ST. LOUIS – Led by Gibson Jimerson’s blazing 3-point shooting in the second half, Saint Louis overcame a 20-point deficit and defeated Saint Joseph’s 88-85 Wednesday night at Chaifetz Arena.
The Billikens snapped a three-game skid and improved to 8-8 overall and 1-2 in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Saint Joseph’s lost for a third time in four games and slipped to 10-5, 0-2.
The 20-point deficit is the largest overcome by Saint Louis in a Billiken victory in Chaifetz Arena history. The previous record was 18 points vs. North Carolina A&T on Jan. 2, 2009.
Jimerson’s game-high-tying 27 points included 24 in the second half, fueled by a 6-of-7 effort from beyond the arc. He was 7-of-11 from distance for the game, matching his career high for 3-point field goals. The Billikens’ 14 triples (14-of-26, 53.8 percent) were a season high and equaled the school record for 3-pointers at Chaifetz Arena.
In addition, Jimerson passed Kwamain Mitchell for seventh place on Saint Louis’ career scoring list. He now has 1,578 points.
Tim Dalger also played a huge second-half role, scoring 14 of his 15 points following intermission. Bradley Ezewiro’s 12 points included eight in the second half. Ezewiro grabbed a team-high six rebounds.
SLU shot 81.5 percent (22-of-27) from the foul line and committed only seven turnovers, just one off its season low. The Billikens recorded a season-high six blocks.
The Billikens began their comeback late in the first half, outscoring Saint Joseph’s 14-4 over the last five minutes to turn a 39-19 hole into a 43-33 halftime deficit. Bruce Zhang tallied six points and Michael Meadows Jr. scored five to spark the run.
After Jimerson’s first 3-pointer of the second half narrowed the gap to nine, 45-36, Saint Joseph’s used a 10-4 spurt to go on top 55-40 with 16:02 remaining.
Jimerson connected from the arc seconds later to ignite a 25-8 flurry that gave SLU its first lead, 65-63, at the 8:59 mark. It was the first of his four treys during the run, which also featured seven points from Dalger and six from Ezewiro.
Following Terrence Hargrove Jr.’s 3-pointer that put the Billikens in front 68-65, Saint Joseph’s scored the next four points for a 69-68 edge. SLU failed to score on its next possession but made a defensive stop to prevent the Hawks from expanding their lead, and Dalger put the Bills ahead with a turnaround jumper.
The lead grew to seven, 80-73, with 3:19 remaining, but a 7-0 Saint Joseph’s run evened things at 80 with 1:07 to play. Jimerson then turned playmaker, delivering a beautiful feed to Ezewiro for a dunk that gave Saint Louis the lead for good, and Cian Medley sank two free throws for an 84-80 advantage.
A 3-pointer with nine seconds left gave Saint Joseph’s life, but Jimerson and Medley converted two free throws apiece in the final moments, and the Hawks’ potential game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer was well off the mark.
The Billikens play their next two games on the road, beginning with Dayton Tuesday, Jan. 16, at 7 p.m. Central. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
