St. John’s comes up short against No. 2 UConn as Big East Tournament run, win streak end

For the third time this season, scrappy St. John’s landed an early punch and hung with powerhouse UConn, inspiring hope for coach Rick Pitino’s signature moment in this shade of red.

But once again, the big-bad Huskies weathered the Red Storm.

No. 2 UConn, with all of its balance and ball movement and shot-making brilliance, outlasted the Johnnies in Friday’s 95-90 victory at sold-out Madison Square Garden, eliminating St. John’s in the semifinal round of the Big East Tournament and ending the red-hot Red Storm’s six-game win streak.

Playing before a UConn-favoring crowd, the Huskies (30-3) improved to 3-0 against St. John’s (20-13) this season after previously eking out a 69-65 win at home on Dec. 23 and rolling to a 77-64 victory at the Garden on Feb. 3.

As it did in both its first two losses to UConn, St. John’s jumped out to a first-half lead Friday. Point guard Daniss Jenkins scored 11 points in the game’s first 3:41 — an offensive explosion that included a pair of 3-pointers; a backcourt steal he turned into a layup; and another lay-in he finished through a foul for a three-point play.

St. John’s led, 13-6, after Jenkins’ and-1, but UConn answered with four consecutive baskets and took its first lead of the night, 17-16, behind a pair of Tristen Newton free throws at the 13:41 mark.

Newton’s scoring became a theme of the night. The senior guard, an integral piece of UConn’s NCAA championship run last year, poured in 20 of his team-high 25 points before halftime, fueling a Huskies offense that shot 63%, tallied 13 assists and went 12-of-13 from the free-throw line before the break.

Just as pivotal was Cam Spencer, the do-it-all Rutgers transfer who repeatedly answered when UConn needed a playmaker. His 3-pointer about three minutes into the game accounted for the Huskies’ first basket and ended a 7-0 St. John’s run. His first two assists came on no-look passes, the second of which facilitated a transition dunk by Jaylin Stewart.

That emphatic slam put UConn up, 30-22, with 9:01 left in the half. It amped up UConn coach Dan Hurley, who raised both arms in celebration and met his team on the court as St. John’s called a timeout.

But St. John’s hung around, thanks largely to Jenkins, who scored 16 of his season-high-tying 27 points in the first half. After leading at halftime in their previous two games against UConn, the Johnnies trailed at the break Friday, 52-47.

Spencer finished with 20 points, nine assists and four rebounds, while Alex Karaban added 14 points for the Huskies. Jordan Dingle scored 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting for St. John’s.

St. John’s was a pedestrian 14-12 a month ago but won its final five games of the regular season to clinch the No. 5 seed and a first-round bye in the conference tournament. It blew out Seton Hall, 91-72, in Thursday’s Big East quarterfinal.

The Johnnies went 11-9 against the Big East during conference play but managed only one ranked win — a Feb. 25 blowout of then-No. 15 Creighton — in their first year under Pitino, who won NCAA titles with Kentucky and Louisville.

St. John’s will find out Sunday if it did enough to clinch its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2019.