By Dylan Butler
It was shaping up to be an upset of monumental proportions. The St. John’s women’s basketball team — winners of just one of its last nine games — were playing its best game of the year against a Seton Hall squad that was third in the Big East conference.
Led by Latasha Thompson, Rasheedah Brown and Sherri Brown, the Red Storm did a good job of attacking the Pirates 2-3 zone and finishing on the break when they got the chance.
And when Thompson went end-to-end for a layup with 13:13 left in the game to give St. John’s a 45-40 lead, it appeared the Red Storm were on the brink of breaking the game open.
But then, it happened. Thompson went down, clutching her left calf. The St. John’s senior guard, who was so inspirational during the game, suffered a Charliehorse in both calves. She would return, but played sparingly for the Red Storm.
Thompson’s departure was the beginning of the end for the Red Storm, as the Pirates came from behind to defeat St. John’s 59-54 at Alumni Hall Saturday.
“Latasha Thompson’s [injury] was at a crucial time,” said St. John’s head coach Darcel Estep. “At that stretch, we had a real good flow and we were able to do some things offensively and defensively. We then became less fluent offensively.”
Thompson returned briefly for the Red Storm, but then banged heads with a Seton Hall player at midcourt with nine minutes left in the game. Again, she grabbed at her calves and, as if things weren’t bad enough, Seton Hall forward Starr Fueller — who didn’t know Thompson was lying prone on the court — accidentally kicked her in the back of the head while walking backwards.
“I was dehydrated, that’s why I got the Charliehorses,” said Thompson, who had 12 points and three assists. “I’m upset with myself because they needed me out there. We were doing so good.”
Without Thompson in the lineup, St. John’s (6-14, 1-8) fluid offensive attack dried up. After Rasheedah Brown’s three-pointer from the top of key gave the Red Storm their largest lead of the game, 48-42 with 12:01, St. John’s went a 8:15 without a field goal.
During that stretch, Seton Hall (15-6, 8-2) went on a 13-1 run, mostly on second and third chance opportunities on the offensive glass to take a 55-49 lead with 5:22 left. After each team grabbed 13 rebounds in the first half, led by Fuller and Charlene Thomas, the Pirates dominated the glass in the second half, outrebounding the Red Storm 27-13.
“That’s the one thing I walked away from telling them — boxing out. That was huge,” Estep said. “[Seton Hall] did a great job of outhustling us on the boards.”
St. John’s still had a chance to win the game late, as two free throws by Rasheedah Brown cut Seton Hall’s lead to 57-54 with one minute left.
With :16.1 seconds left in the game, it appeared Thompson stole the ball from Seton Hall’s Arminda Moreno along the sideline, but referee Patty Broderick called a jump ball and possession arrow favored the Pirates.
“The ball was in my right arm and [Moreno] grabbed my other arm,” Thompson said.
“She made the call from behind and I saw a totally different angle,” Estep said. “They anticipated the call. She had a quick whistle. For an official to make a call like that, it really did something to the outcome.”
The game was a see-saw battle early, but the sharp shooting of Moreno put the Hall ahead by eight, 27-19, with 7:39 left in the first half. Moreno, who leads Seton Hall averaging 16 points per game, was 6-for-7 from the field in the first half to score 17 of her career-high 25 points.
But a trio of trifectas by Sherri Brown, who scored a career-high 14 points on 4-for-8 from downtown, and Thompson briefly gave the Red Storm a 30-29 lead. The teams went into the break tied at 32.
Rasheedah Brown had 16 points, five assists and three steals to lead the Red Storm, which heads to Providence Wednesday before hosting West Virginia Saturday at 2 p.m. Thomas had 12 points and 11 rebounds for Seton Hall.
Notes: St. John’s has signed three recruits for next season. Reka Szavuly, a point guard who averages 14.1 points per game at Colby Community College in Colby, Kan. and is ranked 22nd in the nation as a junior college player, joins teammate Katalin Kurtosi, a 6-foot-4 forward who averages 10.5 points and 6.9 rebounds per game and also hails from Miskocic, Hungary. Also signing a letter of intent is Mary Pat Statler from Cumberland, W.Va. As a junior at Oak Glen High School, the point guard averaged 18 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals per game.
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 143.
