NEW YORK, NY — As No. 6 St. John’s and No. 20 Marquette went at it on the final day of the 2024-2025 Big East Conference regular season, the feeling of March Madness began to creep into the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee…
Both halves and overtime of Saturday’s thrilling classic, a noon tip/11:00 AM local time, featured the Red Storm and Golden Eagles, two Big East foes, fighting back and forth with all 45 minutes coming down to one last shot attempt put up and nailed by St. John’s junior forward Zuby Ejiofor.
ZUBY EJIOFOR AT THE BUZZER FOR THE WIN! 😱
What a play for @StJohnsBBall! pic.twitter.com/u56srak7pE
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) March 8, 2025
Could it get any more poetic? A buzzer-beater in overtime on the road by Ejiofor, who completed similar heroics this past December at Providence.
“Not a whole lot to say, except wow,” stated St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino after the win. “We had a very difficult time switching onto Kam Jones and guarding his left hand. Outside of that, we played the terrific, pretty game, as we always do and it’s a heck of a win, probably my favorite win of the season by far.”
One-of-three co-captains Ejiofor, the hero of Saturday’s contest, working his way to the rim across 37 minutes of action, finished with 17 points, and 12 rebounds (seven offensive boards), which marked his ninth double double of the year.
“Our entire thing is to do whatever it takes to win,” he said in the postgame. “You just don’t always look at a premium on every single night and it doesn’t matter — we fight through adversity. We’re a gritty team and we enjoy playing with each other.”
Without their elite big man Zuby Ejiofor, No. 6 ranked St. John’s would not be where they are at this season – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
With Saturday’s nail-biting affair concluding 86-84, the Johnnies improved to 27-4 overall, and 18-2 in Big East play. The program’s 27 victories on the year are the most in a season since 1998-1999, while its 18 wins in league play result in the largest number of victories for St. John’s ever in a conference campaign.
KA-Party like it’s 1999
In the 86-84 win at Marquette, St. John’s graduate guard Kadary Richmond recorded an all around stat line consisting of 10 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists and four steals — making him the first Red Storm player to have a triple double in a game since Ron Artest (Metta Sandiford-Artest) completed the feat on January 9, 1999 vs. Seton Hall.
“He (Artest) was an aggressive guy,” said Richmond when asked of being the first Johnnie to record a triple double since Artest. “He played very hard every night.”
Kadary Richmond had his hands all over Saturday’s win, recording the first triple double in program history in over 26 years – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
Just as important as the historic triple double was the Brooklyn native’s final steal in OT, appearing seconds before Ejiofor’s buzzer beater, which gave the Johnnies possession.
“We prepared all week for this game,” Richmond noted. “It’s March so it’s time to close in and prepare well and play every game like it’s your last.”
Another Big Day for RJ
After the first 20 minutes of Saturday’s ‘war,’ Red Storm junior combo-guard RJ Luis Jr. walked into the visiting locker room with four points and four rebounds. All together, a tough first half for the Dominican-Ecuadorian from Miami, Florida — one where St. John’s left the court leading, 36-35.
Then, right out of the gate in the second half, Luis Jr. turned it up multiple gears, dropping five points within the first 85 seconds. He was able to tack on 24 points and seven rebounds in the second frame/overtime combined, to get him to a total of 28 and 11 on the day (10-19 FG, 3-7 3PT, 5-6 FT).
WHAT A FINISH BY RJ
And a great pass from Sim 👏 pic.twitter.com/SLaG7XOyae
— St. John's Men’s Basketball (@StJohnsBBall) March 8, 2025
“RJ is a terrific offensive basketball player,” said Pitino in a FOX postgame interview. “He just has to learn how to pick his spots better, driving into the teeth of the defense doesn’t always work. But in the second half, when we needed scoring, he came through for us.”
Delivering in the clutch to record his ninth double double of the season, this all came while facing off against Marquette’s star senior guard Kam Jones, who, along with Luis Jr., were both trying to make a final case for Big East Player of the Year honors.
And in all reality, both dynamic-winning athletes did since Jones recorded 32 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, as Luis Jr. had 28 points and 11 boards.
If RJ Luis Jr. was named the Big East POTY, he would become the first player from St. John’s to win the Big East Player of the Year award since Walter Berry in 1985-1986 – Image Credit: St. John’s Men’s Basketball
“It would be a blessing to receive the award,” stated Luis Jr. “It would be an honor. What I did from last year to this year is a pretty awesome story.”
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