St. John's women fall to No. 1 Baylor

St. John's coach Kim Barnes Arico took a quick look at the scoreboard during the early moments of the second half and didn't want her team to get too excited.

The Red Storm had a six-point lead on No. 1 Baylor with 18:27 left.

Considering St. John's didn't have its best player, Da'Shena Stevens, and had some early foul trouble, some might have thought it was a minor miracle. "I wanted them to be excited about it,'' Barnes Arico said, "but I knew we had 20 more minutes and I knew they were going to make a run."

Baylor did go on a run and eventually pulled away for a 73-59 win in the Maggie Dixon Classic Sunday at Madison Square Garden.

There rarely is consolation in losing, but St. John's was proud of its effort. "Obviously, we didn't come here to lose," North Babylon graduate Eugeneia McPherson said. "The first half we played really great and followed the game plan."

McPherson scored 23 points, freshman forward Amber Thompson had 12 points and eight rebounds and Shenneika Smith had 11 points.

St. John's biggest concern was dealing with Baylor's Brittney Griner. St. John's did an admirable containing the 6-8 All-American, who had 17 points (six below her average), 13 rebounds and six blocks.

But the rest of the Bears found their groove. Brooklyn Pope had 19 points, Kimetria Hayden added 12 and Jordan Madden scored 11.

"For us, we had to make a decision and pick your poison," Barnes Arico said. "We said, 'We're going to let somebody else beat us.' "

St. John's (5-5) led by two at the break and scored the first four points of the second half for a 36-30 lead. But Baylor (10-0) responded with a 30-9 run and led 60-45 with 7:47 left.

Baylor coach Kim Mulkey praised St. John's for staying close.

"When you have No. 1 plastered in front of you, you're going to get everyone's best shot," Mulkey said. "And if St. John's plays and shoots as well as they did today throughout Big East play, they're going to finish pretty darn high in that league."

Some of the positive energy surrounding St. John's effort was doused as point guard Nadirah McKenith left the game with a right knee injury with 5:40 left. She is scheduled for an MRI Monday.

"Nadira was unbelievable," Barnes Arico said. "As much as Da'Shena has been our leading scorer and rebounder for the last three years, Nadirah makes our team go. She's special and no one can do for us what she can do."

Not having McKenith for an extended period would hurt, but with Stevens expected to return shortly from a knee injury, St. John's is hoping to build some momentum.

"I'm excited because the coach sees a lot of improvement," McPherson said. "I'm excited for the rest of the season. To know that we can play like that is exciting."