St. John’s Prepares for Important Matchup

Rick Pitino is making it clear that every game counts, especially the one coming up against Marquette. He emphasized the significance of this matchup, stating, “The market is much more important than the college con—in our eyes, not yours.” This statement follows a series of surprising victories in the league, reminding everyone just how important it is to focus.

One key point he mentioned is that a bad loss can create more challenges for a team’s NCAA Tournament chances than a good win can improve them. Marquette currently has a record of 6 wins and 11 losses, which means a loss for St. John’s could hurt their standings come March.

It might be easy for St. John’s to overlook Marquette. After all, they have been riding a strong winning streak, highlighted by wins against Villanova and Seton Hall, and they are favored to win this game by 15.5 points.

Zuby Ejiofor spoke about the importance of not underestimating any team, saying, “We have to treat every opponent as if they can beat us. As I’ve always said, any team in this league can win.” This mindset is crucial, as Marquette is known to perform hard on both sides of the court, and the team needs to be prepared.

In a recent game against Creighton, Joeson Sannon didn’t play in the second half and had a season-low of six minutes. It seems that he might be falling behind in the depth chart to Lefteris Liotopoulos. Pitino had strong words about Sannon, noting, “If you’re talking about physical talent, he might be the most talented player here, but it’s about understanding his game.” It’s unclear if Sannon has the drive to address what he needs to work on, which could determine how far he goes in his career.

One standout player for Marquette to keep an eye on is freshman guard Nigel James Jr., who scored 31 points against Villanova and is averaging 13.5 points, four assists, and 1.6 steals per game.