The streaking Johnnies will travel to the state of Ohio on Wednesday to take on the Cincinnati Bearcats. St. John’s current Big East winning streak is tied for the longest in the Norm Roberts era (Jan. 14-21, 2006). This nationally televised match-up will once again be an important game for both teams in terms of Big East Tournament implications.
Coming off a win over the Friars in a loud and packed Carnesecca Arena, the Red Storm will try to keep this momentum rolling against Cincy. With a CA season high 5,868 people in attendance Saturday afternoon, the Johnnies put forth a great effort and sent their fans home happy. Larry Wright led St. John’s in scoring (16 points), but it was an overall balanced attack that helped propel the Redmen to victory. With Mason Jr. still in street clothes, Norm kept his substitutions limited, essentially only using a 6 man rotation. For maybe the first time all year, we saw the controversial backcourt duo of Geno/Malik work very well. Both played a smart, effective game, combining for 16 points, 11 assists, and only 3 turnovers; with the 3 biggest points of the game coming from Geno on that prayer of a 3 pointer. The chemistry of this team is building game by game. It finally looks like all the players on the floor are comfortable with each other. In my opinion, this has a lot to do with the fact that Norm has tightened the rotation and is giving guys the opportunity to play extended minutes. I really think the Georgetown game was a wake up call for both the players and the head coach. There is still plenty of basketball left to be played this season, but if things continue at this rate and the Johnnies find a way into the BET, that blowout loss to the Hoyas could end up being the turning point of the year.
This game against the Bearcats will be of great importance for the Johnnies postseason hopes, as it seems every one from here on out will be. Having already beaten Cincinnati back on January 5th, a win by St. John’s on Wednesday will give them a potentially crucial tiebreaker advantage over the ‘Cats. If the Johnnies are to lose this game, the season series would be tied 1-1. As a result, if we somehow end up tied with Cincinnati at the end of the season, they would be ahead of us in the standings based on the next tiebreaking procedure. It then goes to each team’s record against the team in first place in the standings, continuing down through the standings until one team has the advantage. In this case, Cincy has a win over Louisville (currently 3rd), who we lost to, meaning they would have the advantage. This makes the game even more crucial, because a win by the Red Storm could essentially move them within one game of UC, who currently sit at 8th place in the Big East standings. Additionally, it would be nice for the Johnnies to extend their winning streak and ride this wave of good play back to NY for Saturday’s primetime match-up at the Garden with Villanova (4-7 Big East).
The Bearcats are coming off a game in which they snuck by Rutgers 72-68 in OT. Regardless, this team has some impressive victories this season and is just as aware of how big a game this is in terms of positioning in the standings. I have a feeling they will also be looking for some revenge against us, with this game being on their home court. The Johnnies have won the games they needed to win to get back in the BET hunt. It is now time to see if this team can step up and win the games that will make or break their season. Like I said before last game, they got me believing.
JUMP ON THE BANDWAGON.
On Wednesday February 13th, the Red Storm of St. John’s University will travel to the state of Ohio to take on the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. Tip-off at Fifth Third Arena is scheduled for 7:00 PM. The game can be seen live nationally on ESPN2, with Dave O’Brien and Doris Burke calling the action. This Big East contest can also be heard on Bloomberg 1130-AM.
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