Can This Big East Team Make a Final Four Run?
St. Johns came into this year with a chip on their shoulder after being overlooked and arguably snubbed out of the NCAA Tournament last year. They entered the year unranked in the pre-season poll and have up to this point overachieved in everyone’s eyes. They are ranked number tenth in the country and sit on top of the Big East standings at 13-2. Rick Pitino has his whole team on the same page playing with so much energy and aggression on every single possession that the flaws of this St. Johns team could be mitigated come tournament time.
In a massive Big East matchup on Sunday, St. Johns was able to overcome an early deficit and defeat Creighton 79-73 to increase their lead at the top of the Big East standings. RJ Luis Jr. led the team in scoring with 23 points and also grabbed 14 rebounds. After a slow start offensively adjusting to his new team the emergence of Kadary Richmond the last few weeks gives St. Johns a whole new look. The calling card for the Johnnies this season has been their ferocious pressure on the defensive end. They are allowing 65 points per game and averaged nine steals. They force their opponents to turn the ball over 16 times per contest. What the team lacks in offensive firepower they make up with effort and energy on the defensive end. That type of full-court pressure could fluster a lot of teams in both the Big East Tournament and the NCAA Tournament.
St. Johns will try to do something they have been unable to do since 2000 and that's win the Big East Tournament. Last year the Connecticut Huskies were able to outlast Marquette to win the Big East title. The Johnnies have only lost two games in conference this season both coming down to the wire. The first loss was on the road against Creighton 57-56, the second loss was also on the road 73-71 against Villanova. With the Big East Tournament being played at Madison Square Garden in front of their city and a majority of their fans they should feel confident to make serious noise come tournament time. The biggest difference maker with this team will be the amount of touches that center Zuby Ejiofor can get when they go on their scoring droughts. Having a center you can throw the ball to in the post and either score or draw a foul can steady a team who doesn’t have a reliable go-to scorer. The offense is going to make or break this team coming down the stretch but if they don’t burn out and keep up the same energy and pressure this team could make a Final Four run.
