St. John’s put up a pair of dominant victories in Canada on Saturday, but also suffered a pair of injuries.
The Johnnies downed McGill University team, 90-55, and then beat the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM) in the nightcap, 104-62.
“Our conditioning is not what you want it to be yet, but I thought our guys got after it and really competed,” said head coach Norm Roberts. “We got off to a slow start this afternoon, but then our defense picked up. I liked the play of a lot of our guys. All of our guys gave us good minutes at different times.”
Against McGill in the weekend opener, the Red Storm used a 40-6 second quarter to erase an early eight-point deficit. Malik Boothe and D.J. Kennedy scored 10 points apiece, while returnees Quincy Roberts, Paris Horne (pictured) and newcomers Malik Stith and Justin Brownlee chipped in with nine points, and Sean Evans added eight with seven boards.
After a short respite and a pregame meal at the team hotel, it was off to UQAM. Evans (17 points, nine rebounds) and Brownlee 14 points) combined to go 14-of-16 from the field, Hardy’s game-high 20-point performance included two 3s, and Kennedy and Horne contributed 18 and 15, respectively.
There was bad news, too. Junior forward Justin Burrell suffered a hand injury after scoring eight points in eight minutes vs. McGill when diving for a loose ball. X-rays were inconclusive, and Burrell will be examined on Tuesday at the Hospital for Special Surgery by hand specialist Dr. Leigh Carlson. He will not play in Sunday’s games.
Sophomore guard Quincy Roberts, who scored nine against McGill, left the UQAM game with a mild concussion in the second quarter. He was taken to a local hospital as a precautionary measure. Additional details will be provided as they become official.
(Photo courtesy St. John’s)
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