ST. JOHN DEFEATS PRINCETON

t. John’s came into the N.C.A.A. tournament still angry over its loss in the Big East tournament. The Red Storm took out that frustration on Princeton. Da’Shena Stevens scored 19 points and Shenneika Smith added 13 Saturday as sixth-seeded St. John’s ran away from the 11th-seeded Tigers, 65-47, in the first round of the N.C.A.A. women’s tournament in Tallahassee, Fla. St. John’s (25-6) will play Florida State in the second round on Monday night. “We played hard, we played physical, we matched their intensity and exceeded it at times,” St. John’s Coach Kim Barnes Arico said. Nadirah McKenith and Centhya Hart each scored 10 for the Red Storm, which was sharp despite a 13-day layoff after a loss to Notre Dame in the Big East quarterfinals. St. John’s outscored Princeton by 27-8 over the final 15 ½ minutes of the first half and eased home from there. “I know the big question was how we were going to come out after so much time off,” Barnes Arico said. “I think that our team really stepped up.” Princeton (26-3), the Ivy League champion, came in with the nation’s third-longest winning streak, a 21-game run that stretched from early December. The Tigers shot 28 percent. “If you told me we were going to shoot 17 for 60 from the field, I certainly would not have believed you,” Princeton Coach Courtney Banghart said.