This Monday and Tuesday, St. John’s hosts the annual Holiday Festival in Madison Square Garden – the team’s first game at the hallowed Arena. The Garden’s been a lot more lively in the fall of 2010, with the Knicks bringing competitive basketball to Manhattan, and St. John’s generated a lot of buzz early.

Unfortunately, the Red Storm come in at 5-3 and need to do a lot of things better to pull out wins. Two tough losses to in-state opponents from the Atlantic-10 has dulled the shine from the win over Arizona State. The team is still handling the ball well and forcing turnovers. But they have to find more consistency, defend the perimeter far better, hit their free throws, and maintain a steady offensive attack.

The Holiday Festival opponents are an excellent warm up to Big East play, with the Davidson Wildcats posing a well-coached, well-organized test for the Red Storm. Can St. John’s start a new winning streak on their home court?

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Davidson (5-4)

Led by longtime coach and Long Island Native Bob McKillop, the Davidson Wildcats are young, with one senior in the rotation – the coaches son, Brendan McKillop. The youth has done decently this fall; their losses have been to Ivy contender U Penn, West Virginia (where they were competitive), and solid teams in Rhode Island and College of Charleston. The Wildcats have beaten Nebraska, Charlotte, Western Kentucky, Monmouth and the Citadel. Note that the team doesn’t play a lot of its bench.

The center Jake Cohen is the team’s best all around player. He shoots well inside and outside the arc, is a little mobile, blocks shots, draws fouls at a solid rate (and hits those shots at 83%), and rebounds on both ends. He’s been steady in the team’s losses and wins, though he averages under 25 minutes per game… foul troubles or fatigue could be factors in his game; he hasn’t fouled out of any contests but has picked up 4 fouls 4 times.

Clint Mann starts at the other forward. He rebounds the offensive glass well and has hit his shots from the inside. He’s also gone 2-4 outside the arc, indicating that he might have a little range. Mann is not counted on to be a big scorer. The forwards are backed up by Ben Allison, De’Mon Brooks, and Frank Ben-Eze. Brooks and Ben-Eze are very good all-around rebounders. Ben-Eze, once a touted recruit, seems glued to the bench and hasn’t been effective scoring the basketball. Allison has shot poorly but can clean the glass a bit.

In the backcourt, the Wildcats will play a trio of players. The aforementioned McKillop is almost exclusively a perimeter shooter. He’s shooting 36% on the season, taking almost 85% of his shots from beyond the arc. He will make a pass as well. Sophomore JP Kuhlman is a bit more of a passer, and can steal the ball; he’ll take shots inside the arc, but he’s shooting 41% from distance. Freshman Tom Droney hasn’t found the stroke from the perimeter yet. Fellow freshman Jordan Downing has found the stroke, in limited time.

Keys to The Game

Keep The Ball From Cohen. While the WIldcats can stroke it a bit from outside – and with any young team, the light can go on at any time – Jake Cohen is the threat. Against West Virginia, he was held to 7 shots; St. John’s should try to limit his touches as much as possible and make the rest of the team carry the day.

Harass the Ballhandlers. Kuhlman and McKillop can be crafty ballhandlers, but will commit turnovers. Pressure from beginning to end will help St. John’s force turnovers.

Slash the Interiors. The Red Storm need to attack the paint and get the Wildcats into foul trouble. The team has a number of players who average more than 5 fouls per 40 minutes – including all of their big men. The team has some depth that is coming along, but hasn’t played big minutes… and certainly not against an opponent like St. John’s.

Keep the Energy Up. St. John’s needs to close out halves strong, defending with the feet and remaining aggressive all game.

Rebound Better. St. John’s needs to put a competitive effort on the boards, especially against the height of Cohen and the chances for long rebounds.