Sound the Horne

With the season coming down to a win-or-go-home style of play, St. John’s is going to need, as Steve Lavin put it, “a collective effort”. While most will agree on that, the Red Storm are looking to one guy to bring his game to the next level: Paris Horne.

Over the summer, Horne took a trip to Switzerland and France as part of an East Coast All-Star team 10-day tour, competing in five international exhibition games. At Big East Media Day, he said it was a very good learning experience because he played against a lot of defensive-minded players which helped his game to grow on that end of the floor.

The Middletown, Delaware native has been a huge asset to this team in his four years here. Now the team will need him to step up and play an even bigger role.

Horne is a defensive specialist on the perimeter, with quick hands and feet to go with great leaping ability. At least once a game, that leaping ability allows for a big defensive stop, like his incredible block as time expired in the first half against Davidson in the Holiday Festival.

In his sophomore season, Horne gave every St. John’s fan something to hope for in the future as he averaged 14.6 points per game, shooting 44% from the field and swiping the ball almost twice per game.

When DJ Kennedy took a leading role in his junior year, Horne took a backseat. Though his numbers dropped, he still played an integral role. When speaking to the media, Horne handles himself as a professional.  He has accepted the different roles the coaching staff has given him, from letting D.J. take control to starting this past season on the bench.

Horne might be the most humble of players on the team on and off the court. Sometimes, when making a big play, he shows some excitement, from the Dikembe Mutombo finger waving after a block shot, to the signature smile he flashes from time to time.

During a late season match-up with DePaul at Carnesecca, he went up for a block and was called for a foul. He beamed with a smile and fans stood up and gave him a standing ovation. When was the last time the crowd gave a standing ovation for a foul? Paris Horne plays through the whistle, which is part of what has made him such a shut down defender for St. John’s.

Here in his senior season, Horne is the fourth leading scorer for the Red Storm. His 7.8 points per game contribute alongside DJ Kennedy (10.4), Justin Brownlee (12.2), and Dwight Hardy (18.0). He finished top five or better on the team in rebounding, assists and steals as well.

But, Horne’s biggest contribution comes from things that don’t appear in the box score.

He has had the responsibility of defending Big East standouts Kemba Walker and Ben Hansbrough as well as Jimmy Butler and of slew of others. Lavin assigned each player a role when he came in as head coach and Paris Horne played his to the best.

Coming down the stretch and with DJ Kennedy sidelined by injury`, Horne must embrace a new role. He has to step up and be the player that he was in his sophomore year. He need to continue to play exceptionally well on defense, but turn it up a notch on the offense. As an explosive and dynamic slasher, with the ability to score in transition and hit the mid-range jumper, Horne will need to supplement leading scorers Brownlee and Hardy. If all of the scorer falls on the shoulders of these two JuCo transfers, it will be hard for the Johnnies to make a run in the NCAA Tournament.

“Clearly, Paris is our team’s best defender,” Lavin said. “Offensively, his quickness, slashing ability and open-court play will be vital to our success. He is the ultimate team-player.”  He also went on to say Paris was St. John’s “Bruce Bowen at the collegiate level.”

No argument there.

With a matchup against #11 seed Gonzaga on Thursday, Horne must gear up to be the third go-to guy and spark a run of quality offense. He needs to be the X-factor on a Johnny team that will sorely miss the versatility of Kennedy.

Air Horne has to be ready to take flight and to try to help take this team to the top of the summit, a summit found at the Final 4 in Houston.