Men's Basketball Falls to St. John's, 64-46

(boxscore)

11/28/06 -- Senior guard Aubin Scott (Hempstead, N.Y.) had 12 points and a game-high 12 rebounds but the Long Island University men’s basketball team could not overcome another poor shooting night as they dropped a 64-46 decision to local rival St. John’s at the Carnesecca Arena on Tuesday evening.

James Williams (DeSoto, Texas) also added 12 points and moved into 12th place on the all-time LIU scoring list, passing Riley Clarida (1,317). The Blackbirds shot 29.5 percent from the field and continued their struggles from long range, connecting on just four of their 23 attempts.

A three-pointer by the Red Storm’s Ricky Torres gave them an 11-3 advantage with 13:23 remaining the first half. But the Blackbirds responded with a quick 4-0 run on back-to-back drives by freshman Jaytornah Wisseh (Brooklyn, N.Y.).

St. John’s would then go on a 13-1 run to take control of the game. Torres had five in the run and finished the opening stanza with 10 points as the Red Storm went into the locker room with a 33-19 advantage.

Anthony Mason Jr. scored six points in a 10-3 run to begin the second half and extend the Red Storm’s lead to 43-22. But the Blackbirds responded and closed to within 10 thanks to a 20-9 run that was capped by a fastbreak layup by Scott from Wisseh that made the score 52-42.

Mason Jr. would come up big again on the following possession, hitting a fadeaway three-pointer from the left wing to deflate the LIU momentum. Mason Jr. finished with a game-high 15 points, 13 of which came after the break. Three other St. John’s players had 10 points, including Qa’rraan Calhoun who also added eight rebounds.

Long Island finishes up its two-game road trip as they travel to Hartford on Thursday, Nov. 30 for a contest that will tip-off at 7:00 p.m.