Mustapha Heron scored 21 points before exiting with an apparent leg injury in the final minutes as host St. John's never trailed but withstood a stiff challenge from Brown and recorded an 82-71 victory Tuesday night.

Heron shot 7 of 16 and posted his third 20-point game of the season. His first 20-point game since Nov. 9 against Central Connecticut was overshadowed by a scary defensive sequence.

With 2:01 remaining, he jumped high to block a layup by Brandon Anderson at the rim and came down awkwardly on his right foot and was screaming in pain along the baseline. After a few minutes, he was helped off the floor by two teammates and trainer Ron Linfonte.

Heron's injury came on a night in which St. John's (9-2) won its fifth straight since a 13-point loss to Arizona State on Nov. 23 by building a 17-point halftime lead and making enough plays down the stretch.

LJ Figueroa led the way with 23 points for St. John's which shot 44 percent and overcame a 6-of-22 showing from the 3-point line. Rasheem Dunn, who hit the game-winning free throws Saturday against West Virginia, added 12 as St. John's made 24 of 26 free throws (92.3 percent).

Anderson scored 18 of his 25 points in the second half to lead all scorers as Brown (5-5) shot 51 percent after halftime and 40.6 percent overall. Joshua Howard -- the son of Michigan coach Juwan Howard -- added 15 for the Bears, who lost their second straight.

St. John's took control early, taking its first double-digit lead at 17-7 on two free throws by Dunn with 12:06 remaining. Brown was within 34-21 on a basket by Anderson with 3:52 remaining but St. John's held a 41-24 lead by halftime after Dunn's layup with four seconds to go.

Brown made five of its first six shots after halftime and was within 45-35 on a 3-pointer by Howard with 17:16 remaining. Brown continued to hang around and was within 60-54 on a jumper by Anderson with 11:08 left and then was within 64-60 on a 3-pointer by Anderson with 7:55 left.

St. John's regained its double-digit lead (70-60) on a basket by Figueroa with 5:32 left and held a 75-64 lead when Heron exited.

--Field Level Media