NEW YORK, NY — The streets of New York are beginning to feel the elements of the Red Storm.
In a city where sports headlines constantly feature the Yankees, Mets, Knicks, (Nets on some occasions) and utter mess between both of New York’s football teams, the Jets and Giants — St. John’s has added themselves in the mix.
Not only that, but over the last three weeks, Rick Pitino’s gritty Red Storm group, led by Brooklyn native Kadary Richmond and Dominican-Ecuadorian RJ Luis Jr., have made way for headlines — locally within the Big Apple as well as nationally across the nation.
Kadary Richmond and the Red Storm have New York City fired up – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
Back on the map some would say…
So much so, nearly 20,000 fans (19,821 approximately) were in attendance at Madison Square Garden for Sunday afternoon’s Big East showdown between the top two teams in the conference, No. 9 St. John’s and No. 24 Creighton, which marked a sell-out.
Dominican-Ecuadorian RJ Luis Jr. recorded his 1,000th collegiate career point in St. John’s win over Creighton on Sunday afternoon at MSG – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
With the Johnnies coming out on top, 79-73, Sunday’s win put the Red Storm in the driver’s seat for the Big East Conference regular season title — currently sitting in first place, leading the Bluejays by two-games with five remaining.
The program’s most recent outright Big East regular season championship came in 1985 with the late great and legendary head coach Lou Carnesecca lifting St. John’s to the top of the conference.
For the coaching icon Pitino, 72, in his second-year as the leader in Queens, already bringing the program back to national relevance, nothing has come by surprise for what he envisioned out of this year’s Red Storm and their overall potential.
Rick Pitino wanted to get St. John’s back on the map and has done so in his first two years as the head coach in Queens – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
“The only thing I am really surprised about is the fan base packing The Garden,” he said following the win, marking the Johnnies’ 22nd of the season and 13th in Big East play (22-4, 13-2).
“I mean, these are now Knick crowds. I think like last year’s Knicks team — the toughness, New York strong — we’re doing what they did last year and that’s why the fans are coming out.”
Relentless Red Storm Trio
In Sunday’s massive win over No. 24 Creighton, St. John’s third vs. Top-25 ranked opponents in the last 12 days (vs. No. 11 Marquette, @ No. 19 UConn as the others), RJ Luis Jr., Kadary Richmond, and Zuby Ejiofor — a relentless Red Storm trio — combined for 60 of the team’s 79 points and 33 of St. John’s 45 boards.
RJ Luis Jr.: 23 points, 14 rebounds (career-high), 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
Kadary Richmond: 19 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, 1 block
Zuby Ejiofor: 18 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
Other than his dunks and work in the paint, the big man Zuby Ejiofor nailed two three pointers in the win over Creighton – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
It’s safe to say without the significant production from all three, St. John’s does not leave The Garden on Sunday with a victory.
“When you pull out a win like that, especially when the win means so much, it’s just something I can’t really describe,” said Ejiofor. “As a player, it feels good. Not just for me, but for the whole fan base as well.”
Scary Sight
Creighton witnessed a scary sight in the second half with senior center Ryan Kalkbrenner, the reigning three-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year (2022, 2023, 2024), appearing to injure his right-foot to then fortunately return after a five-six minute lay-off following the medical staff checking in on him.
The reigning three-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year (2022, 2023, 2024) Ryan Kalkbrenner, suffered a right-ankle injury in the second half, but was able to return and finished with 12 points and nine rebounds – Image Credit: Creighton Men’s Basketball
“He (Kalkbrenner) tweaked it pretty good, but obviously, he came back, and they (medical staff) taped it up,” stated Creighton head coach Greg McDermott in the postgame as the Bluejays now have a week off until their next game. “I think he is going to be sore for a few days.”
What’s Next for the Johnnies?
No. 9 ranked St. John’s (22-4, 13-2) will visit DePaul (11-15, 2-13) in Chicago, Illinois, this coming Wednesday night, February 19th, as tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 PM ET — television coverage on FOX Sports 1.
St. John’s now stands in first place in the Big East Conference with a two-game lead over Creighton – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
With a win on Wednesday, St. John’s would match the program’s most victories in Big East action since the 1998-1999 season, a year in which Mike Jarvis’ Red Storm, included with Bootsy Thornton, Metta World Peace (Metta Sandiford-Artest), Erick Barkley, and Lavar Postell, finished 14-4 in conference play and reached the Elite Eight.
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