The primary week of the faculty basketball season produced some odd outcomes.
Three Massive East groups – Seton Corridor, Villanova and Butler – misplaced purchase video games as main favorites.
Second-ranked Alabama struggled in opposition to Arkansas State.
Texas fell at Ohio State. Baylor, an elegant Closing 4 choose, was hammered by Gonzaga.
There’s one widespread denominator: The aforementioned applications are coping with vital roster turnover. So many colleges are within the switch portal period.
St. John’s doesn’t match into that class.
Three of its starters, Simeon Wilcher, Zuby Ejiofor and RJ Luis, are returning gamers. So is essential reserve Brady Dunlap. They helped St. John’s get off to a robust begin this week with a pair of blowout wins over Fordham and Quinnipiac by a mixed 55 factors.
Continuity can go a great distance, particularly with a coach like Rick Pitino recognized for participant growth. St. John’s had a robust offseason within the portal, bringing in coveted guards Kadary Richmond (Seton Corridor) and Deivon Smith (Utah). However an argument could be made that retaining Wilcher, Ejiofor, Luis and Dunlap was simply as impactful.
A former top-40 recruit, Wilcher has seemed like a distinct participant thus far, averaging 15.5 factors within the Johnnies’ two wins.
Luis, wholesome after accidents restricted him a 12 months in the past, had 24 factors and 13 rebounds within the win over Quinnipiac. He has all-league expertise.
The ground-spacing Dunlap will likely be a key half to this workforce, particularly if he is usually a extra constant risk from the past arc. Ejiofor has gotten off to a gradual begin, it ought to be famous, though he did block 5 pictures within the Quinnipiac recreation.
I nonetheless count on Richmond and Smith to be St. John’s two finest gamers. Smith dazzled within the win over Quinnipiac, producing 13 factors, 10 assists, 5 rebounds, three steals and a plus-29 ranking in 31 minutes. Richmond was passive within the victory, just like Smith within the opener, after controlling the win over Fordham.
It’s going to take time for the 2 ball-dominant guards to get snug with each other, their new teammates and training employees. We noticed how lengthy it took final 12 months’s workforce to hit its stride. There is no such thing as a substitute for expertise, no magic elixir for a gaggle to develop cohesion.
Check out two-time defending champion Connecticut’s success the final two years. Positive, the Huskies have introduced in elite freshmen and difference-making transfers, however as dietary supplements to a returning core. Younger gamers emerged to exchange departed stars, which is precisely what St. John’s hopes to see from the likes of Wilcher, Dunlap, Luis and Ejiofor.
That was the offseason method for Pitino and firm this spring. The training curve, in consequence, isn’t practically as steep.
Another ideas on the win over Quinnipiac:
- The shaky first half shouldn’t be solely attributed to Aaron Scott’s absence as a result of an sickness. Pitino felt the workforce had two of its worst practices of the 12 months main as much as the sport, and it mirrored within the opening 20 minutes. However it’s clear how vital the 6-foot-7 Scott is to St. John’s defensively. Pitino stated St. John’s didn’t react properly to him not being on the market. He guards a number of positions and takes explicit pleasure in defending. I believed there was a defensive dropoff within the opener as properly when the North Texas switch wasn’t on the ground. He seems to be just like the Johnnies’ glue man early on.
- This workforce has already proven a capability to take a punch. We noticed it within the Rutgers exhibition, when St. John’s rallied from a 13-point deficit, and once more on Saturday. That’s an vital character trait that almost all good groups have. You’ll clearly prefer to keep away from shaky stretches like we noticed within the first half on Saturday, however having the ability to deal with adversity is an encouraging signal of this group’s maturity and resolve. It took some time for final 12 months’s workforce to develop that high quality.
- Pitino stated on Saturday that he could begin USC switch Vince Iwuchukwu at middle over Ejiofor on Wednesday. I don’t suppose it’s a foul thought. Ejiofor hasn’t seemed proper thus far, and coming off the bench within the position he had final 12 months, could assist him calm down. There’s loads on the junior’s plate. He’s a co-captain and a starter for the primary time. Expectations turned considerably unrealistic after his large recreation in opposition to Rutgers of 27 factors and 13 rebounds. The middle place goes to be a mixture of Ejiofor, Iwuchukwu and Ruben Prey anyway. Who begins isn’t vital. It is important to get Ejiofor going, after he managed simply three rebounds in two video games throughout 41 minutes. Perhaps a change sparks him.
