Injured Storm guard Brownlee cleared to play
Duke forward Ryan Kelly (34) tries to block a shot by St. John forward Justin Brownlee (32) in the first half. (Jan. 30, 2011) Credit: AP
Despite suffering a fracture in his left thumb against Duke, St. John's forward Justin Brownlee is expected to be in the lineup against Rutgers Wednesday at Carnesecca Arena. Brownlee was hurt in the second half, but still finished with 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists in the Red Storm's upset of the No. 3 Blue Devils.
The injury was diagnosed as a fracture of the distal phalange on his left thumb. He was fitted with a fiberglass splint to protect the non-displaced fracture but was cleared for practice and games.
The matchup against Rutgers (12-9, 3-6 Big East) is sandwiched between the Duke game and a trip to UCLA on Saturday, but the Red Storm (12-9, 4-5) desperately needs a victory to reach .500 in conference play to maintain its hopes for an NCAA Tournament bid.
"Rutgers is coming in hungry," guard Paris Horne said. "They just played Pittsburgh tough , and they beat us last year. This might be more important than the Duke game because it's a conference game. We've been up and down in the conference. Rutgers is a tough opponent, and we can't take them lightly."
The Scarlet Knights are much improved under first-year coach Mike Rice, whose early recruiting success is an indication of a budding rivalry for local talent with St. John's and its first-year coach Steve Lavin. "Mike Rice has them playing at a fever pitch," Lavin said.
In their most recent game at Carnesecca Arena, the Red Storm lost by two to Cincinnati. As much as the win over Duke helped their NCAA prospects, another home loss, especially in conference play, would be equally damaging.
