Field Level Media
Jan 6, 2018
Marin Maric and Max Strus each posted a double-double and DePaul earned its first Big East victory of the season on Saturday afternoon.
Maric finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds and Strus had 22 points and 10 rebounds as the Blue Demons snapped a three-game losing streak with a 91-74 victory over host St. John's at Carnesecca Arena in New York City.
Bashir Ahmed had 21 points and seven rebounds for the injury-riddled Red Storm, which dropped to 0-4 in Big East play.
With a decided advantage on the glass, DePaul used a 12-0 first-half run to pull ahead and never looked back. Jaylen Butz grabbed an offensive rebound and followed with a jumper at the 9:23 mark in the first half to give the Blue Demons -- who outrebounded St. John's 46-30 -- a lead they never relinquished.
The Red Storm (10-6) closed within 42-40 early in the second half. But Maric led DePaul on a 7-0 run to pull away. Maric made a layup, grabbed a defensive rebound and hit a 3-pointer all in a span of 21 seconds to give DePaul a 58-46 lead with 14:10 to go in the game.
With point guard Marcus LoVett out of the lineup yet again, St. John's only fielded eight healthy players. LoVett missed a ninth straight game with a sprained left knee. The Red Storm shot well from the field in the first half but faded down the stretch, shooting 40 percent from the field.
Tre'Darius McCallum had 16 points and nine rebounds for the Blue Demons (8-8, 1-4 Big East), who made 9 of 19 3-point attempts.
Junior Eli Cain finished with 11 points to become the 50th player in DePaul history to score 1,000 career points.
Guard Shamorie Ponds had 15 points and six assists for the Red Storm in the losing effort. Justin Simon had 10 points and seven rebounds and Marvin Clark II scored 11 points for St. John's.
-- Field Level Media