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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP ) -- From courtside tables, a host of NBA
scouts scribbled in their pads, made mental notes and scrutinized
his every move as Quentin Richardson showed again why some day he
will take his game to the next level.
|  | | St. John's' Reggie Jessie takes aim for 2 of his 14 points. |
Richardson hit 3-pointers from the perimeter; he scored 26
points; he came away with 12 rebounds; and several times he came
sailing to the basket and went high over ever other player for
spectacular followups and dunks.
For DePaul's sophomore star, though, the most important thing he
did Tuesday night was help the Blue Demons (No. 20 ESPN/USA Today, No. 19 AP) beat St.
John's 71-65, snapping the Red Storm's six-game winning streak.
"I was definitely ready to play. The ball came my way and my
shots were falling," said Richardson, who announced last spring he
would wait another year for the pros and return to DePaul.
So, the scouts -- 25 were credentialed Tuesday night -- are
nothing new. He insists he doesn't change his game or anything else
just because they are around.
"I don't look at it that way," Richardson said.
"Whether they come or not, I just try to play the same way
every night. Tonight I just got hot and they got me the ball."
Seven-foot freshman center Steven Hunter added 20 points for the
Blue Demons (7-2).
St. John's (6-2), playing its second game without injured
starting point guard Erick Barkley, got 16 points each from guards
Bootsy Thornton and Chudney Gray.
Richardson started a 20-5 second-half run with a 3-pointer. But
his spectacular basket of the night came minutes later. He missed a
jumper and when teammate Paul McPherson also misfired on a putback,
Richardson came sailing through the lane for a slam follow that put
DePaul up by seven.
DePaul went up by as many as 14 and then held off a St. John's
rally in the final minutes.
Richardson, who had missed a last-second shot in a one-point
overtime loss at Duke on Dec. 4, was the difference.
"We've kind of adjusted offensively and gotten him closer to
the goal in some of our offenses. He understood we needed his
putback ability," DePaul coach Pat Kennedy said.
"He has an uncanny way of getting to the basket and a way of
making plays. Inside and outside. When I told him we needed him
next to the basket, he just said: 'Tell me when and where."'
With his tongue-in-cheek, St. John's coach Mike Jarvis said he
wrote Richardson and told him he should go pro. Then Jarvis
congratulated him for staying in school.
"He made a wise move coming back," Jarvis said. "Give Pat
credit for using him where he is needed and allowing him to expand
his game where it benefits everybody.
"He's a guy that every coach would love to have on his team.
He's a winner, he's very smart and he's very good."
Trailing by 13, the Red Storm went on a 10-1 run spurt. When
Gray got ahead for a fast-break slam and Anthony Glover hit two
free throws, St. John's had cut it to 67-63 with two minutes to
play.
McPherson then scored from inside and after Richardson missed
two free throws with 1:02 left, Hunter swatted a 3-point attempt by
St. John's Heath Orvis and then took the ball away. McPherson
scored again with 41 seconds left to wrap up the win.
The Blue Demons lost starting point guard Rashon Burno with
14:33 left when he sprained a knee ligament in a collision under
the basket. He will have an MRI on Wednesday and could miss six
weeks.
Barkley has been sidelined following arthroscopic knee surgery.
DePaul has been without starting center Lance Williams all season
because of a broken bone in his foot. Williams hopes to return for
Saturday's game at No. 18 UCLA.
Reggie Jessie, who was 17-of-18 from the field in wins over St.
Francis and Niagara, scored 14 points on 7-of-12 shooting for St.
John's.
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ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
St Johns Clubhouse
DePaul Clubhouse
Knee sidelines DePaul guard Burno 3-5 weeks
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Quentin Richardson flies in for a spectacular dunk.
avi: 766 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Steve Hunter puts down a hard two-handed slam in the paint.
avi: 703 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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