People dressed in red and white were there for the party. A large number of 16,127 people gathered there and felt joy in their hearts. Johnny’s was in great shape. They were sneaking back into most of the draws of prominent bracketologists. This stood as the perfect adjustment. It was a dress rehearsal against then-humble rivals on the same floor as the Big East Tournament. They extended their lead to 10-0.
Everything was fine.
Everything was loud.
From there, and for the next 35 minutes or so, minus the Georgetown Hoyas, I decided to channel Tony “Duke” Evers, Apollo Creed’s trainer in the first Rocky movie.
“They don’t know this is a bad show,” Duke might have said if he were sitting courtside. “They think it’s a bad fight!”
This could be exactly what St. John’s needed. By the end, the party was back on, and the Johnnies had won five in a row, 86-78, against a hapless Hoyas team that punched far above its weight class, certainly adding to their 9-22 record. I played better than that. Whatever pressure there was in this match, it all rested on Johnny’s shoulders. There was no room for error here. they had to win the game. they won the match.
Survive-and-advance arrived a little early this year.
“This is Madison Square Garden, so you always get the best from everyone,” Rick Pitino said.
That will become even more true as the Big East Tournament plays out over the next few days. However, it is also a real opportunity for Johnny’s. For now, at least, it looks like they’ve got a ticket to Dayton. But the last thing you want is to let March’s fickle personality take your destiny into your own hands. An upset occurs. Bids are stolen. And if you’re one of his final four teams (which seems to be the consensus), you’re the one who gets your bid stolen.
So the next time St. John’s plays at MSG, it will probably be against Seton Hall on Thursday, with the Providence vs. UConn game on Saturday night, but it will be exactly the same as it did on Saturday. It’s going to be a great match. If we win, we’ll be out of breath. . Lose…and well, it’s so hard to inhale that you don’t have to worry about throwing up in the slightest.
“We knew we had to come out and play a great game,” Danis Jenkins said. “We’re going to continue to put our mindset on everything that they’re good at and try to take that away. And we’re going to get better with every possession.”
Jenkins led the way, as has been his custom for most of this year. A 10-0 run to start the game? Eight of those points came from Jenkins, who finished with a team-high 23 points and seven assists. Jenkins is one of two St. John’s players to experience the NCAA when he played at Iona last year. He really wants to take another bite of that apple.
“If we can get there, we can do some damage,” he said.
That’s next week. This week, it’s all about survival, both on the court and outside of the tournament. The Hoyas played like a team with their house money and were still in the top five with a minute and a half left. It may have been a little more nerve-wracking than Senior Day attendees attending, but it should be beneficial for them when it comes to actually spending money starting this week.
“We needed a game like this heading into the Big East Tournament,” Pitino said, before taking on a respectful tone about the event. “We are about to witness one of the greatest events in college basketball.”
There is a chance to secure a place on the sport’s biggest, undisputed stage.
“We have a chance to make this happen. That’s why they came here,” Pitino said. “We are making progress.”
They’re also playing their best basketball at the absolute most important time of the season. They have what any team in any sport might want: control of their destiny. After all, Johnny’s followers had the party they wanted.
