Texas and Saint Joseph’s will square off for just the second time ever on Friday night when they tip off in the Legends Classic championship game in New York.
Texas rides a four-game winning streak into the final, while Saint Joseph’s has been victorious in three straight contests. Their meeting will be their first since the Longhorns recorded a 68-50 victory on Nov. 24, 2008.
Saint Joseph’s (4-1) overcame squandering a 16-point lead in Thursday’s 78-77 victory over Texas Tech in the semifinals.
Justice Ajogbor made the second of his two free throws with 13 seconds remaining to snap a tie and cap the scoring.
Anthony Finkley successfully contested Darrion Williams’ floater at the buzzer to preserve the win for the Hawks.
“We come in here (to Barclays Center), an amazing NBA venue in Brooklyn, and I’m like, God is good,” Saint Joseph’s coach Billy Lange said. “Just to get these opportunities, regardless of the result … is the thing I’m grateful for the most right now.”
Erik Reynolds II scored 26 points and went 6 of 11 from 3-point range, while Xzayvier Brown finished with 20 points following a 13-for-13 effort from the free-throw line. Brown is averaging 17.4 points and Reynolds 16.8 over the first five games of the season.
Texas (4-1) advanced to Friday’s championship game with a 70-66 win over Syracuse on Thursday, holding on after giving up an 11-point halftime lead. Arthur Kaluma posted 16 points, 10 rebounds and four assists to pace the Longhorns before fouling out.
“I take more of a facilitator role when I work the middle,” Kaluma said of his production against a zone defense. “When I get the ball in the middle, I’m able to spray the ball to my teammates to get easier shots. But when they go man (defense), it’s still that facilitation mindset even when I have more opportunities to score.”
Tre Johnson, who came in averaging 23.5 points per game, added 16 points on Thursday. Johnson went just 1 of 7 from 3-point range in what was his lowest-scoring output of Texas’ first five games.
The Longhorns struggled from deep vs. Syracuse, making just 4 of 15 shots. But Texas benefited from holding the Orange to 5-of-21 shooting from long distance, and Syracuse was a dismal 9 of 18 at the free-throw line.
