Pitino Downs Former School, Zuby Block Party Continues, & Jackson Gets Start

Zuby Ejiofor leaps for the opening tip against Ole Miss just a week before the Iona matchup. The Red Storm big man recorded 8 blocks in each of the two games.

By Noah Zimmerman

noah@queensledger.com

Rick Pitino vanquished his former team on Saturday afternoon as the St. John’s Red Storm took down the Iona Gaels at Madison Square Garden, 91-64. Pitino spent three seasons in New Rochelle, leading the Gaels to two MAAC regular season titles, two conference championships, and two trips to the NCAA Tournament. The win over Iona marked Pitino’s 20th over teams he had previously coached.

“Iona is such a special place because every coach that coaches there wins. Kevil Willard started there, I certainly was rejuvenated there,” Pitino said about his former school.

Even after another slow start (this time missing 12 of their first 13 field goal attempts, St. John’s were able to outscore the Gaels 36-26 in the opening half before pulling away in the second frame.

Scoring for St. John’s was led by Oziyah Sellers with 19, though 16 of them came in the 2nd half. His strong performance led him to a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.

Ian Jackson got the nod at guard over Dylan Darling for the Red Storm. It was the Sophomore transfer’s first start since the opening game of the season against Quinnipiac, and he put up a solid 14 points with 5 rebounds and a joint-team-high 3 assists. Jackson made a change of his own, chopping off his iconic hair, leading to some amusing comments by his teammates and coach.

Zuby Ejiofor was the only SJU starter to record less than 13 points, but the Red Storm big man continued his tremendous work on the defensive end with 8 blocks for a 2nd straight game. Ejiofor also pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds in the winning effort. Led by Ejiofor, the Red Storm defense is finally starting to come around as a strong point.

“We realized we weren’t a very good defensive team. Last year’s team around Christmas time wasn’t a very good defensive team either and they became one of the great defensive teams in the nation,” Pitino said about their improved effort on that end of the floor. “I think we can get to that point, we just need to keep our turnovers down because you beat yourself when you turn the ball over.”

Defense isn’t the only spot where the Red Storm needs to improve. Their inability to start games hot and inconsistent shooting will be a difficult spot as the season enters conference play and eventually the BIG EAST Tournament and beyond. If they’re unable to find consistency on that end of the floor, there’s only so much the defense can do to see out big wins down the stretch.

Following Tuesday’s contest against De Paul the Red Storm is on the road to take on the Kentucky Wildcats in the CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta. Tip off will be Saturday December 20 at 12:30pm. St. John’s comes back to Carnesecca Arena for their final game in Queens on Tuesday the 23 against Harvard.