Jamal Branch. Photo by: Stacy Podelski/1495 Sports
No. 15/17 St. John’s has won nine-straight regular-season games at Carnesecca Arena and boasts a 7-0 overall record this season heading into Saturday’s BIG EAST home opener with Butler (10-4, 0-1). CBS Sports Network has the live national broadcast at 4 p.m. with announcers John Sadak, Doug Gottlieb and sideline reporter Allie LaForce calling the action from Queens.
St. John’s (11-2, 0-1) has maintained a spot in the AP Top-25 for four-consecutive weeks and elevated to the No. 15 position on Monday after going 11-1 against non-conference opponents. It is the program’s highest ranking since 2011 in Steve Lavin’s first year at St. John’s. However, the Red Storm had the program’s longest win streak (7) in 15 years come to an end on Wednesday in a hostile BIG EAST road environment at Seton Hall. Despite a 25-point performance from D’Angelo Harrison, the Pirates used their hot 3-point shooting (10-of-23) and Sterling Gibbs’ 25 points (5-of-7 3FG) and eight assists to upend St. John’s in the conference opener.
The Red Storm returns to Queens where it has played some of its best basketball of the year. St. John’s has earned double-digit victories in all seven contests and has outscored opponents by an average of 14.7 points. Over the last three years, St. John’s has gone 22-3 (.880) at Carnesecca Arena.
The St. John’s radio broadcast can be heard on 570 AM (WMCA). Red Storm announcers John Minko and Brandon Tierney are on the call with the pregame report starting at 3:40 p.m.
Things To Know
- St. John’s has averaged a league-low 10.8 turnovers per game, while ranking second in the league with a +3.6 turnover margin. The Red Storm has committed fewer than 10 turnovers five times this season, including in four of the past five games. St. John’s is averaging just 8.4 miscues as a team during this recent five-game stretch.
- Chris Obekpa has delivered better numbers across the stat sheet in St. John’s seven games played at Carnesecca Arena this season. The 6-foot-10 center has averaged 9.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.4 blocks, while shooting 51.0 percent (25-of-49) from the floor in games played in the team’s on-campus home. Obekpa has two double-doubles this season, three double-figure scoring games and four double-figure rebounding efforts at Carnesecca Arena
- Jamal Branch has made only 13 turnovers in 317 minutes on the court this season, one every 24.4 minutes, but has taken care of the basketball exceptionally well in the past five games. The senior has just three miscues in 140 minutes of action in this stretch, one every 46.7 minutes. Branch also has 18 assists in the past five games to go with a 6.0 assist-to-turnover ratio.
- Including a 24-point performance against Syracuse (Dec. 6), D’Angelo Harrison has reached the 20-point mark in six of the past seven games. The senior strung together four-straight 20-point games in this time, while averaging 21.1 points per contest. Harrison has 46 20-point games in his career, including two 30-point performances.
- In 2013-14, St. John’s closed the regular-season winning 10 of its last 13 BIG EAST contests. Dating back to last season, the Red Storm has won 22 of its last 27 regular-season games. St. John’s last BIG EAST contest in Queens was on Jan. 23, 2014 when the Red Storm edged Seton Hall 77-76 behind D’Angelo Harrison’s 16 points (7-of-16 FG) and six rebounds.
About the Series
- St. John’s is 3-0 in its series with Butler, including a 2-0 mark as members of the BIG EAST.
- The series began on March 13, 1958 at Madison Square Garden in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). St. John’s defeated Butler 78-68.
- The Red Storm swept the 2013-14 regular-season picking up a 17-point win at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Jan. 25, 2014, and then a 77-52 victory at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 18, 2014.
For more information on the St. John’s Men’s Basketball team fans are encouraged to click on the link seen here: