St. John’s got some help off the bench and won its fifth game in a row, 69-61, over Wagner Wednesday at Carnesecca Arena in Queens, N.Y.

D.J. Kennedy came off the bench to score 20 points, grab six rebounds and record two steals, despite battling foul trouble for much of the second half.

Justin Brownlee had 17 points and six boards off the bench, and Dwight Hardy scored 10 points to go with four steals.

The Red Storm (6-1) got only 25 points from the starting five and were outrebounded 44-38. St. John’s also shot 36.1 percent (22-for-61) from the field, but the defense forced 21 turnovers while St. John’s committed only eight.

Wagner (3-4) pulled within four, 60-56, with 5:48 to go in the game, but the Red Storm held on.

Tyler Murray’s 21 points and five rebounds paced Wagner, but Murray also committed four turnovers. Josh Thompson had 12 points and five boards.