Coach Steve Lavin returned to the bench and presided over St. John’s 78-73 victory over visiting Lehigh on Wednesday in the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer in New York.

Junior college transfer God’sgift Achiuwa led the way with 21 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the field and a 9-for-9 performance from the line for St. John's (2-0).

Freshman Moe Harkness added 15 points for the Red Storm, who posted their second come-from behind victory already this season. They trailed at the half against William and Mary before recovering on Monday.

Lavin missed Monday’s game recovering from cancer surgery but declared himself ready against the Mountain Hawks.

St. John's will meet Arizona in the semifinals Nov. 17 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

St. John’s trailed by as many as 16 points in the first half but chipped away after the break, knotting it a 64-64 on Harkness’ 3-pointer with 3:44 left. The Red Storm took their first lead of the half when Sir‘Dominic Pointer converted a transition layup with 2:22 left.

The Red Storm took the lead for good on Achiuwa’s jumper with 2:00 remaining and clinched it at the free throw line.

St. John’s lost its top eight scorers from last season’s NCAA Tournament team, but imported one of the top recruiting classes in the nation. Only one returning player, guard Malik Stith, saw time against Lehigh.

C.J. McCollum scored 19 points for the Mountain Hawks.