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The St. John’s Red Storm fell to 3-1 Wednesday night after taking a 74-68 loss to the BYU Cougars at the Mohegan Sun.
St. John’s were marred by three-point shooting woes all night, finishing 4-21 from three. Head coach Mike Anderson put it best after the game, per Zach Braziller of the New York Post.
"Sometimes they leave you open for a reason." -- Mike Anderson on the shot selection. #sjubb
— Zach Braziller (@NYPost_Brazille) December 3, 2020
It’s tough to argue with that logic. St. John’s had nearly identical shooting halves, going 2-11 from deep in the first half and 2-10 in the second half, so it’s not like they ever had a run of success from long-range. At some point you need to adapt and work the ball inside.
The Red Storm seemed to just never get into the flow of the game offensively, scoring just 23 points in the first half, a season-low output for a half for the Red Storm this year. St. John’s also struggled to stop Alex Barcello in the first half, as the senior guard went 5-6 for 12 points.
St. John’s showed signs of life in the second half, pulling into a tie game with 15 minutes to go, but that was about it for the Red Storm, as they couldn’t string together stops and scores.
Julian Champagnie led the Red Storm in scoring for the second straight game, scoring a game-high 25 points, 18 of which came in the second half. It’s evident that he has recovered from his ankle injury and is looking like St. John’s primary scoring option as the year goes on.
The Red Storm return to action on Sunday as they host Stony Brook.