St. John’s soars to #17, beats Xavier in OT
St. John’s senior Bryce Hopkins drives from the perimeter against UConn. Photos: Noah Zimmerman
By Noah Zimmerman
Noah@queensledger.com
St. John’s were finally able to pick up their first ranked win of the season, and it came against their toughest opponent of the year. On Friday night, the Red Storm welcomed their rivals, the #3 UConn Huskies, to the world’s most famous arena.
On the back of an 8-game winning streak, St. John’s began their ascent back up the national rankings after an unceremonious plummet from the top-25. They were tabbed at #22 in the nation ahead of Friday’s matchup.
It was an electric night at the Garden, drawing by far the loudest crowd with a primetime sellout. Fans were involved in every play, both on offense and defense. Visiting UConn supporters were noisy as well, with trash talk aplenty between the rival fanbases.
Red Storm wing Joson Sanon plays tough defense on UConn’s Solo Ball. Huskies head coach Dan Hurley is animated on the sideline.
Zuby Ejiofor was unbelievable in Friday’s contest. The St. John’s captain recorded another double-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists. He added a trio of blocks and a pair of steals on defense for a terrific all-around game. Ejiofor was named BIG EAST and MWPA Player of the Week for his dominance against DePaul and UConn, adding fuel to his push for conference Player of the Year.
Bryce Hopkins and Dillon Mitchell helped Zuby with 15 and 14 points, respectively. The trio combined for 17/26 shooting and 22 of the Red Storm’s 32 rebounds. Off the bench Dylan Darling continued to put together a remarkable second half of the year, adding an efficient 9.
Hopkins gets to the glass for a bucket. He finished with 15 points.
For the Huskies it was senior Alex Karaban who really impressed. The forward went up against one of the top frontcourts in the nation and picked up an efficient 17 points on 7/10 shooting (3/4 from downtown). Silas DeMary Jr. led the Huskies with 18 points, but the UConn guard was hounded all game, resulting in 9 turnovers.
While they got help from the other starters, UConn’s bench only managed to score six combined points, nine less than the Red Storm reserves.
In the final minutes the Red Storm were unable to gain significant ground. Karaban brought the Huskies within a pair of points, but St. John’s were just barely able to keep ahead thanks to terrific defense down the stretch.
It was a short turnaround, but on Monday night Rick Pitino welcomed his son Richard and the Xavier Musketeers to MSG.
Fatigue looked to play a role as the Red Storm couldn’t hold a significant lead through the opening half. Every score had an answer, with Xavier hitting big shots to level the game at multiple points, including a three right at halftime to make it 42-42.
A focal point of the Red Storm defense was limiting Musketeers forward Tre Carroll, who scored 31 in the first matchup against St. John’s. The FAU transfer was held to just four points in the opening frame.
St. John’s made sure to keep Tre Carroll off the board in the first half, limiting him to 4 points. The Musketeers star scored 31 in their first matchup.
Bryce Hopkins stepped into a critical defensive role late, helping contain Carroll and other Xavier bigs and prevent a 2nd half collapse. He made a few terrific stops, but St. John’s just couldn’t get the game squared away as Xavier forced OT.
In the extra period, Xavier’s foul trouble finally got to them. On consecutive defensive possessions Jovan Milicevic, Isaiah Walker, and Malik Messina-Moore picked up their 5th and final personal fouls. Carroll scored 17 in the 2nd half but was kept from attempting a single shot in OT.
Zuby and Hopkins bullied Xavier on defense and drew fouls on the other end before the game was finally punctuated by an Oziyah Sellers fastbreak to make it 87-82.
It was a tough battle but St. John’s were able to pick up the win in an overtime battle, 87-82.
Rick Pitino picked up win #904, passing Roy Williams for 3rd on the all-time NCAA Division I wins list. Still, with the game going to overtime, Pitino wasn’t fully pleased with the effort.
“I hate getting any milestone against him but I go away tonight saying my son is a hell of a coach,” said Pitino postgame. “To say my son is a great coach is much more pleasing than any number of victories.”
The Red Storm will hit the road for three of their next four matchups. On Valentine’s Day the Johnnies have a date in Providence with the Friars, looking to avenge their lone BIG EAST defeat. Then on the 18th they head to Milwaukee to take on the basement-dwelling Marquette.
St. John’s returns to Madison Square Garden on February 21 to finish their season set against the Creighton Bluejays.
