March 19, 2000 By Rob Miech SportsLine.com Staff Writer

TUCSON, Ariz. -- He had a game-high 21 points, he conducted a post-game press conference wearing a North Carolina football jersey (No. 12, for those who care) and he insisted he shook the hand of Gonzaga guard

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Matt Santangelo after the game.

St. John's point guard Erick Barkley, however, also had no assists in his team's 82-76 defeat to Gonzaga on Saturday at McKale Center.

"Right now," Barkley said, "I'm just looking forward to doing my school work."

After getting schooled by Santangelo, whom he teamed with in Spain to help the U.S. win the gold medal at the World University Games last summer, Barkley vowed to hit the books?

The NCAA will surely like the sound of that, if investigators from that organization are indeed following Barkley's every move and word as closely as they seem to be. Barkley wasn't finished.

Santangelo led everyone with 26 points, matching the season high he set against San Francisco on Jan. 13. He was 8-for-14 from the field, including 6-for-10 from 3-point land, and gave out five assists and grabbed four rebounds. He turned the ball over only twice.

Barkley led St. John's with his 21 points, shooting 6-for-18, including 5-for-14 beyond the arc. He added four boards and a steal, with two turnovers. But it was Barkley's first no-assists game this season and the third of his career.

The Red Storm won those other two, last season at Boston College and at Georgetown.

"I think the refs didn't let us play Big East basketball tonight," Barkley said. "We're not used to that. We're used to getting away with a lot more stuff than we did tonight. I know I got caught a few times, and I couldn't be my aggressive self."