Senior forward Jeremy Hazell scored a season-best 31 points to help the Seton Hall Pirates beat the No. 15 St. John's Red Storm, 84-70, in a Big East Conference contest at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. Hazell nailed nine 3-pointers for the Pirates (12-17, 6-11 Big East), who made 18-of-32 (56.3 percent) from behind the 3-point arc. Hazell, who netted 12 first-half points, shot a blistering 9-of-14 (64.3) from the floor.
Senior guard Dwight Hardy netted a team-best 23 points for the Red Storm (19-10, 11-6 Big East), who were trying to hold onto to their double-bye spot in the Big East standings, but failed. Now, St. John's is tied for fourth place with the Syracuse basketball program (24-6, 11-6) and can only earn a double-bye in the upcoming Big East Tournament, March 8-12, if: The Syracuse Orange lose Saturday to last-place DePaul Blue Demons (4 p.m.) and St. John's defeats the South Florida Bulls (8 p.m.). Earlier in the season, the Orange (24-6, 11-6) defeated the Red Storm, 76-59, Jan. 12, and earned the head-to-head tiebreaker.
SHU, who led 34-30 at halftime, held St. John's without a field goal in the game's last 5:51. Freshman forward Fuquan Edwin chipped in with 19 points, while teammate junior guard Theodore Jordan added 14 points.
Senior forward D.J. Kennedy tallied 12 points and seven rebounds for St. John's, which had its six-game winning streak snapped.