Danaejah Grant. Photo by: Stacy Podelski/1495 Sports
After a strong second half propelled the Red Storm to a win over Marquette on Friday night in Milwaukee, St. John’s will get right back to work when it takes on DePaul at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon in Chicago. The game will be nationally televised on FOX Sports 1 with Tiffany Greene and Sarah Kustok on the call.
RED STORM QUICK HITS
- The leading scorer in the BIG EAST at 20.3 points per game this season, Aliyyah Handford had yet another noteworthy performance against Marquette on Friday night, tallying her second double-double in as many games with 20 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and five steals. The Newark, N.J., native recently cracked the top-10 in program history in scoring and currently has 1,346 career points in just her junior year. With 487 points on the season, Handford is also just 142 points shy of the tying the school’s single-season scoring record for a junior, set by Cozette Ballentine in 1990-91.
- In addition to Handford’s double-double, backcourt mate Danaejah Grant also put up a well-rounded performance against the Golden Eagles, tallying 14 points, nine rebounds and three assists. At 17.5 points per game, the Piscataway, N.J., native ranks fourth in the BIG EAST in scoring and pulls down just under six boards per contest. Together, Handford and Grant combine to form the third-highest scoring pair of teammates in the nation.
- One of the nation’s top rebounders, Amber Thompson has yet another St. John’s milestone in her sights. Following a 15-rebound performance against Marquette, the Newark, N.J., native is just 15 boards away from becoming the first player in Red Storm history to reach the 1,000 rebound mark for her career. Thompson became the Red Storm’s all-time leader in that category earlier this year against Seton Hall, when she grabbed 20 boards in a win over the No. 23 Pirates. That performance set the mark for the third-highest single-game effort in program history.
SCOUTING DEPAUL
- The Blue Demons are entering Sunday’s game coming off a crushing loss to Seton Hall on Friday night, in which the Pirates sealed a one-point victory with a last-second layup.
- Averaging 87.7 points per game, the Blue Demons sport the nation’s second-highest scoring
offense, ranking only behind UConn.
- DePaul features four active players that average in double figures, led by Brittany Hrynko at 20.1 points per game.
- The Blue Demons rank at or near the top of the nation in a number of categories, including assists per game (20.0) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.67). Coach Doug Bruno’s squad also forces 24.3 opponent turnovers per outing.
ST. JOHN’S VS. DePAUL – THE SERIES
- Conference foes since the 2005-06 campaign, the Blue Demons and Red Storm have met 13 times, with the Blue Demons claiming victory in nine of those matchups.
- Sunday will be a rematch of last year’s conference title game, a 65-57 win for the Blue Demons.
For more information on the St John’s Women’s Basketball team fans are encouraged to check out the link seen here: