CHARLESTON, S.C. — New Hall of Fame coach, new players, same old linchpin in the middle.
Joel Soriano remains St. John’s meal ticket, and in adverse times Thursday afternoon, he saved the Johnnies from what would’ve been a disastrous loss.
The standout big man’s defense, rebounding and two clutch free throws helped St. John’s top North Texas, 53-52, in the opening round of the Charleston Classic at TD Arena.
Soriano gave St. John’s the lead for good with 1:11 left and grabbed the key defensive rebound with 2.1 seconds to go.
He finished with 11 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks, a dominant performance in what was an otherwise ugly effort from St. John’s after a fast start.
Daniss Jenkins had 17 points, but five turnovers, including what nearly was a killer one in the final seconds.
But St. John’s got a stop on the other end and survived to advance to the semifinals against the Dayton-LSU winner on a day when it shot 34 percent from the field, committed 15 turnovers and managed just 23 points over the final 22:20 of game action.
St. John’s controlled the opening half, and really should’ve led by more than 10. B
ut two prolonged scoring droughts of 7:11 and over the final 2:20 kept North Texas within striking distance.
The Johnnies’ defense was the story of the first 20 minutes, holding the Mean Green to 27.6 percent shooting and forcing two shot-clock violations.
The defensive rotations were strong and so was the defensive rebounding, the Johnnies limiting North Texas to four second-chance points and winning the battle on the glass, 23-17.
St. John’s didn’t close the half well after building a 14-point lead and started the second half worse.
North Texas went on an 18-4 run and got even at 34 on a Jason Edwards 3-pointer with 13:14 left.
A 10-0 run created cushion for St. John’s, but it didn’t last.
North Texas took its first lead with 2:00 left on a Robert Allen free throw.
Sorriano gave St. John’s the lead on the other end with two free throws with 1:11 left and the Johnnies hung on.