The strong all-around performance by the Red Storm senior captains Danaejah Grant and Aliyyah Handford helped the Johnnies to a 74-70 victory over the No. 18/17 University of South Florida (3-2) on Sunday night.
In the final seconds, with the game hanging in the balance, junior guard Aaliyah Lewis confidently knocked down all four of her free-throws in the final 13 seconds, giving the Red Storm a two-possession lead to hang on for the win.
“This is a great win for our program against a great opponent who’s played very well thisyear and was a tournament team last year,” head coach Joe Tartamella said. “I was really proud of our effort, as I told our team, from start to finish. I think we had the most complete game we’ve played all year.”
Grant, who earned Big East Player of the Week honors, exploded for 27 points including four assists. Handford netted 15 of her 23 points in the second half, while junior Aaliyah Lewis was the other Johnny in double figure with 12 points.
St. John’s held a wire-to-wire lead throughout the game after trailing 2-0 in the opening minutes.
After the Red Storm built an early nine-point lead with a minute left in the first quarter, they were able to answer every USF run, thanks to an efficient 53% shooting performance and big foul shots down the stretch.
“It’s all about runs and we were able to sustain those runs throughout the whole game,” Grant said. “Of course, they will make shots, but we made enough to win the game.”
While approaching the final minute of the third quarter, Crystal Simmons came up with a steal and threw a perfect outlet pass to Handford, who then fed Grant for a layup thanks to a spectacular behind-the-back pass to make it 47-41 Johnnies.
St. John’s later went up 51-43 with under nine minutes to go, but the Bulls were able to cut the Johnnies’ lead to 55-52, after consecutive jumpers from senior guard Courtney Williams, who finished with a game-high 28 points and also tied for first among the NCAA’s leading scorers at 28.0 points per game.
After a Williams triple to make it a 66-63, Handford drove in for a blow by layup to make it 68-63 Johnnies with 48 seconds left before holding off for the victory.
“It all comes down to effort at the end of the game and who’s willing to win more,” Handford said. “I felt we out-willed them at the end of the game and it paid off with a win.”
The Johnnies (4-1) will look to extend to a five-game winning streak when they host Sacred Heart on Thursday at 7p.m.
