The win marks the Cadets first WCAC conference title since 2016 and avenges a 69-60 loss to the Panthers last month.
St. John's (29-2) was paced by a balanced effort in the win as Davis finished with a team-high 21 points, seven rebounds and three assists, while top 50 junior
Donnie Freeman finished with 16 points and and Harvard pledge
Malik Mack tallied 15 points, eight assists and three rebounds.
The teams traded one-point leads at the end of the first and second quarters as Paul VI led 19-18 after the first quarter and St. John's took a 30-29 lead into halftime.
A strong third quarter saw the Cadets extend their advantage to 50-44 headed into the fourth quarter, but the Panthers stormed back in the final period.
After a jumper from Mack gave St. John's a 56-50 lead with 4:47 remaining, the Panthers responded with an 8-0 run to take their first lead of the second half.
Three made free throws were followed up by a layup from top 100 junior
Isaiah Abraham and a 3-pointer from four-star Maryland signee
Deshawn Harris-Smith to give the Panthers a 58-56 lead with 2:41 remaining.
Davis quickly responded with a 4-0 run of his own after back-to-back made layups gave St. John's a 60-58 lead with 1:32 remaining.
Paul VI (28-3) scored the next two baskets to take the lead back at 62-60 with 1:13 remaining to go in the contest after made baskets from Harris-Smith and junior
Patrick Ngongba.
A 3-pointer from Mack with one minute remaining gave St. John's a 63-62 lead prior to Harris-Smith splitting a pair of free throws to tie things at 63-63 with approximately 44 seconds remaining.
The game-winning shot from Davis came after the 5-foot-11 three-star guard split through the defense on his way to the layup with his right hand with 3.8 seconds remaining to give the Cadets the 65-63 victory.
Harris-Smith had a strong performance despite the loss, finishing with a game-high 24 points on 9-of-14 from the field, while four-star Duke commit
Darren Harris also contributed 14 points.
The loss marked the Panthers first conference loss of the season after
going 15-0 in the WCAC in regular season play prior to adding two more
wins in the conference tournament.
Daquan Davis scored a team-high 21 points and scored the game-winning basket with 3.8 seconds remaining to give the Cadets the win. (Photo: Justin Fine)
