Syracuse University
St. John's
Orangewomen Lose to St. John's, 78-61
1/10/2004 8:58:00 PM | Women's Basketball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Syracuse women's basketball team lost to St. John's, 78-61, in its BIG EAST home opener on Saturday, Jan. 10, at Manley Field House. The Orangewomen are now 4-8 overall and 1-1 in the conference, while the Red Storm is 7-6 overall and 1-1 in the conference.
Junior center Chineze Nwagbo posted back-to-back double-doubles for the first time in her career, recording 18 points and 12 rebounds to lead four Orangewomen scoring in double figures. Senior Julie McBride scored 15 points and added seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Junior Sarah Wegrzynowicz posted 11 points and six rebounds, and freshman Lauren Kohn tallied 10 points and six boards. Junior Rochelle Coleman rounded out SU's scoring with seven points along with four rebounds, two assists and two steals.
For the Red Storm, senior Kim MacMillan scored a game-high 25 points. Junior Secrett Stubblefield had a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds, and added five assists. Senior Shemika Stevens had 12 points and four assists, while freshman Angie Clark posted a game-high 13 rebounds.
St. John's outrebounded the Orange, 52-43, but SU won the battle on the offensive glass, 17-15. Syracuse shot 22-of-74 (29.7 percent) from the floor compared with St. John's 27-of-63 (42.9 percent) field goal shooting. The Red Storm made 50 percent (11-of-22) of its three-pointers, while SU completed just 5-of-25 attempts from behind the arc.
Nwagbo opened the game's scoring with a layup eight seconds after the tip. St. John's Kim MacMillan countered with a three-pointer 13 seconds later to start a 17-7 Red Storm run to give SJU a 17-9 lead with 13:28 left on the clock. The Orange got as close as three points two times in the half, 17-14 and 26-23, but MacMillan scored six of her 17 first-half points during the next five minutes to help St. John's build a 12-point lead, 40-28, with 2:51 to play. SU scored the last six points of the half, including four by Nwagbo, to make the score 40-34 at the break.
The Red Storm quickly rebuilt its lead to 12 out of the locker room, 46-34, 3:13 into the second session. Nwagbo scored six points and Wegrzynowicz had five to lead SU on a 18-3 run that gave the Orange it's a 52-49 lead with 11:10 on the clock. Syracuse was up, 54-51, with 10:26 to play when St. John's made its final push, a 23-3 tear that took 8:17 off the clock and gave the Red Storm a 74-57 advantage with just more than two minutes left in the game. The final margin was 17, 78-61, after St. John's made six-of-ten free throws down the stretch.
"We did a good job of weathering their early shooting success and getting back in the game," SU head coach Keith Cieplicki said. "Down the stretch, they made shots and made plays, and that was the difference."
Syracuse plays the second contest of its first two-game homestand of the season, hosting Rutgers on Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 7:00 p.m.
