Thurston becomes winningest head coach in St. Francis College women’s basketball history

Achieves feat in win over Mount

February 7, 2018 By John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Jade Johnson poured in 22 points Monday as SFC Brooklyn beat Mount St. Mary’s to make John Thurston the winningest head women’s basketball coach in the Remsen Street school’s history. Photo courtesy of SFC Brooklyn Athletics

Share this:

John Thurston already holds the most impressive achievement in St. Francis Brooklyn basketball history.

The only hoops coach in the Remsen Street school’s history to lead a team to an NCAA Tournament added yet another one Monday night in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

Sophomore guard Jade Johnson scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds as the Terriers mauled Mount St. Mary’s 75-56, making Thurston the winningest coach in the history of SFC women’s basketball.

Thurston, who miraculously guided the Terriers to the 2015 NCAAs following an unprecedented run of three straight road victories in the NEC Tournament, nudged past current SFC Athletic Director Irma Garcia with his 69th win since taking over head coaching duties six years ago.

Johnson, who finished 8-of-12 from the floor, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range, also did considerable damage along the interior with a series of layups and big rebounds.

“I’m attacking the basket more, doing more than just shooting threes, and getting to the line, which adds something my game,” said Johnson.

“I didn’t want to be such a one-dimensional player, and going forward, I think needed to expand what I can do and how I can be more of a threat.”

Senior forward Alex Delaney, who was a freshman on Thurston’s NEC Championship squad, had 13 points against the Mount as the Terriers (9-13 overall, 5-6 NEC) bounced back nicely from Saturday afternoon’s three-point loss at Wagner.

“Last game hurt a lot,” said Delaney after helping SFC climb back into fifth place in the league standings.

“Losing like that definitely sucked, so I think we had a fire in our belly coming into this game. We really wanted to win today. And playing well today meant a lot going into the upcoming tough weekend.”

The Terriers, who boast a 6-2 record at home this year, will host St. Francis University here on Saturday afternoon at the Pope Physical Education Center.

* * *

Senior DeAngelique Waithe posted game highs of 17 points and 11 rebounds for her eighth double-double of the season Monday, but it wasn’t enough as the LIU-Brooklyn women’s squad dropped a 52-44 decision at Wagner’s Spiro Center.

Waithe, a 6-foot forward from Lehigh Acres, Florida, went 7-of-11 from the field and blocked four shots for the Blackbirds (9-13, 5-6), who failed to build on Saturday’s last-second win at The Mount.

Drew Winter and Denisha Petty-Evans, who drained the game-winning jumper with 14 seconds left to play Saturday, added 10 points apiece for LIU, which will be back in action Saturday at the Steinberg Wellness Center against visiting Robert Morris.