Deadspin: Keyshawn Hall stars as No. 13 St. John’s beats Monmouth in opener

Hall shines in debut

Hall opened his St. John’s tenure by making his first six shots. The Auburn transfer finished 9 of 16 from the field, went 7-for-7 at the foul line and played 33 minutes.

Ian Jackson scored 15 points, with 13 coming after halftime. Tounde Yessoufou added 12 in his St. John’s debut, while Quinn Ellis had eight points, seven assists, five rebounds and five steals in his first collegiate game after spending last season in Italy.

Early lead sets tone

Hall scored nine of St. John’s first 11 points as the Red Storm moved ahead 16-4. Ellis’s basket extended the lead after a turnover by Stefanos Spartalis. St. John’s went up 24-6 when Reed Bailey scored inside. Hall later made a contested 3-pointer for a 31-16 advantage, then reached 20 points on a layup after an offensive rebound. The Red Storm led 45-29 at halftime.

Jackson helps close it out

Monmouth cut the margin to 59-47 with about nine minutes remaining. Jackson answered with two 3-pointers in 56 seconds, giving St. John’s a 67-48 lead. The Red Storm finished with a 78-63 win despite making 6 of 20 attempts from 3-point range. St. John’s shot 41.9 percent overall.

Monmouth turnovers hurt

Jakai Sanders led Monmouth with 17 points. Madison Durr scored 15, and Ashton Walker added 11. The Hawks, picked fifth in the Coastal Athletic Association’s preseason poll, shot 42.9 percent and committed 18 turnovers.