ABSTRACT:

St. John’s 86, Seton Hall 75

Bootsy Thornton had six weeks to think about it.

In his previous trip to the Garden on Nov. 27, st. John’s silky lefthanded junior clanked a free throw with 10.7 seconds left against then No. 11 Purdue. Trailing by one point, the Boilermakers took advantage of the miss by nailing a basket with 1.7 remaining for a 70-69 victory.

Returning to the court last night the 6-foot-4 Thornton atoned for his mistake, and then some, by exploding for a career-high 27 points on 11 or 16 shooting to help lift No. 10 St. John’s to a 86-75 victory over Seton Hall at the Garden before 11,107 fans.