Second-half surge leads Georgetown past St. John's

[January 10, 2017]  Junior guard L.J. Peak scored 16 points to pace a second-half surge as Georgetown beat St. John's 83-55 Monday in a Big East Conference contest at the Verizon Center in Washington.

Graduate guard Rodney Pryor and freshman guard Jagan Mosely added 13 points each for the Hoyas (9-8, 1-4 Big East).

Sophomore forward Marcus Derrickson scored all 11 of his points in the first half for Georgetown, which has never begun Big East play 0-5.

St. John's (8-10, 2-3) lost for the 12th consecutive time on the road at Georgetown.

The Red Storm were paced by freshman guard Shamorie Ponds with 12 points. Redshirt freshman Marcus LoVett and junior swingman Bashir Ahmed each added 10 points for the visitors, who were an awful 5 of 30 from 3-point range.

Georgetown went on a 16-0 run to take a 63-39 lead with 9:37 left in the game on two free throws by Mosely, who added six rebounds. Earlier in the run, Peak had a dunk to make it 49-39 and his two free throws made it 53-39.

Pryor, held scoreless in a loss Saturday to Butler, added a game-high eight rebounds. The Hoyas made 27 of 33 shots from the foul line while winning the battle of the boards 48-34.

Georgetown took its first double-digit lead with 18:14 left in the game on two free throws by Peak to make it 47-37.

 The Red Storm shot 33 percent from the field and 3 of 15 (20 percent) from 3-point range in the first half. St. John's was able to stay close by making 12 of 15 shots from the foul line prior to intermission.

Georgetown Hoyas guard L.J. Peak (0) passes the ball as St. John's Red Storm guard Shamorie Ponds (2) defends during the first half at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

The Hoyas had a 20-12 edge on points in the paint in the first half. Georgetown led 38-30 late in the first half and took a lead of 44-37 into intermission.

St. John's redshirt sophomore forward Tariq Owens, from nearby Odenton, Md., fouled out after scoring just two points.

The Hoyas were again without junior guard Tre Campbell, who is sidelined due to an undisclosed illness. He has missed three games this season.

Georgetown will play its third of four straight home games on Saturday against Connecticut. St. John's will host Villanova on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

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