreless for the final 2:51 to move to 2-1 in BIG EAST play. The Johnnies defense held one of the nation's top 3-point shooters Mackenzie Hare to just 1-of-7 from long-range and 1-for-9 from the floor.
The Red Storm in its eight wins have held every opponent to 56 points or fewer and the stifling defense came up with crucial stops down the stretch at Carnesecca Arena. The Johnnies forced 23 Golden Eagles' turnovers, their most this season. Eight teams have turned the ball over 20-plus times against St. John's.
Drake made double-digit field goals for the fourth time this season. The guard shot 3-of-4 from 3-point land and has exceeded the 20-point mark in seven games this season. The redshirt senior is averaging 20.0 points per game.
Jillian Archer had five blocks, which is the most by a Red Storm player since Rayven Peeples recorded five in a home win over DePaul on Feb. 11, 2023. The graduate student came up with a clutch stop at the rim with 0:13 on the clock.
Skye Owen finished with seven points and a career-high six boards off the bench.
Ber'Nyah Mayo tallied a season-high four steals including a crucial takeaway that led to a lay-up on the other end in the final frame.
In the opening quarter, Owen capped off a 7-0 scoring stretch with five straight points including a pull-up triple to make it 11-6. The Red Storm held Marquette scoreless for 3:40 during the run. After a quick response from the visitors brought them within one, Drake finished through contact for an and-one to pull ahead by four, 14-10. The Golden Eagles scored the final four points of the quarter to tie it at 14 after one.
Off a steal, Owen found Drake on the left side beyond-the-arc, who buried the open triple to knot the score once again, 19-19. The two squads continued to trade baskets as no team led by more than three points in the second frame. With 13 seconds remaining in the half after Owen had a shot attempt blocked, she tossed it out to Drake in the corner, who buried the 3-point to regain the St. John's lead, 28-26, and carry a two-point advantage into the break.
The teams continued to go battle as the Golden Eagles quickly took back the lead in the third frame. Marquette hit 8-of-9 consecutive field goals during the stanza to grow the largest lead of the game, 47-39, with 1:56 remaining. The Red Storm didn't quit, as Tara Daye finished a shifty putback and Mayo capitalized after picking off a pass and getting out on a fastbreak for an easy lay-in to trim the deficit to four, 47-43, at the conclusion of 30 minutes.
In the final quarter, Jailah Donald opened the scoring after draining her second triple of the night from the top of the key to make it a one-point game. After the visitors grew their lead back to four, Mayo finished a high-degree of difficult reverse lay-up to make it a one possession game once again. From there, it was all Drake took over the game down the stretch. Drake rattled in a mid-range jumper to tie the game at 50 with 7:15 left to play. After a pair of baskets from Marquette's Liza Karlen to go back up four, 56-52, with 2:51 to go. It was the Johnnies leading scorer once again that responded by nailing a contested long-distance triple as the shot clock expired.
With 1:21 remaining on the clock, Drake put her clutch gene on display as the reigning BIG EAST Sixth-Woman of the Year buried a step-back jumper to take St. John's first lead since halftime, 57-56. The Red Storm defense locked in as Mayo recorded a steal on the ensuing possession. Still trailing by a single-point, Marquette had the ball with 30 seconds remaining coming out of a timeout, Archer stuffed Karlen at the rim but the ball rolled off a Red Storm player as the Golden Eagles retained possession with 13 ticks on the clock. The defense stood tall once again as Karlen missed a well-defended shot in the paint and Daye came down with a pivotal rebound. With just five seconds remaining, the Red Storm were able to inbound the ball and close out a pivotal home victory over a top-20 team.
