Game 26: St. John's University (14-12)
Feb. 21, 7:00 pm EST
Washington DC
Capital One Arena
Tickets: Available
Media:
TV: Fox Sports 1
GU Radio: WTEM-980
SJU Radio: Varsity App
About the Redmen:
Location: New York, NY
Enrollment: 15,700
Conference: Big East
2022-23 Record: 18-15
Record vs. Georgetown: 65-57
Meet The Coach:
Rick Pitino
(Massachusetts '74)
1st season, 14-12
Career: 848-305
|
|
Expected Starters |
Name |
Ht. |
Pts. |
Daniss Jenkins |
6-4 |
14.3 |
Jordan Dingle |
6-3 |
10.4 |
R.J. Luis |
6-7 |
10.0 |
Chris Ledlum |
6-6 |
8.9 |
Joel Soriano |
6-11 |
15.0 |
|
Team Stats: |
Points/Game: |
76.1 |
Points Allowed: |
70.8 |
FG Shooting: |
43.6 |
FG Defense |
42.5 |
3FG Shooting: |
32.6 |
FT Shooting: |
70.5 |
Rebounds/Game |
39.5 |
Assists/Game |
15.1 |
Turnovers/Game |
11.7 |
|
Last 5 Games (1-4) |
02/03: UConn 77, SJ 64
02/06: SJ 85, DePaul 57
02/10: Marquette 86, SJ 75
02/13: Providence 75, SJ 72
02/18: Seton Hall 68, SJ 62
|
|
-->
Rick Pitino laid down the gauntlet. Does St. John's pick it up?
Sunday's comments calling out his team for poor play after a humbling loss to Seton Hall has a secondary effect: if the Redmen are able to win four of its last five -- Butler, Creighton, DePaul, and two with Georgetown, beginning tonight -- an 18-13 record and a 10-10 record in conference puts them back in the NCAA conversation. A loss to Georgetown ends that conversation.
Much like Georgetown, this is a complete rebuild in Queens. Just two players returned for the Rick Pitino era, with a healthy dose of reinforcenements from Iona and the Ivy League. On paper, anyway, the Redmen were picked fourth in the pre-season poll with local papers (the New York Post at the front of the bandwagon) talking a Top 25 ranking and an NCAA bid. At 12-4, St. John's was headed in th4e right direction. At 14-12, not so much.
There is not a team on the remainder of the regular season that Georgetown cannot defeat, but its sad effort versus Villanova also suggests that the Hoyas could end the season on a 17 game losing streak without some defensive help. The irony is that defense, long a staple of Pitino-led teams, has been trouble for St. John's this season.
On a team where consistency is shaky, the play of Iona transfer Daniss Jenkins is a priority. With double figures in 22 of 26 games and a 5.4 assists per game average, a lot of the offense goes through Jenkins, and he accounted for half the SJU baskets in the star-crossed second half versus Seton Hall. Limiting shots (Jenkins accounts for 20 percent of all SJU shots taken) puts more pressure to produce from Penn transfer Jordan Dingle, whose numbers have sagged down the stretch. Dingle has not shot better than 40 percent in any of the last six games, including an 0 for 4 second half in the loss Sunday. A 29 percent three point shooter for the season, Dingle's turnovers have picked up as well. Backups Nahiem Alleyne (6.4 ppg) and Sean Conway (2.8 ppg) could also see time.
The play of grad student R.J. Luis is a key driver in this game. Georgetown has struggled guarding the small forward throughout conference play and while Luis struggled down the stretch Sunday, he has the scoring chops and is a capable rebounder, with two double-doubles this season. A 20 point game versus Marquette and 16 at Providence is telling that he can drive the offense if the backcourt is stalled.
Up front, St. John's was expected to dominate behind graduate students Chris ledlum and Joel Soriano but it has been a rocky road. Ledlum's numbers have been up and (mostly) down, shooting 4 for 12 from short range in his last two games and fouling out late versus Seton Hall. Soriano, the only returning starter, feasted on GU last year for 28 points and 23 rebounds in two games, and could be the spark the Redmen need in this one. If Soriano is held in check, sophomore Zuby Ejiofor is the only bench player taller than 6-8 available.
In his post-mortem of the Seton Hall game, Pitino called out four players as being slow laterally: Soriano, Ledlum, Conway, and reserve forward Drissa Traore. It's not apparent Georgetown can take advantage. St. John's is a middle of the road team in most Big East conference statistics, while Georgetown's offense and defense ranks last. The rebound numbers bear watching, as St. John's enters Wednesday second in offensive rebounds but ninth defensively, while Georgetown is fourth offensively and last on the defensive boards. The Hoyas won the rebound battle versus Villanova (36-31) but lost badly on possessions, with 11 giveways by opponent steals to one steal that evening.
Keys to the game:
1. Epps Must Lead: Jayden Epps is shooting under 29 percent in the last six games, much of it with games out of reach. Georgetown doesn't win with numbers like this.
2. Defend & Deny: Georgetown must defend the perimeter and deny St. John's opportunities to Soriano inside.
3. Win The Last Four Minutes: Georgetown has flat lined in the last four minutes of the first (and second) halves this season. The Hoyas must get offense in these critical time windows.