In all but one of the St. John’s Edge’s first 14 games, the team’s scoring leader — or co-scoring leader — was either Carl English or Charles Hinkle.
The lone exception was a late November game in Moncton, N.B., where Alex Johnson led the scoring parade, although it should be noted English sat out that contest for the purpose of rest.
Neither English or Hinkle was the Edge’s scoring leader Friday night at Mile One Centre, where St. John’s played Game No. 15 against the KW (Kitchener-Waterloo) Titan. Not even close.
But that didn’t keep the Edge from winning for a sixth time in seven games at Mile One as the home side got a widespread scoring performance — including having seven different players in double figures — in beating the Titans 120-113 before a crowd of just over 4,000 fans.
For a second straight game, English and Hinkle struggled to find their normal shooting prowess. Combined, they were eight-for-30 from the field and 2-for-14 on three-pointers (where English hit just one of 10 attempts). However, St. John’s (10-5) got a team-leading 22 points from guard Desmond Lee, who got a starting assignment for a second straight game, and 20 off the bench from Tyler Haws, playing just his third contest for the Edge
In the first three games of a four-game home stand that ends tonight (7 p.m.) with a rematch against KW, Lee has averaged 19 points a game.
Alex Johnson added 17 points for the winners, with English contributing 13, big men Grandy Glaze and Ransford Brempong kicking in with 11 each and Rashaun Broadus, back in the lineup after missing the last game, contributing 10.
The scoring for the Titans (2-10) was much more concentrated, with Derek Hall leading all players with 34 points and Justin Hurtt putting up 27. With Ahmad Starks (17 points) and Kevin Rogers (16), they constituted a foursome that accounted for nearly 85 per cent of their team’s output on the night.
Hall also led all rebounders in the game with 14. Lee had an Edge-high nine rebounds, while Johnson did as he often has and led St. John’s with nine assists.
The Titan won three of the four quarters in the game, but the Edge outscored the visitors by such a wide margin in the second quarter — 33-21 — that it was enough to help them maintain a lead for the majority of the contest and withstand a late run by KW, which closed to within four points in the last minute of the game.
