St. John’s rally can’t make up for lackluster effort in loss to Xavier
CINCINNATI Ten good minutes wasnt good enough.
Not on the road. Not against a desperate team playing for its season.
St. Johns clawed out of an 11-point, second-half deficit, but couldnt finish off the come-from-behind effort.
The Johnnies, truth be told, didnt deserve to leave Cintas Center victorious.
Not with how they defended. Not with how they rebounded. Coming off a 43-point loss at top-ranked Connecticut, Xavier knocked off St. Johns, 88-77, sending the Johnnies back to .500 in Big East play ahead of Saturdays showdown with the reigning national champion Huskies at the Garden.
They were flat coming off their bye week, out-worked for the majority of this frustrating performance.
It couldnt have been good enough, we lost the game, Daniss Jenkins said, referring to St. Johns effort. For me, Im always just telling the guys we need to go harder, we need to work harder. Thats all I believe in. Thats what made me. So I try to tell the guys, we have to work harder and play smart at the same time.
3Chris Ledlum drives to the basket during St. John’s 88-77 loss to Xavier. St. John's AthleticsOver the final 2:43, Xavier closed on a 13-2 run, which began with two Desmond Claude free throws. Quincy Olivari followed with a 3-pointer and St. Johns dropped its fourth game in five tries.
The close to the game followed a similar pattern to many of the Johnnies losses this season: a shaky finish.
The game really turned when Claude had his shot blocked by Chris Ledlum, but St. Johns couldnt get to the defensive rebound and Olivari sank the back-breaking 3-pointer that extended the lead to five with 1:57 to go.
Sometimes games are won or lost on a loose-ball rebound, coach Rick Pitino said. We were down two there, got him to miss the shot and didnt come up with the loose-ball rebound. They did and then scored.
Jenkins did all he could, scoring 25 points on 11 of 17 shooting, and Joel Soriano added 21 points and 15 rebounds. But nobody else really stepped up.
3Xavier’s Dayvion McKnight drives past Daniss Jenkins during St. John’s loss. Getty ImagesComing off a bout with strep throat, Jordan Dingle added 12 points despite not being at full strength.
We didnt get a whole lot out of other guys tonight, Pitino said.
More than any offensive shortcomings, though, St. Johns (13-8, 5-5) defense was its biggest problem. Xavier (11-10, 5-5) had 28 points in transition and 32 points in the paint.
It won the battle on the glass by 10. Claude, Olivari and Dayvion McKnight combined to score 65 points.
In the first meeting between the two teams, a 15-point St. Johns victory, that trio was limited to 42 points.
3Jordan Dingle goes up for a shot during St. John’s loss to Xavier. St. John's AthleticsOn the first possession of the second half, St. Johns got a stop, but couldnt get to the defensive rebound, a foreboding sign.
It couldnt string together multiple stops and saw the deficit increase to a game-high 11 when Jenkins lost control of his dribble and Xaviers Dailyn Swain flew in for a crowd-pleasing dunk.
There was still 13:10 remaining, more than enough time for St. Johns to rally.
Finally, with 3:59 left after getting close on several occasions, St. Johns pulled even on a Jenkins jumper. It forced a Xavier timeout. From there, it was all Musketeers.
Ive said this all along, were not a great team. Were a hard-working team getting better, Pitino said. Our guys did a lot of really good things tonight. They couldve won the game, but a loose-ball rebound turned the momentum around.
Weve improved. I think were a good team right now. I thought we were very average most of the season. In order to beat a team like Xavier on the road, youve got to give a great performance and we certainly didnt do that defensively tonight.
How many decks are used in poker?
In most popular poker variants, such as Texas Hold'em and Omaha, a standard deck of 52 playing cards is used. Each deck contains four suits (hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades) and consists of 13 ranks (Ace, 2 through 10, and the face cards: Jack, Queen, and King).
What is the bonus code for WPT Global Poker 2023?
The best bonus code for WPT Global is WPT777. By entering the bonus code, players will get a welcome bonus 100% up to $1,200 on the first deposit. The minimum deposit is $20.
What is the best WPT Global bonus code?
Use the WPT Global bonus code WPT777 when registering to get a 100% deposit bonus up to $1200 plus a $100 No Deposit poker bonus.
