St. John's vs Miami November 29th 2007

St. John’s vs Miami University

After racking up four wins on their home court against the weak NEC, the Johnnies will face their first true test of the season this Sunday at The U. There were two big stories following the LIU game: the re-injured ankle of Anthony Mason Jr. and the fact we came away with a W despite some very sloppy basketball. Let me just say that if we shot the way we did Wednesday night in a game last season, we don’t win that basketball game. Thankfully, Justin Burrell is not Lamont Hamilton, and was able to dominate the paint and the glass against an undersized Blackbird squad. Add in the clutch shooting in the closing minutes of the gimpy Larry Wright, along with another all-around stellar performance by DJ, and we are able to survive. At the end of the day, the most significant outcome of the game was not the score, but the fact that Mason Jr. was in the trainer’s room when the horn sounded. I thought bringing him back for the LIU game was a smart idea. Let him shake off the cobwebs by playing 10-15 minutes against a weaker opponent, this way he would hopefully be ready to go on Sunday. Instead he plays 20 minutes in a game where he was essentially a non-factor, as he threw up brick after brick from the outside, and then re-injures himself in the 2nd half. Unfortunately, we no longer have Yung Mase’s services for Sunday’s road opener at Miami, as it is expected that he will be out for at least another 3 weeks. So we are forced to see what are freshman class is really made of, as they will be leaned on heavily against a legitimate D-I team on their home court. Miami is 6-0 on the year, which includes a win over fellow Big East foe Providence in the Championship of the O’Reilly Auto Parts Puerto Rico Tip-Off. The fact that we are playing our first game away from the friendly confines of Carnesecca Arena will have undoubtedly an impact on our young freshman. But I wouldn’t consider the Bank United Center a hostile environment by any means. The Hurricanes have an average attendance of 2,161 (capacity = 7,000) in their 3 games thus far at home. Maybe the fact we are a Big East team will attract more people to the game, but I wouldn’t count on it. The 0-11 Dolphins will still be the focus of attention for Miami sports fans on Sunday as the Jets come to Dolphins Stadium. However, this game is still a great measuring stick for this team. We have seen how the freshman can handle NEC competition without Mason Jr., but let’s see how they handle some ACC ball. LONG LIVE THE JUNGLE.

-The Game-

On Sunday December 2nd, St. John’s will travel south to take on the University of Miami Hurricanes. The game is scheduled for 4:00 PM at the Bank United Center in Coral Gables, Florida and can be seen live on the MSG Network.

-The Lineups-

ST. JOHN’S (4-0)

We enter this game as banged up as we have been all season. Tomas is clearly suffering from ankle problems, as he painfully moved around the court even slower than normal in his limited action. Larry Wright suffered a bruised hip during the game, which forced him to play only 8 minutes in the first half (19 total minutes). But Larry Legend showed us how much he has grown as a player and a man over the summer, as he was able to fight through obvious pain and come off the bench and hit clutch shots down the stretch to seal the victory. I expect Larry to start on Sunday and get his usual minutes. Tomas is a question mark, but we could definitely use his size against a physical Miami team. Even if he is able to go, we are still going to need solid minutes from Coker and Evans, as it is clear Tomas can’t handle the load up front on his own right now.

PG – Eugene Lawrence Senior / 6-1 210lbs / 12.0 points, 6.0 assists
SG – Larry Wright Sophomore / 6-2 172lbs / 15.8 points, 1.8 rebounds
SF – D.J. Kennedy Freshman / 6-6 208lbs / 13.0 points 9.5 rebounds
PF – Justin Burrell Freshman / 6-8 235lbs / 15.3 points 9.8 rebounds
C – Tomas Jasiulionis Junior / 6-11 249lbs / 2.5 points 2.5 rebounds

Miami University (6-0)

The Hurricanes definitely have the most size and depth of any team we have faced so far this year. They have 10 players who average 13 or more minutes per game, as Head Coach Frank Haith loves to substitute. Unlike the teams from the NEC, Miami can match our size at every position. Experience is also clearly in the Canes favor, as they only have one freshman and three sophomores. Miami does have its own problems on the injury front, as leading scorer Jack McClinton has missed the last two contests with a sprained left thumb. He has been wearing a soft cast on his left hand and is listed as day to day. McClinton is their go-to scorer and Miami will struggle to score points if he does not go. I think St. John’s has to prepare for the Canes injured star to play on Sunday as he has had 2 weeks of recovery time. Senior Center Anthony King is their second option and it will be imperative for our big men to stay out of foul trouble and crash the boards, or this guy can really hurt us.

PG – Jack McClinton Junior / 6-1 185lbs / 14.3 points, 2.5 assists
SG – James Dews Sophomore / 6-3 198lbs / 11.0 points, 3.2 rebounds
SF – Brian Asbury Junior / 6-7 214lbs / 10.8 points, 4.8 rebounds
PF – Jimmy Graham Junior / 6-8 245 lbs / 5.0 points, 4.5 rebounds
C – Anthony King Senior / 6-9 242lbs / 11.5 points, 9.7 rebounds

-Keys to Victory-

QUICK START. I think we will be able to tell from the first 4 minutes of this game if St. John’s is going to compete against Miami. If we come out the way we did against FDU or LIU, we are not likely to stay in the game long against a much better Miami team. It is important to come out and shoot the ball well from the perimeter and play tough defense. If we can build a quick lead, it will give our younger players confidence and make them feel more comfortable in their first road game. Plus, Miami has come out slow in their last three games, averaging only 25 points in the 1st half. I like our chances a whole lot better if I see the Johnnies fired up at the start.
REBOUND. Miami has the size to compete down low with our team. They average 43.0 rebounds per game to our 40.5. It will be important for our front court players to rebound the basketball, especially Coker and Evans. I expect Burrell to continue to produce double-double numbers, but you can’t lean on DJ to do the rest of the boarding. Miami has the athletes to match up with Kennedy, unlike the NEC teams we played in our first four. If we can clean the glass and limit second chance scoring opportunities we will stay in this game.
STAY OUT OF FOUL TROUBLE. Granted the zebras who officiated the LIU game are better suited doing intramural games at Taffner, we need to stay away from the silly fouls. Coker needs to be a factor in this game, especially if Tomas is unable to log many minutes. For him to do that, he needs to stay on the court. We committed a lot of fouls last game by reaching in and not moving our feet on defense. In the end, we had four players with 4 fouls (Lawrence, Burrell, Coker, Boothe). Hopefully we never see officiating as poor as that again, but that hasn’t been an excuse for Coker as he has averaged 3 fouls a game.
THE SENIOR. I feel as Geno goes, this team will go. Last game was by far his worst of the young season. Although he only had 2 turnovers, he seemed to be out of control at times, not running the offense as smoothly as he did in the first three games. He only had 2 assists and his shot was off, going 2-8 from the field and 0-4 from 3 point land. Our captain even lost his cool and was charged with a technical during the 2nd half. It is important that he bounces back with a big game on Sunday. We won’t beat many teams this season when Geno plays the way he did against LIU. More importantly, he needs to use his experience and leadership skills to get the freshman through their first road game. I believe if our Captain shows up, which I think he will, St. John’s is going to hang with the U all game.

-Prediction-

My ability at predicting these games so far has been about as effective as the Knicks on the road. This game will be even harder, as I feel the status of McClinton can play a huge role in the outcome of this game. If he doesn’t play, the Hurricanes will be missing their playmaker and leading scorer. That will open the door for St. John’s to be able to control the tempo of the game a lot easier. But, even if he does play, I feel the Johnnies can compete with this squad. This game could give our young Johnnies so much confidence going to Hawaii, granted they take care of business at home versus Niagra. I expect a big game out of Geno and for the Redmen to remain perfect on the year in a tight contest:

St. John’s 77 – Miami 72

The Notes: The St. John’s Women’s Volleyball team begins their quest for an NCAA Championship Friday night @ 8pm when they host LIU in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament. The Storm is a number 12 seed in the tournament and has the opportunity to play 2 games in CA. If they win, they play Saturday night @ 8pm against the winner of Delaware and Princeton…..Immediately following the basketball game, a candlelight vigil will be held on the Miami campus in honor of Sean Taylor…..Hurricanes guard Jack McClinton prepped a year at South Kent in Connecticut in 2003-04, the same prep school that both Rob Thomas and Dele Coker attended…..In the previous meeting between the schools on 1/14/04, which was the last BIG EAST contest between the teams, the Hurricanes won 70-64 in Queens. This game was the 7th coached by Kevin Clark, who took over on an interim basis after Mike Jarvis was fired. Freshman Darryll “Showtime” Hill filled up the stat sheet with a 14 point, 6 assist, and 4 rebound effort. Darius Rice had 14 points for Miami in a winning effort.

By: Garrett Knieste Johnny Jungle Senior Writer