After nine long years of attempting to reclaim their spot among college basketball’s elite, St. John’s has finally found its redemption; and will take on a former NCAA Tournament opponent in their much-anticipated return to the Big Dance.

After literally waiting for 66 teams to be announced before them, the Johnnies (21-11) were the next-to-last team proclaimed as a Tournament participant; as they were announced as the sixth seed in the Southeast regional.  One of a record eleven Big East teams to make the field of 68, the Red Storm will travel to Denver for a Thursday matchup with West Coast Conference champion Gonzaga, (24-9) winners of their last nine, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.  Should St. John’s emerge victorious, they will face the winner of the matchup between third-seeded Brigham Young and 14th seed Wofford in Saturday’s third round; perhaps getting the opportunity to take on national Player of the Year candidate Jimmer Fredette in a pairing that will be sure to attract nationwide attention.

“Today was a special day for our players and as a coaching staff, being able to watch up close the experience our team has had,” said head coach Steve Lavin, who also makes his return to the “Big Dance” for the first time since 2002.  “Being able to participate in the NCAA Tournament is an experience that I’ll never forget.  “It’s a tough challenge; but overall, we think we could do it,” said Justin Burrell, the Big East’s Sixth Man of the Year.  Teammate Sean Evans offered this when asked of how it felt to be announced live on national television:  “I think it was better than I dreamed up.  You can’t picture how it’s going to feel.”

St. John’s and Gonzaga are no strangers to one another on this stage, as the Red Storm were eliminated by the Bulldogs in the 2000 NCAA Tournament when Gonzaga was the tenth seed in the West regional and St. John’s was a No. 2 seed fresh off winning the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden.  Gonzaga defeated St. John’s 82-76 in that game, continuing one of their many Cinderella runs that have come to be a trademark for the Jesuit school from Spokane, Washington.  The Red Storm may ultimately need to overcome two de facto road games, as Gonzaga (Spokane) and Brigham Young (Provo, Utah) are close enough to Denver to attract a large portion of their hometown fans rather easily if the Johnnies intend to be among the final four Southeast regional teams in New Orleans during the second week of the tournament.

Most importantly, St. John’s will be entering their first NCAA Tournament in nine years with heavy hearts and a motivation to succeed after D.J. Kennedy suffered a torn ACL in the Johnnies’ Big East tournament quarterfinal loss Thursday afternoon against Syracuse.  Sean Evans, Kennedy’s roommate and closest friend on the team, wore a T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan “Do It For D.J.,” with the phrase “I’m my brother’s keeper” on the back.  “Fans hit up my Twitter asking what they could do for D.J., so I started the slogan,” said Evans of the rallying cry that is slowly becoming a trending topic on the popular social network.  Star point guard Dwight Hardy recognized Kennedy’s status as one of the leaders of this team as well.  “The first person I looked at was D.J., and I thanked him for everything he did for us,” said Hardy after the team received word of its selection.  “We’ve got his back.”  Coach Lavin paused for a moment to reflect on the impact of one of his ten seniors before calling the occasion a “real bittersweet moment” for Kennedy, “and will be until our journey is complete.”  The journey resumes this Thursday, with one goal and one motivation:

DO IT FOR D.J.