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Storm Of The Century

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For members of the media, an exhibition game is usually the first chance to see a team up close and personal since practice is generally shielded from broadcasters and beat writers. That’s why there was a vested interest in how Steve Lavin’s unofficial debut as head coach of St. John’s would turn out, despite the fact that Westmont College was not exactly a household name across the country. Nevertheless, the Lavin era commenced with authority and an uptempo style that was a pleasant contrast from the defensive-oriented Red Storm squads of years past with a 100-42 Johnnies victory against a Westmont team coached by John Moore, Lavin’s brother-in-law.

“I think my brother-in-law has a lot to look forward to. He had them ready and he had them executing very well,” Moore said in Westmont’s press release.

Justin Brownlee had two sportscenter top 10 dunks tonight. Is this foreshadowing things to come? (Icon SMI)
Not only did the Johnnies play a different style on the offensive side of the ball, they also debuted a 1-3-1 to open up the game on the defensive end and a 2-3 matchup zone to begin the 2nd half, a far cry from Norm Roberts’ man-to-man matchups.

“I feel like the zone is great for us,” D.J. Kennedy said confidently. “We’re athletic, we cover almost every spot on the floor with the zone and stop people from penetrating the middle.”

Lavin’s lineup of Malik Boothe, Dwight Hardy, Kennedy, Dwayne Polee and Justin Brownlee was much longer and athletic than any quintet that took the court in the past.

“We’re very quick, we got long arms,” according to Hardy, but it’s not just all about their athleticism, “and as long as we communicate out there we’ll be able to get steals and deflections.”

Five St. John’s players scored ten points or more; and with the exception of two walk-ons inserted late in the game by Lavin, every other player that touched the court had at least one field goal. Justin Brownlee, who was praised to one of the highest degrees by Lavin at St. John’s media day this past Tuesday, led all scorers with 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting.

Not to be outdone were fellow seniors Dwight Hardy, Paris Horne and D.J. Kennedy, who finished with 15, 12 and 10, respectively. Malik Boothe was among the most impressive Johnnies on the court tonight, coming within a point of a double-double with 9 points while also posting 12 assists and 6 steals; and freshman Dwayne Polee had a solid debut with a dozen points in just eighteen minutes. “It’s an indication that there’s some balance there offensively,” Lavin said when I asked what he thought of his assorted productivity.

Blake Bender led Westmont with 13 points. The Warriors, who lost 95-59 against UCLA in a similar exhibition contest, went the opening four minutes without a field goal and trailed 59-20 at halftime to a Red Storm team that opened the game on a 16-0 run (a statistic they had been on the wrong side of in recent years against DePaul and West Virginia) and never looked back while shooting 62 percent from the field and contributing to an all-around effort with 30 assists and 39 rebounds.

“Clearly, it was a step in the right direction,” said Lavin, whose team will now prepare for its season opener a week from Tuesday in California against a St. Mary’s team that returns four of its starters from last year’s Sweet 16 squad.

Box Score

VISITOR- Westmont
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Lavin A Johnny Rocket

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Steve Lavin, shown here with ESPN's John Anderson at Red Storm Tip-Off, was center of attention at Big East media day. (Photo courtesy of Jaden Daly)

When Steve Lavin replaced Norm Roberts at St. John’s seven months ago, anyone who was remotely affiliated with St. John’s basketball realized immediately that positive changes were in store. Yesterday morning’s Big East media day proved no exception to the recent status quo in Queens, as Lavin was surrounded by hundreds of reporters, radio personnel and various other media members at Madison Square Garden for well over an hour. In fact, Lavin’s massive popularity kept him at the St. John’s table for an extra twenty minutes after his radio and print media session ended; and although late for the TV portion of the event, the extroverted head coach continued to stop and engage anyone who came within his field of vision on the way up the stairs.

Although there were more than enough nuggets from Coach Lavin himself to fill this post, (I’ll have some of those in a future edition of the Daly Dribble) the comments provided to me from Lavin’s sideline counterparts were just as beneficial in shedding some light on the increased expectations the Johnnies are now seeing for themselves.

Villanova head coach Jay Wright and UConn’s Jim Calhoun were the first to herald St. John’s experience. Calhoun said it would “carry them a long way. Always has, always will,” while Wright said the Johnnies “know what it takes to win,” and thinks “they’ll be a very good team.”

Mike Brey, the Notre Dame coach whose Fighting Irish team has lost to St. John’s in each of the last two years, was somewhat relieved to be welcoming the Johnnies into the Joyce Center in South Bend. Brey praised Lavin’s arrival and said he “inherits a team of experienced guys,” and that “he’ll do a very good job.” Brey also stated what Red Storm fans feel to be obvious when he proclaimed that there was “new life around the program.” West Virginia head man Bob Huggins complimented Lavin’s past recruiting record, which was on full display this past weekend with newcomer Dwayne Polee, who has made quite an impact since coming to the Queens campus.

Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim, whose Orange squad heads into the Garden to tip off against the Johnnies on January 12, praised Lavin’s experience as well. “I think Steve’s going to do a great job. He’s got a lot of veterans, which is going to help him.” Boeheim also commented on Lavin’s marquee status being able to draw fans into the “World’s Most Famous Arena,” a venue that usually serves as a de facto home game for Syracuse. “When we play St. John’s here, there probably won’t be so much orange,” said Boeheim after I reminded him that nearly every Syracuse game at the Garden provides a sea of orange as the backdrop in the stands.

The most interesting and brutally honest commentary came from Louisville coach Rick Pitino, who created somewhat of an added buzz when it was revealed that he was the one coach who picked the Johnnies first in the Big East preseason poll, a vote won by Pittsburgh. “I’m just trying to throw something against the wall and hope it sticks,” gushed Pitino, who gave the story more juice by saying he “made that pick before Steve (Lavin) came along, and now that he’s come along, I’m happy with my pick.” Pitino emphasized the talent, experience and style the Johnnies have employed over the years as the reasons behind his rather surprising vote, as well as the hunger on the team considering that no St. John’s player has made the NCAA Tournament.

Fellow Big East newcomer Kevin Willard of Seton Hall spoke of creating a culture with Lavin and Rutgers head man Mike Rice that could draw high school kids to the New York area and not have them leave.

Cincinnati’s Mick Cronin went through a situation in his first year with the Bearcats similar to what Lavin will experience next year, one where almost every player graduated.  Cronin did provide this great quote about Carnesecca Arena when I mentioned his team’s recent success there. “It takes the kids back to their high school days. It reminds them where they came from. It warms up pretty quick, but that doesn’t make it any easier to win,” stated the underrated Cronin, picked 12th in the Big East preseason poll.

Marquette coach Buzz Williams lauded Lavin as a “really good person” with great energy, calling his arrival a “perfect storm.” I’m not sure if there was any pun intended by Williams when he told me that, but fans of St. John’s are thinking the exact same thing.

Justin Burrell To Miss 4-5 Weeks

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Justin Burrell is no stranger to broken bones. Burrell had to wear this mask most of his sophomore season after taking an elbow from teammate Sean Evans. (Icon SMI)
Through the years, it seems like injuries have managed to rear their ugly head every season for St. John’s.  Whether it was Anthony Mason Jr. going down for the season after just three games two years ago, or Malik Boothe missing half of the Johnnies’ Big East schedule due to thumb surgery, someone has unfortunately fallen victim to the injury bug at one point or another.  After suffering a facial injury that required him to wear a protective mask for much of his sophomore year, and a sprained ankle last season, Justin Burrell has landed on the shelf again.

The senior forward will miss 4-5 weeks after it was revealed that he fractured the second metacarpal in his left hand following a practice shortly before St. John’s annual Tip-Off event this past Friday, but that only accounts for no more than two games.  If healed properly, Burrell will be back for the Red Storm’s third contest of the season, which comes against Ball State in the Great Alaska Shootout  Head coach Steve Lavin commented on Burrell’s injury by remarking on how “unfortunate” it is for a senior to get injured before the season begins, but shed some positive light on the result, which was, according to Lavin, “better than we anticipated.”  Fortunately for Burrell and fans of the Johnnies, the fracture will not require surgery.

With Burrell out of the lineup while the Johnnies square off against St. Mary’s and Columbia, Lavin can attack both opponents differently.  For starters, he would be able to get away with playing a smaller lineup against the Gaels of St. Mary’s, whose tallest players are 6-9.  This could be an opportunity for someone like true freshman Dwayne Polee or even senior reserve Justin Brownlee to crack the lineup.  However, the likely and most feasible option will be 6-10 senior Dele Coker, especially against Columbia, which features a pair of seven-footers on its roster. Of course, the hope around New York is that Burrell does not fall into the same trap as past Johnnies whose injuries have lingered longer than expected, and the general consensus is that the Bronx native will be ready for the start of Big East play against West Virginia.

With Coker in the lineup, St. John’s not only gets some added height on the hardwood, but they also pick up physicality and shot blocking that Lavin would not normally get from a smaller lineup.  However, should Polee or Brownlee, or maybe even Rob Thomas be inserted into the starting five, St. John’s would play longer and their athleticism would be enhanced.  Lavin could even play three guards as well, with Dwight Hardy potentially joining Paris Horne and Malik Boothe in the backcourt while D.J. Kennedy moves up to the power forward position.

Burrell fractured the second metacarpal on his left hand during a drill at the end of practice on Friday, Oct. 15, at Taffner Field House when he collided with a teammate. After an on-site examination on Friday by the St. John’s medical staff, led by 30-year Assistant Athletics Director for Sports Medicine Ron Linfonte, A.T.C., and Aaron Krych, M.D., Sports Medicine Fellow at the Hospital for Special Surgery, Burrell was examined on Monday at HSS by hand specialist Michelle Carlson, M.D. Carlson was able to reduce the fracture and stabilize the broken bone without surgery, reducing the anticipated recovery time. Carlson recommended 4-5 weeks of recovery and rehabilitation, giving Burrell a potential return to the court in early to mid- November.*

Burrell, a 2007-08 member of the BIG EAST All-Rookie team, averaged 9.0 points per game and 4.5 rebounds in 2008-09 despite playing most of the season while wearing a mask to protect three hairline facial fractures. He averaged 6.6 ppg and 4.4 rpg as a junior in 2009-10, playing in all but five contests because of a high-ankle sprain suffered against Duke.*

The 2010-11 Red Storm men’s squad returns five starters and 12 letterwinners from a 2009-10 team that posted a 17-16 record, reached the first round of the Postseason NIT and are looking to improve upon a 13th-place BIG EAST finish. St. John’s 10-man senior class includes returning scoring leaders D.J. Kennedy (15.1 points per game, 6.1 rebounds per game, 3.1 assists per game, 1.2 steals per game), Dwight Hardy (10.5 ppg, .383 3-point field goal percentage) and Paris Horne (9.2 ppg).*

*Some content was gathered from Red Storm Sports Press Release

Stopping the Slide

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Ambiance: Soundgarden, Ugly Truth (pops up in new window)

“I painted my eyes, ugly isn’t I want to see.”

Kevin Jones, West Virginia forward. photo by IconSMI

After a loss to Rutgers, there’s not a whole lot to say about St. John’s and possible postseason hopes. The team is struggling, the fans are calling for the coach to be fired (though I am sure they would take a resignation as well), and the team is not doing well.

Enter the West Virginia Mountaineers. At 18-3 and brimming with New York talent in the core of their roster, the Mountaineers have big time dreams – a deep run in the tourney, maintaining a top-10 ranking, and keeping their fans from throwing stuff in their unparalleled joy. Hopefully their New York fans are a little more, uh, civilized. The ‘Eers boast a win over Ohio State (where the home fans brought the class), but close losses to Syracuse and Notre Dame, and a whipping from Purdue. The jury’s out on whether they are actually elite. Combined with the team’s excitement over Turkish center Deniz Kilicli, it’s likely that St. John’s will see the team try and bludgeon the Red Storm into submission early and often

But St. John’s has a chance to turn things around at home if they get their heads on straight. Losing to Rutgers was heartbreaking, but the Garden – and the home fans – will get behind a winner. And getting blasted at home – like in last year’s Syracuse loss – will feel much worse than losing at Rutgers. A good showing, even, can help the team compete in the winnable games coming up in the schedule.

Will the Red Storm fold against the tough Mountaineers? Or will they show West Virginia how the Johnnies battle in the heart of Manhattan?

Game Information

Tip Off: 12:00 PM, Saturday, February 6
Location: Madison Square Garden
TV: ESPNU
Radio: Bloomberg 1130/ WSJU

Team Reviews

West Virginia (18-3, 7-2)

35 F Wellington Smith SR 6’7/245: 5.9 ppg* 3.5 rpg* 44.2 %3PT* 1 bpg

5 F Kevin Jones SO 6’8/250: 14.2 ppg* 7.6 rpg* 54.9 %FG* 45.1 %3PT

1 F Da’Sean Butler SR 6’7/230: 16.6 ppg* 6.2 rpg* 3.3 apg* 36.3 %3PT

25 G Darryl Bryant SO 6’2/200: 10.6 ppg* 3.5 apg* 36.5 %3PT

3 F Devin Ebanks SO 6’9/215: 11.1 ppg* 8.6 rpg* 2.6 apg* 1.1 spg

Bench

41 F John Flowers JR 6’7/215: 15.7 mpg* 3.5 ppg* 2.3 rpg* 1.7 fpg

21 G Joe Mazzulla JR 6’2/200: 12.8 mpg* 1.9 ppg* 2.1 apg

42 F Deniz Kilicli FR 6’9/260: 7 mpg* 9 pts* 1 reb

32 G Dalton Pepper FR 6’5/215: 9.8 mpg* 4.4 ppg* 36.2 %3PT

For a review of the Mountaineers, let’s check in with a pair of West Virginia bloggers. First, from We Must Ignite This Couch:

Darryl “Truck” Bryant is starting in the PG spot after being replaced mid-year in Bob Huggins’ all-forward lineup due to wildly inconsistent play. He’s been much better in the last month or so as a pure PG. He’s always been a very solid outside shooter, but his ventures into the paint are usually illustrated by his quixotic attempts to jump directly into the tallest person he can find in an effort to draw a foul.

But he’s been doing much better with turnovers and defense, and has seemingly worked his way out of Huggs’ doghouse.

Joe Mazzulla is the other PG on the WVU roster, and he’s been plagued by a debilitating shoulder injury that he suffered last year (causing him to redshirt and sit out the season) that doesn’t seem to be getting any better. He’s a ferocious perimeter defender and very good at handling the ball- he just can’t shoot. At all. For most of the year he’s been taking free throws with his off-hand, and only recently is his shoulder well enough to try them with his strong hand.

Best players are forwards Da’Sean Butler and Kevin Jones now, with Devin Ebanks possibly turning the corner sometime soon. Ebanks was supposedly an NBA lottery pick if he’d left school last year, but hasn’t looked like it at all for most games this season. He broke out towards the end of the year last season, so it could happen again.

Wellington Smith is a shot-blocking forward who usually draws the center assignment and has become an outstanding outside shooter for WVU, connecting on 44% of his 3-point attempts this season. He has defensive lapses at times, so his is prone to finding his way onto the bench in fits of Huggins’ rage.

I’ve already talked about the two primary guards, but Dalton Pepper is a sharpshooting freshman that comes off the bench to contribute an outside threat at times. Similarly, John Flowers is a 6’9” forward that enters the game whenever some physicality and shot-blocking is needed.

Casey Mitchell was the JuCo player of the year last year and was supposed to slide right into the starting lineup, but he’s been nothing short of a Section 8 this year- wildly inconsistent and looks completely lost at times. He hasn’t been playing much lately, thankfully.

As for Deniz Kilicli, before last night’s game (win over Pitt at home), I would’ve said that he would provide a solid contribution to the physicality of the Mountaineers inside, possibly providing an inside-scoring threat they seem to be missing.

Then he went 4-4 with 9 points and two beautiful left-handed baby hook shots in the paint, and I fell head-over-heels in love. (I got a text from another WVU fan that compared Kilicli to a woman made out of chicken wings and beer.)

Now, who knows what kind of impact he can have on the Mountaineers? He looked a little lost on defense, but he’s a straight Turkish Beast, and what was already an intimidating, physical lineup, just got that much thicker.

And from the Smoking Musket:

This team has Final Four potential, especially if the Deniz “The Instan-bull” Kilicli can be a big inside presence. I truly feel this team can go all the way.

Bob Huggins has taken the West Virginia program to the next level. The caliber of athletes he recruits and style of play he teaches makes us dangerous every year. I love that first and foremost he wants his players to be tough on the defensive end of the court. You can miss a good shot and stay in the game but if you miss an assignment on defense, your ass is on the bench.

That is also one of the things I like the least about Huggs. I sometimes feel that he is too tough on his players. Granted, it only takes a momentary lapse in judgment to cost you a game but benching a guy in the first minute of the first half is a bit extreme.

Players: Da’Sean Butler – He is our best player and will be 1st Team All Big East. Da is our go to guy and score from anywhere on the court. His silky smooth spin move can make anyone look silly

Devin Ebanks – Great defensive player and still developing his offensive game. He is a beast on the boards and has potential to be a lottery pick

Kevin Jones – Good for 14 points and 8 boards a game. Great mid-range jumper and has recently been stroking from 3 point land.

Not allowing second chance shots is huge for our team. I think that is the key for our team on defense.

St. John’s (12-7, 2-5)

3 PG Malik Boothe JR 5’9/188: 4.1 ppg* 2.1 rpg* 2.1 apg

5 F Sean Evans JR 6’8/255: 7.2 ppg* 6.6 rpg

23 G Paris Horne JR 6’3/191: 8.2 ppg* 38.2 %3PT* 3 rpg

1 G-F D.J. Kennedy JR 6’5/215: 15.5 ppg* 37 %3PT* 6.5 rpg* 3.1 apg* 1.3 spg

2 F Anthony Mason Jr. SR 6’7/210: 5.4 ppg* 4.7 rpg* 1 spg

Bench

12 G Dwight Hardy JR 6’2/187: 23.2 mpg* 11.5 ppg* 39.5 %3PT* 2.2 rpg

32 F Justin Brownlee JR 6’7/232: 20.7 mpg* 7.3 ppg* 5.5 rpg

24 F Justin Burrell JR 6’8/235: 18 mpg* 5.9 ppg* 52.8 %FG* 3 rpg

31 PG Malik Stith FR 5’11/185: 12.7 mpg* 1.9 ppg* 1.5 apg

15 F-C Dele Coker JR 6’10/252: 10.2 mpg* 2.2 ppg* 65.5 %FG* 1.9 rpg

11 G-F Omari Lawrence FR 6’4/209: 10.2 mpg* 2.6 ppg* 1.7 rpg* 0.7 apg

See the Midyear stats report to see how the team has been doing (not good.)

Keys to the Game

Don’t Be Skeered. St. John’s has to play hard, play crazy, and remember that they can win any game. If Notre Dame can beat the Mountaineers, isn’t there hope? The ‘Eers can go cold (or not-smart)on offense, though their defense does not generally take plays off. St. John’s has to defend very well to have a chance.

Krush Groove. West Virginia has height and athleticism all over the roster. St. John’s has to box out, get the rebounds, get the loose balls.

Turnovers Mean Easy Shots. St. John’s has to find a way to force turnovers; the Mountaineers are good ballhandlers, but they are not great at ball protection.

Diversified Scoring. The Red Storm has to get scoring plays up and down the roster to win this game. There is no one player that the Mountaineers can’t stop; but if different scorers get hot… and stay on the floor…

Position Defense. If they get out of position, St. John’s will get dunked on, slapped around, run on, and thoroughly embarrassed. Huggins’ team is very sharp.

Prediction: 73-55, West Virginia.

Transplanted New Yorker and now Midwesterner Peter a/k/a Pico writes for the East Coast Bias and the Church of Bracketology and for Johnny Jungle, doing the Calm Before the Storm posts. Pico is also on Twitter, @ECoastBias.