Maybe Zuby Ejiofor is starting to find his game.
That gave the big man hope after he finally woke up in the second half of the game between No. 22 St. John's and Wagner at Carnesecca Arena.
Although he started in place of Vince Iwchukwu, the 6-foot-9 Ejiofor came back late with eight points, three rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal, all in 17 minutes of the second half.
“The last few games haven't lived up to the expectations of myself and the coaching staff. We haven't played with a lot of energy, so we're still trying to figure that out,” Ejiofor said. “I thought we played a lot better in the second half, myself included.
“I've been talking to the coaching staff and I felt like I brought energy today and it was a good stepping stone for me to do what I can.”
Ejiofor, one of St. John's two co-captains, entered the season in a new role as a junior. He barely played as a freshman at Kansas and was a backup to Joel Soriano last season. He is expected to be Johnny's center this year.
“He's never been a mainstay at Kansas or here. He's got to get used to that,” coach Rick Pitino said. “They'll come after him.”
Pitino didn't start two of his best players, Cadary Richmond and RJ Lewis, because he wanted to see how the other players were doing before a tough game, starting Sunday against New Mexico at the Garden. . Brady Dunlap and Aaron Scott started in their place.
“I know Cadderly is ready to play, I know RJ is ready to play. I would have liked to see the rest of the lineup,” Pitino said. “[Kadary will] He will likely start every game for the rest of the season. I wanted to experiment a little and confirm certain things. ”
Pitino hopes the game against New Mexico and his son Richard's will draw up to 15,000 people. But for now, a number this high is unthinkable.
“I hope people come out and watch this game, because we need them,” he said. “We need to get our Metro alumni back. We have great fans, but there aren't that many of them.”
