Redshirt freshman guard Marcus LoVett, playing his first college game in the Chicago area where he made his name in high school, stacked up a game-high 22 points with six assists to lead St. John's to a 79-73 victory over DePaul on Sunday afternoon at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.

Freshman guard Shamorie Ponds scored 15 points and junior forward Bashir Ahmed added 14 for the Red Storm (8-7, 2-0), who have won their first two Big East games since the 2010-11 season. St. John's swatted nine shots and forced 16 turnovers.

DePaul received 18 points from sophomore guard Eli Cain, but he missed most of the last 3:18 after suffering a leg cramp. The Blue Demons (7-8, 0-2) trailed by just two points when Cain left with an injury that occurred after he scored seven points in a 58-second stretch. Junior forward Tre'Darius McCallum contributed 14 points and nine rebounds while senior guard Billy Garrett Jr. added 13 points.

Riding the momentum from taking No. 1 Villanova to the wire before losing on Wednesday night, DePaul raced out to a 17-5 lead in the opening seven minutes as six Blue Demons got on the board.

St. John's replied with runs of 9-0 and 11-0 that earned the Red Storm their first lead -- a 27-24 margin -- on sophomore guard Malik Ellison's 3-pointer with 7:41 to play.

That's when DePaul senior guard Chris Harrison-Docks (12 points) gave the hosts a boost off the bench. The Western Kentucky transfer nailed a long 3-pointer to beat the shot clock, then added three free throws less than a minute later when he was fouled while trying to beat the clock again. Harrison-Docks' six-point spree regained a 34-28 lead for DePaul that swelled to 40-33 by halftime.

St. John's gradually reeled in DePaul during the second half. LoVett's coast-to-coast drive and layup while getting fouled gave St. John's a 59-56 edge with 7:56 to go. Garrett's own conventional 3-point play pulled the Blue Demons even, but St. John's responded with seven points in a row to take their biggest lead.

Cain guided the Blue Demons back into the mix as he reeled off seven points in 58 seconds by attacking the basket on three consecutive possessions. After the last one, which pulled the Demons within 68-66, Cain suffered a calf cramp and had to take a seat with 3:08 to play. Cain limped back on the floor with 1:48 to go and DePaul trailing by five, but he wasn't a factor at either end and left the game again.