NASSAU, BAHAMAS — An early theme of St. John's this season was its resiliency.
That was evident in the exhibition game at Rutgers, a shaky first half against Wagner, and a tense second half against New Mexico at the Garden.
Still, it's uncertain how the Johnnies will respond to a brutal double-overtime loss to No. 13 Baylor at the buzzer in a game in which they led by five points with less than 10 seconds left. There was sex.
November's losses will not get any worse.
St. John's responded as if they had been here before as a team and played arguably their most complete game of the young season.
Unlike Thursday, they followed up a strong first half with an even better second half in the Baha Mar Hoops Championship Repechage, defeating Virginia 80-55.
Rick Pitino was able to empty his bench with over five minutes left in this rout.
A show was held in St. John's.
Ten different players scored, led by RJ Lewis with 18 points and Cadary Richmond with 12 points.
Davon Scott came close to a triple-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, and Zuby Ejiofor missed two late free throws against Baylor but rebounded with eight points, nine rebounds and two blocks. Recorded.
They beat Virginia in the paint by a 38-12 margin.
He made 10 3-pointers and shot 52.5 percent from the field.
The Johnnies were plus-8 on the glass and only committed seven turnovers, two of which hurt in the loss to Baylor.
St. John's didn't look tired after Thursday night's double-overtime loss to Baylor.
He ran frequently and turned turnovers and missed shots into transition points. There were five dunks, highlighted by Smith's alley-oop, which featured an impressive vertical leap for the 6-foot guard.
A 16-0 run, fueled by Lewis' nine points, gave St. John's a 19-point lead.
Virginia came out strong late in the second half and trailed by just 13 points after Isaac McKneely's four-point play with 0.4 seconds left in the first half.
Lewis fouled and his shot hit the front rim and spilled.
Still, in a strong opening 20 minutes, St. John's outscored the Cavaliers 20-4 in the paint and 11-0 in transition, converting 11 turnovers into 14 points.
And unlike the night before, there was no slack. It was exactly the one-sided victory that was needed.
