After finishing the regular season with a 5-13 record in conference play, expectations are low for St. John’s in this year’s Big East Tournament.
Bill Parcells, former NFL head coach, used to remind everyone that “you are what your record says you are”. The record for St. John’s, 16-15 overall, is what it is. They’ll need to string some wins together this week for any realistic chance at hearing their name called on Selection Sunday. There’s no running away from that.
When you can’t run from something, you go towards it — you confront it.
The Johnnie’s conference record secured a ninth seed and first-round matchup with the eighth seed, Georgetown. It’s the beginning of a favorable draw in the tournament for the Red Storm.
It’s not all the time a team finishes eight games below .500 in their conference and end up with a nice spot in their league tournament. Nevertheless, St. John’s is in a position where they can make some noise on their side of the brackets.
But they need to first get by Patrick Ewing’s Hoyas.
Making the case for St. John’s
The Red Storm dropped both of their regular season matchups with Georgetown. Their second meeting, a heartbreaking one-point loss, saw them blow a 17-point lead on their home court. But the Hoyas have dropped six straight games and are banged-up. If the Johnnies correct their mistakes from the two regular season matchups, it should be enough to steal one and move into the quarterfinals.
The quarterfinal round would be a matchup with the number one seed, Creighton. The Red Storm split the season series with the tenth-ranked Blue Jays. In the second game, sophomore guard Greg Williams Jr. knocked down seven three-pointers to lead St. John’s to a 20-point victory. It was the biggest win of the season for first-year head coach Mike Anderson.
Getting past Georgetown and Creighton would put St. John’s into the semifinal round against either Butler or Providence. In Joe Lunardi’s updated bracketology, the ESPN college basketball analyst has Creighton, Butler, and Providence projected to play in the NCAA Tournament – with Creighton potentially a number 2 seed. Two of those three teams, Creighton and Providence, the Red Storm have had success against this season.
Can St. John’s do it? Can this team turn a few heads? Yes, they have what it takes.
Their defensive style of play is built for this stage, they’ll also need to avoid uncharacteristic turnovers. Williams Jr. and Julian Champagnie will need to continue their productivity on offense and make timely shots.
Champagnie is one to keep an eye on, especially if St. John’s advances into the quarterfinals. The freshman guard is averaging 16.2 points and 8.0 rebounds in his last five games.
If St. John’s can somehow maneuver their way into the semifinals, hey, anything is possible at that point. It would still be a reach for an at-large bid, but a spot in the NIT comes into play. An impressive showing in the postseason would further cement the foundation Anderson’s laying down in Queens.
