St. John’s needed this game. A terrible loss to DePaul at home put the Johnnies in a desperate situation against their next opponent.
This isn’t where you want to look up at the schedule and see your next opponent is Villanova.
“It’s not what you want.”- former Yankees manager Joe Girardi
Facing a must-win game on the road, St. John’s went down to Villanova in an 81-58 beatdown. It was the third loss in the last four games for the Red Storm.
That six-game win-streak which helped turn their season around — right now, that feels like a distant memory.
With March Madness getting closer, St. John’s is on the outside looking in. They’ll likely have to win the Big East Tournament to receive and automatic NCAA bid. If they can at least reach the title game, that might get them an at-large spot.
Everything that could go wrong for St. John’s in this game, went wrong in the first ten minutes.
After their brutal loss to last-place DePaul, senior guard Rasheem Dunn said the team got away from their identity.
“We have to come out with the right mindset,” Dunn said. “We got away from our identity, which is defense, and DePaul attacked us. We can’t dwell on it. That game is over.”
Well, the defense didn’t show up against Villanova and the offense was also missing in action.
What makes the Red Storm so dangerous when they’re focused is their defense and ability to push the pace on offense. Instead, they played right into Villanova’s strength, the half-court game. The Wildcats jumped out to a quick double-digit lead and this game was over by halftime.
St. John’s has a week to get off the mat before their next game, against Providence. Every game from this point is now must-win for the Johnnies.
They’ll need to get back to their identity, but that’s not all.
Sophomore Julian Champagnie is on everyone’s radar now as the player teams need to stop. Villanova held him to 16 points on just 5-for-18 shooting, he didn’t score his first field goal until less than a minute before halftime.
Freshman point guard Posh Alexander needs to be better than he’s been lately. Four points and two assists against Nova’ won’t get it done. Alexander’s shot selection also needs improvement.
Champagnie and Alexander won’t need anyone telling them their production must improve. But the odds are stacked against St. John’s right now. Especially with a surging UConn team well-positioned for one of the at-large bids.
For the Johnnies, there’s no more room for error.
Image: Julian Champagnie – Getty
