Justin Brownlee’s layup with three seconds left lifted St. John’s to a 58-56 win over Rutgers at Carnesecca Arena Wednesday night.

The Red Storm led throughout, but Rutgers staged a late rally to tie the game with under a minute left. Dane Miller missed a desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer for Rutgers.

St. John’s raced out to a 9-0 lead, but Rutgers eventually tied the game at 25 on a 3-pointer by Jonathan Mitchell with four minutes left in the first half. The teams were tied at 31 at the break despite 15 turnovers by Rutgers.

Rutgers (12-10, 3-7 Big East) managed just seven points in the first 12 minutes of the second half and St. John’s again built a double-digit lead. But Rutgers again rallied and closed the gap to 55-53 in the final minute on a 3-pointer by Robert Lumpkins, who tied the game on the Scarlet Knights’ next possession, setting the stage for Brownlee.

Dwight Hardy led the Red Storm with 15 points. Mitchell led Rutgers with 21 points.

St. John's defeated Duke Sunday, capping a string of eight consecutive games against opponents ranked in the top-25. The Red Storm (13-8, 5-5) play at UCLA on Saturday, marking the return of coach Steve Lavin, who coached the Bruins for seven seasons.