Wednesday, November 20
Queens, N.Y. / Carnesecca Arena
7:00 P.M.
Columbia University
1-4,0-0Ivy League
63
at
82
St. John's
4-1,0-0Big East
1
2
F
Columbia
27
36
63
St. John's (NY)
49
33
82
Photo by: Columbia University Athletics/Steven Ryan
St. John's Storms Past Lions, 82-63
11/20/2019 9:40:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The Red Storm got off to a fast start and never looked back Wednesday night in Queens.
QUEENS, N.Y. – The Columbia men's basketball team fell to St. John's, 82-63, Wednesday night. The Lions (1-4) were once again led by Mike Smith, who scored a game-high 20 points to go with a personal-best nine rebounds and six assists.
Jake Killingsworth added 11 points and Tai Bibbs posted 10 points and six boards.
"St. John's played great, focused and physical basketball," head coach Jim Engles said after the game. "For us, these are games that we have to step up and work on controlling what we can control. The physicality, getting back in transition, finding the other team's best player on defense. Things like that. It wasn't our best night, but hopefully it's something we can learn from."
After a helter-skelter first few minutes that featured turnovers and battles for loose balls, St. John's grabbed an 11-4 advantage after a putback from Julian Champagnie with 14:24 left in the first half. An 8-0 run by the Red Storm pushed the advantage to 17, but the Lions eventually pulled within 29-18 at the 7:05 mark thanks to a 3-pointer from Bibbs.
However, a 9-2 spurt gave the Johnnie's some extra breathing room as it took a 49-27 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Columbia could only cut the deficit to 53-38 on a Killingsworth triple with 17:26 remaining in regulation. The Red Storm answered back with nine in a row and never looked back.
St. John's scored 23 points off a season-high 18 turnovers by the Lions. The Red Storm bench accounted for 38 points on the night.
Mustapha Heron led St. John's with 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Champagnie added 14 points and seven boards.
The Lions are back in action Saturday, November 23, against Rider at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, as part Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament. Columbia will face either Central Connecticut State or Vermont on Sunday, November 24 to wrap up play at the event. Fans can also catch the action live on ESPN3.
Tickets for upcoming home games can be purchased by visiting gocolumbialions.com/tickets or calling 888-LIONS-11.
For the latest on the Columbia men's basketball, follow @CULionsMBB on Twitter and Instagram, and the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
Jake Killingsworth added 11 points and Tai Bibbs posted 10 points and six boards.
"St. John's played great, focused and physical basketball," head coach Jim Engles said after the game. "For us, these are games that we have to step up and work on controlling what we can control. The physicality, getting back in transition, finding the other team's best player on defense. Things like that. It wasn't our best night, but hopefully it's something we can learn from."
After a helter-skelter first few minutes that featured turnovers and battles for loose balls, St. John's grabbed an 11-4 advantage after a putback from Julian Champagnie with 14:24 left in the first half. An 8-0 run by the Red Storm pushed the advantage to 17, but the Lions eventually pulled within 29-18 at the 7:05 mark thanks to a 3-pointer from Bibbs.
However, a 9-2 spurt gave the Johnnie's some extra breathing room as it took a 49-27 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Columbia could only cut the deficit to 53-38 on a Killingsworth triple with 17:26 remaining in regulation. The Red Storm answered back with nine in a row and never looked back.
St. John's scored 23 points off a season-high 18 turnovers by the Lions. The Red Storm bench accounted for 38 points on the night.
Mustapha Heron led St. John's with 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Champagnie added 14 points and seven boards.
The Lions are back in action Saturday, November 23, against Rider at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, as part Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament. Columbia will face either Central Connecticut State or Vermont on Sunday, November 24 to wrap up play at the event. Fans can also catch the action live on ESPN3.
Tickets for upcoming home games can be purchased by visiting gocolumbialions.com/tickets or calling 888-LIONS-11.
For the latest on the Columbia men's basketball, follow @CULionsMBB on Twitter and Instagram, and the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
Team Stats
CU
SJU
FG%
.377
.431
3FG%
.333
.467
FT%
.333
.684
RB
38
48
TO
18
8
STL
4
10
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
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