Bonnies drop heartbreaker to St. Johns, 69-68

Postgame Quotes | Box Score (PDF)

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - After erasing a late seven-point deficit over the final three minutes, St. Bonaventure watched its lead evaporate with just six seconds remaining as Malik Boothe sank a pair of free throws to send St. John's to a thrilling 69-68 win on Tuesday night at Blue Cross Arena.  

Sophomore Andrew Nicholson made good on his two free throw attempts with just 11 seconds to go, giving the Bonnies their first lead, 68-67, since the 18:05 mark early in the half.

Boothe then broke the Brown and White's full court pressure and was fouled going to the rim to give the junior guard the two free throws.

St. Bonaventure did get a good look in its final shot, but sophomore Michael Davenport's three-pointer from the top of the key caromed off the back of the rim as the buzzer sounded.

The back-and-forth game featured 10 lead changes and nine ties, as both team's enjoyed good nights on the offensive end. The Bonnies finished above the 50 percent plateau for the second straight game, connecting on 26-of-46 (57 percent) from the field. St. John's shot 54 percent (25-46), but made eight three-pointers to the Bonnies' one.

St. Bonaventure's advantage came inside, as the Bonnies out-scored St. John's by a 44-30 margin in the paint. The major reason for that advantage down low was the play of Nicholson, who led all scorers with 26 points despite missing the final nine minutes of the first half due to foul trouble. Nicholson finished 11-of-15 of the field and scored 17 points in the second half.

St. John's was led by D.J. Kennedy and Paris Horne, who scored 18 points and 15 points, respectively.

“I thought it was a great game between two competitive teams," said head coach Mark Schmidt. "I thought we had a great crowd and we really appreciate the Rochester alumni that came out to support us. I’m just disappointed that we couldn’t finish out the game.”

The Red Storm used a trio of three-pointers, including a pair from junior Paris Horne to take an early 16-8 lead just over six minutes into the game.

Nicholson led the Bonnies back, though, sparking an 11-0 run that gave the Brown and White their first lead, 19-16. The 6-foot-9 forward registered five points during the run, but it was redshirt sophomore Da'Quan Cook's dunk off a rebound that energized the run. During the spurt, the Bonnies came away with points on six of eight possessions, including the first five. On the flipside, St. John's went 0-for-3 from the field with three turnovers.  

The run came to an end and so did Nicholson's first half, as he picked up his second foul with 9:35 left.

The rest of the half featured five lead changes and three ties, as the Red Storm opened up the only real separation over the final 9:35 when they took a 36-30 advantage with just over a minute to go.

St. Bonaventure scored the final four points of the frame to cut the deficit to 36-34 at the half. Both teams enjoyed solid shooting performances over the opening 20 minutes with the Bonnies connecting on 52 percent (13-25), while St. John's shot 47 percent (11-23). Six of the Red Storm's 11 field goals were from beyond the arc.           

After opening the final frame on a quick 6-1 run, the Bonnies saw their three-point edge, 40-37, slip away quickly as St. John’s built up a seven-point lead with 11:13 remaining. The Red Storm out-scored the Brown and White 14-4 over a seven-minute span to take a 51-44 lead.

St. Bonaventure couldn’t draw any closer than five points until its final run over the last three minutes. The two teams traded baskets on eight straight possessions from the 7:48 mark to the 5:33 mark.

Seven of Cook’s career-high nine points came in the first half. Senior Jonathan Hall was the only other Bonnie in double figures with 12 as he led the team in rebounds for the second straight game with six boards. Junior Ogo Adegboye and Davenport produced seven points and six points off the bench, respectively.

St. Bonaventure will get just two days off before returning to the Reilly Center to host Binghamton on Friday, Nov. 20 at 7 p.m.