The University of South Florida men's basketball team (6-10, 0-3 BIG EAST) is still in search of its first-ever BIG EAST victory following a 68-49 loss to St. John's (8-6, 1-2 BIG EAST) Saturday night in league action from the Sun Dome.

Solomon Jones scored 17 points and McHugh Mattis added 15 for USF, which has lost five straight. The Bulls had dropped their first two conference games - against West Virginia and Syracuse - by a combined 10 points.

Anthony Mason Jr. and Eugene Lawrence had 13 points each and St. John's snapped a 25-game road losing streak. Lamont Hamilton also scored nine points for St. John's. The Red Storm's last road win was a 72-61 victory against Stony Brook on Nov. 29, 2003.

"This definitely was a step back," Jones said. "We didn't come out with any intensity to win tonight. Adversity set in and we slack down. We need to find a way to fight through adversity."

The Red Storm extended a 14-point halftime advantage to 53-30 with 9 minutes left after Ryan Williams had a reverse layup and hit two free throws.