Storm's comeback fails at foul line
St. John's' God's Gift Achiuwa (3) defends Texas A&M's Jamal Branch (11) in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game during the consolation round of the 2K Sports Classic, Friday at Madison Square Garden in New York. (Nov. 18, 2011) Credit: AP
St. John's new class of recruits still is in the larval stage, and that means survival is a learning process, a game-to-game evolution.
The Red Storm's newcomers had a prime chance to score their first victory over a big-time opponent Friday afternoon when sophomore junior-college transfer Nurideen Lindsey went to the foul line with 2.3 seconds left, trailing Texas A&M, 58-57, at Madison Square Garden.
Coach Steve Lavin reminded Lindsey during a timeout to get some lift with his legs and give it some touch with his fingertips. "The last thing I said was to have fun with it," Lavin said. "You don't want him to be uptight."
The first shot barely hit the front of the rim, but there still was a chance to send the game to overtime. Lindsey's second shot looked good, but it went down and came back out, giving the Aggies (3-1) the victory in the consolation game of the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer.
It wasn't just Lindsey's free throws that wouldn't stay down. St. John's (3-2) made only 22 of 38 foul shots, and God'sgift Achiuwa missed a pair that would have given the Red Storm a three-point lead with 3:39 left. Moe Harkless made only one of two with 21.6 seconds left to give St. John's a 57-56 lead.
"You can't just blame Nuri," D'Angelo Harrison said. "Everyone missed free throws, at least two or three. Hey, I missed two free throws, so I feel like I lost the game. I'm pretty sure God'sgift feels the same way; Moe missed two."
Nodding toward Phil Greene, who made his only foul shot, Harrison added, "Phil's 100 percent, so he's good."
Laughter, the best medicine.
But at the buzzer, it was Texas A&M that was celebrating. Just after Harkless gave the Storm a one-point lead at the 21.6-second mark, the Aggies' Elston Turner found some room in the key to hit a 16-foot jumper for a 58-57 lead with eight seconds to play.
"The play didn't go as planned," said Turner, who gave the ball up, got it back and pulled up only because the Red Storm denied him a driving lane. "I knew I had to make the shot."
Ray Turner had 16 points and seven rebounds for A&M.
Lindsey and Harrison each scored 12 points for St. John's and Greene and Harkless had 10 apiece, with Harkless adding a team-high seven rebounds. Lavin was pleased with how his team rallied from an 11-point first-half deficit and a 10-point deficit in the second half, but the road ahead is a tough one.
"This group is learning at an accelerated rate," Lavin said. "It's a baptism by fire."
