St. John's shows it has the makings of a Big East championship team in win at UConn

STORRS, Conn. — The first trickles of sloshed and saddened UConn fans descended from the upper level of Gampel Pavilion with 3:11 remaining in a game that was supposed to reanimate the two-time defending national champions but instead devolved into the passing of a conference torch from one regional power to the upstarts from Queens. "F--- it," one man shouted as he waved an arm in disgust and slugged the last few gulps of his adult beverage, searching for solace in the dregs of $2 beer night. By then, the Huskies trailed by eight following a pair of free throws from Red Storm standout Kadary Richmond, a thorn in Connecticut’s side for the whole of his collegiate career, and nothing about the home team’s turnover-filled malaise suggested any kind of storybook comeback was in play.

But suddenly, Tarris Reed converted two free throws and Liam McNeeley flipped in a runner down the right side of the lane, shrinking the margin to four. The fans who’d begun their sullen march toward the exits reversed course and craned their necks to catch a final glimpse. Back and forth these old Big East rivals went in a choppy and frantic finish that left the Huskies needing one defensive stop to give themselves the chance to tie in the waning seconds. And that’s when St John's assistant coach Bob Walsh drew up a brilliant play to free shooting guard RJ Luis Jr. for a baseline jumper that rippled the nets and ripped the hearts of anyone who clung to hope, restarting the Husky exodus en masse. 

"[Luis] never met a shot he didn’t like," St. John's head coach Rick Pitino said, "and there was no doubt in my mind he was going to make the shot. I was 100 percent sure he would make the shot."

The 17-footer from Luis with 10.1 seconds on the clock