CHICAGO — It’s safe to say that six days off didn’t change much for St. John’s University.
It certainly didn’t affect Johnny’s concentration. It didn’t hinder their improved play. If anything, the nearly week-long vacation only made them fresher.
Rick Pitino’s team picked up where it left off, defeating conference basement dwellers DePaul 104-77 at Wintrust Arena on Tuesday night, hitting .500 in Big East play for the first time since late January. Beyond.
The 104 points tied a program record in the Big East, matching the 104 points scored on February 15, 1999 against Providence.
Ivy League transfers Jordan Dingle and Chris Ledrum led the way with 19 points each. Simeon Wilcher had 12 points and Danis Jenkins, RJ Lewis and Nahiem Alleyne each had 11 points for St. John’s (18-12, 10-9), which shot 60.3 percent from the field and shot 3 points. He made 12 shots and racked up 26 assists. He made 41 field goals.
After a debacle that lost eight of 10 games and jeopardized their chances of making the NCAA Tournament, St. John’s won four straight, three of them by at least 14 points, and won 10 games at The Garden on Saturday. They will close out the regular season by facing No. 1 ranked Georgetown. .
Depending on how Villanova and Providence finish the season, a fifth-place finish and a first-round bye in the Big East Tournament remains.
St. John’s and Providence are currently tied for sixth place, one game behind Villanova, which visits No. 4 Seton Hall on Wednesday.
If three teams finish tied for fifth place, St. John’s will win the tiebreaker.
A lot has gone right since the Red Storm took Butler on their heels last Wednesday to win their second consecutive Quad 1 championship.
The team that needed to lose lost. The team that needed to win won.
Suddenly, they found themselves on the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble, according to most predictions. But none of that would have mattered if St. John’s hadn’t dealt with DePaul.
By halftime there was nothing to worry about. The result was almost decided. The Johnnies ended the first half on a 30-6 run, extending their two-point lead to 26 points with a season-high 54 first-half points.
Dingle and Ledrum led the attack, combining for 26 points on 11-of-14 shooting. Nine different Johnnys scored in the first half. They shot 66.7 percent from the field, were plus-11 on the glass and turned nine turnovers into 13 points.
St. John’s only led by two points with 9:05 left in the first half. DePaul got off to a strong start, making eight of his first 13 shots.
Chico Carter made three long 3-pointers.
However, the leading Red Storm continued to chase with a record of 25 wins and 4 losses. Ledrum started the match with a steal and slam.
Dingle followed with a jumper and 3-pointer, and Ledlum sank another triple. Soon, the match got out of hand.
The second half got completely ridiculous. After Wilcher made three consecutive 3-pointers, St. John’s led by 41 points, yes, 41 points, but there was still 11:10 left in the game.
