BET GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S VS MARQUETTE

March 11, 2009


St. John's is playing the role of the rude host of the 2009 Big East Tournament as they made Georgetown's stay short and not very sweet as they knocked the Hoyas off, 64-59, in the opening round on Tuesday.

It was the second time in a week that the Redstorm had beaten Georgetown in Madison Square Garden. On March 3rd, SJU won a 59-56 overtime decision. On Tuesday, Paris Horne scored a game-high 23 points and Sean Evans, just like the previous meeting, registered a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Next up for St. John's is Marquette, a team that beat the Johnnies 73-59 back on February 14th in Milwaukee. Jerel McNeal had 20 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals in the previous meeting. The Golden Eagles also got 18 points from Lazar Hayward and 12 points, 6 assists and just one turnover from point guard Dominic James.

However, James is unavailable for Marquette after breaking a bone in his foot early on in a loss to UConn back on February 25th. Including the loss to the Huskies, the Golden Eagles have lost all four games without James and now must face a hungry 'Storm club on their home floor to open the conference tournament. Another loss and it could be devastating to their seed in the 2009 NCAA Tournament.

Here are some pregame stories and previews on today's game:

Golden Eagles Preview: Marquette vs. St. John's (Post-Crescent)
Character Held Seniors Together (Journal-Sentinel)
St. John's Gets into Main Draw vs. Marquette (Newsday)
Game Proves Redstorm Rivalry Still Alive (NY Post)
Golden Eagles Ready to Soar (Journal-Sentinel)

Two years ago, Marquette and St. John's met in Madison Square Garden in the opening round of the Big East Tournament in similar circumstances as the Golden Eagles had an injured Jerel McNeal on the sidelines. MU was able to hold off each SJU rally and win the game, 76-67. Tonight, they will try and do the same.

Both teams match-up pretty well with each other. Both teams will use small, pass-first points guards in Malik Boothe (SJU) and Maurice Acker, who is replacing Dominic James. Versatile, do-everything wings in DJ Kennedy (SJU) and Wesley Mathews (MU) and go-to scorers Paris Horne (SJU) and Jerel McNeal (MU) will also line-up together. In the paint, SJU has a little more muscle and size with Sean Evans and Justin Burrell, but Lazar Hayward adds some offense and savvy rebounding for the Golden Eagles, who will also use a combination of Dwight Burke and forward Jimmy Butler in the post.

The injury to James has virtually eliminated any depth for Buzz Williams' team. David Cubillan, who was a valuable reserve under Tom Crean, has struggled this season coming off of shoulder surgeries in the off-season. Rob Thomas is the most productive reserve for SJU, but yesterday they went to their bench seldom, with two starters playing 40 minutes and two others playing 38. Only foul trouble on Burrell, which limited him to 25 minutes, made the bench useful.

McNeal, Mathews and Hayward are likely the best three players in this game and they will have to lead the Golden Eagles to victory in this game. SJU will scrap and claw their way into this game, but in the end, star power will win out on Broadway and Marquette settles down the fears and grabs a win.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Marquette 70
St. John's 64

BET GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S VS GEORGETOWN

March 10, 2009


For the second time in a week, Georgetown and St. John's meet at Madison Square Garden. The Hoyas will hope for a different result this time around after dropping a 59-56 overtime decision to the Redstorm after letting a double-difit second-half lead slip away. The game was a microgosm of the Hoya season that has gone so wrong the last two months.

St. John's is back in the Big East Tournament on their home floor at Madison Square Garden, although they will be in the road uniforms as the 13th-seed taking on No. 12 Georgetown.

Here are some pregame stories and previews on the game:

Norm Roberts, St. John's Back to Make Big East Tournament (NY Daily News)
St. John's Faces Georgetown in Big East Tournament (Newsday.com)
A Staggering Season (Washington Times)
Hoyas Hope for Big East Miracle (Washington Post)

In their loss a week ago to the Redstorm, Georgetown was outrebounded 54-31. It has been the theme all season as the Hoyas have been pummelled in the paint by Big East counterparts. What has made this so shocking was how the Big East season started, with Georgetown going into Connecticut and waxing the Huskies, 74-63. They played with passion, intensity and out-rebounded UConn solidly. After an offensive clinic in a win over Syracuse, the Hoyas were a top 10 team and nobody could foresee what was next...

Georgetown limps into the Big East Tournament after losing 10 of their last 14 games and seeing their 2009 NCAA Tournament hopes resort to Georgetown pulling off an improbably run of five wins in five nights against some of the toughest competition in America.

In their last 14 games, only one of the 10 losses came against teams in the top four of the Big East (Louisville) as they did not play either Pitt or UConn in that span. One of their wins was at Villanova, but they followed that win with a loss to St. John's. That is the Hoya season in the Big East.

St. John's will certainly enter the game this afternoon with some confidence, although they are still being shown little love by the oddsmakers who have listed the Hoyas as a solid 5 1/2-point favorite according to the early college basketball odds this morning.

In the win over GU on March 3rd, Paris Horne and Ron Thomas each had 16 points. The SJU defense kept the Hoyas in check all game, which is a common theme. Georgetown has not scored more than 58 points in a game in their last four outings.

With a traditional Big East rivalry and the 'home' team making their tourney experience, this game should have a little extra life to it. The Georgetown offensive struggles will make this one to watch as it is hard to see them putting much distance between themselves and the Redstorm, especially the way SJU will rebound and play with some life, something we are not sure Georgetown has much of left.

The talent on Georgetown should be enough to pull the game out, but it is likely to be a close game, again.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Georgetown 63
St. John's 59

IRISH SEASON SPOILED, ST. JOHN'S LOOKS TO SPOIL SENIOR NIGHT, TOO

March 6, 2009

St. John's at Notre Dame (-11 1/2) 7 PM.

(college basketball odds are provided by BetUS.com)

Here are some preview articles and links on the game:

Men's Basketball: Notre Dame (16-13, 7-10) vs. St. John's (15-15, 6-11) (Post-Tribune)
St. John's at Notre Dame (Chicago Tribune)
Notre Dame Hosts St. John's in Fightin Irish Home Finale (Chicago Tribune)
Irish Seniors Left With Regret, Happy Memories (Journal Gazette)
It is More than 'Just Another Game' (South Bend Tribune)

Notre Dame will be sending off seniors Ryan Ayers, Luke Zeller, Zach Hillesland and Kyle McAlarney tonight as the Fighting Irish look to avenge an earlier loss when they close up the regular season by hosting St. John's.

Despite the disappointment of Final Four expectations gone wrong, tonight is also a celebration of a group of players that helped the Irish to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances following their sophomore and junior seasons. With juniors Tory Jackson and the 2007-2008 Big East Player of the Year Luke Harangody returning from last year's NCAA team, expectations were sky-high, however, a seven-game losing streak and struggles all year getting defensive stops have pushed the Irish into the mix for the NIT, not the NCAA Tournament. The Irish would have to win an unprecendented five straight Big East Tournament games next week to win the Big East Tournament and get the conference automatic bid to the Big Dance.

St. John's has hung around this season. Sure, another losing Big East campaign under Norm Roberts has long been clinched, but the 'storm were dealt a bad hand right off the bat when their top player Anthony Mason Jr. was lost for the year before they finished their third game of the season. The blow was severe to the young team, but they have shown some grit and toughness along the way and enter tonight's regular season finale at 6-11 in conference play.

But, tonight will be about Notre Dame. The energy and emotion of senior night and the frustrations of a season gone wrong should translate to a rousing effort and a comfortable win for a grand send-off of the seniors.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Notre Dame 83
St. John's 67

ST. JOHN'S RALLIES TO EDGE GEORGETON IN OT

March 4, 2009


Even with their win over Villanova last weekend, an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament was a severe longshot for Georgetown. The Hoyas still might have had a chance with factors such as the #1 rated schedule in the country, road wins against UConn and 'Nova and a little momentum with expected wins over St. John's and DePaul heading into the 2009 Big East Tournament where anything could happen if the Hoyas picked off another win or two, which wouldn't have been that unheard of.

Instead, In the End, Hoyas Just Fade Away (Washington Post), blowing a 15-point second half lead as St. John's Rallies, Forces OT and Tops Georgetown (Newsday), 59-56, in front of nearly 10,000 fans at Madison Square Garden.

The Hoyas led 45-30 with 10:42 left in regulation before the Storm embarked on their comeback. Georgetown looked like they were going to run over SJU, racing away from a two-point lead at the half, 31-29, with an early run as the Redstorm seemed like they could not get out of their own way. The 21-6 run was completed with a pair of Rob Thomas free throws with 2.3 seconds left to force overtime.

The St. John's Comeback Stuns Georgetown (SNY.tv) and a Justin Burrell dunk with 10 seconds remianing in OT provided the final score as a DaJuan Summers desperation three-pointer was off the mark.

The Hoyas played without starting small forward Austin Freeman who suffered a hip-pointer in practice Monday. However, the major problem again was toughness as St. John's dominated Georgetown on the class, outrebounding the Hoyas 46-25.

Paris Horne and Rob Thomas each scored 16 points for SJU in the win and DJ Kennedy added nine points and 10 rebounds. SJU is now 6-11 in conference games and will finish the regular season with a visit to Notre Dame before returning home to Madison Square Garden to begin the 2009 Big East Tournament on Tuesday.

ST. JOHN'S LOOKS TO UPEND RIVAL HOYAS

March 3, 3009


It really is pretty far-fetched, but following a 56-54 road win at Villanova on Saturday, the Georgetown Hoyas Hold Out Hope (Washington Times) that their postseason chances have been resurrected.

With tonight's game against St. John's, on the road, and their regular season finale at home on Saturday against DePaul, they have a chance to pull out two more wins as they head for the 2009 Big East Tournament which begins in just one week.

At 6-10 in the conference, Georgetown has plenty of work and it might take a minir miracle of a run in the conference tournament for them to get any NCAA Tournament consideration.

The early college basketball odds list the Hoyas as a 6 1/2-point favorite to get the 7th conference win tonight when they meet the Redstorm. SJU is 5-11 in Big East play and also must travel to South Bend to meet Notre Dame before competing in the conference tournament.

There is no doubt the Hoyas have the more talented team. Players like Chris Wright, Austin Freeman and Greg Monroe were McDonald's All-Americans and DaJuan Summers has been on the NBA Draft watchlists since his strong play in the Hoyas' run to the Final Four as a freshman. NYC native Jesse Sapp, the lone scholarship senior on the Hoyas, will be returning home and determined to put a frustrating season behind him to get a win in front of many friends and family.

St. Johns' season was a disaster waiting to happen from the get-go as they lost Anthony Mason, Jr. for the season by just their third game. An extended absence because of injury to Malik Boothe did not help as conference play heated up and now back-up big man Ayodele Coker has been suspended for the rest of the season because of academics.

We keep waiting for the Hoyas to develop some sort of momentume, while it is looking like it may be too little, too late, they should head back to NYC in a week with a three-game win streak. Just like the NY Lottery commercials...'Hey, you never know..."


NBE Blogger Prediction:

Georgetown 67
St. John's 58

ST. JOHN'S LOOKS TO KEEP DEPAUL WINLESS IN BIG EAST

February 28, 2009

DePaul came up just short on Wednesday night, falling 74-72 against Villanova at Allstate Arena, in their quest for their first conference win of the 2008-2009 season. On Saturday, they welcome St. John’s into Allstate Arena in their last home game of the year. At 0-15 in conference play, DePaul will hope to avoid the first Big East 0-fer since Miami went 0-18 in the 1993-1994 season. With road games left after Saturday with West Virginia and Georgetown before the 2009 Big East Tournament, this will probably be the only chance they have at avoiding a winless conference campaign.

St. John’s enters Saturday’s contest with a 4-11 mark in Big East play and 13-15 overall. With another losing record in Big East conference play, an annual sign of spring is on its way in NYC has begin as the job security of Norm Roberts begins to come under question. While the administration publicly stands behind the embattled coach, they have also been seen at the recent games more regularly.

Last Sunday, the Redstorm broke a five-game losing streak with a win over Seton Hall at Carnesecca Arena, but they were unable to create any momentum as they laid another egg on the Madison Square Garden floor, an all too familiar scene in recent years, with an 87-58 loss to Syracuse.

While injuries and youth have impacted the success of the Redstorm this season, a loss against DePaul will definitely bring more calls for the end to the Roberts era. In order to prevent such a situation, SJU must come out and play defense and hit the boards against the Blue Demons. St. John’s has some length and athleticism that should make it hard on DePaul to score points. The key match-ups will be DJ Kennedy against Dar Tucker, who leads DePaul with 18 points a game, and Justin Burrell inside against Mac Koshwal.

Against Villanova DePaul let an eight-point halftime lead, which they stretched to 10 early in the second half, go for naught in a 74-72 loss. Villanova actually stormed back to take a double-digit lead of their own before a Will Walker shooting display from beyond the arc made things interesting.

Mac Koswhal was doing damage inside against the Wildcats, posting 10 points and 9 rebounds in the first half, but like all too often, DePaul lost track of their big man in the second half and resorted to launching perimeter shots, which they miss, much more than they hit.

If St. John’s can play tough inside and control the boards, they should be in pretty good shape. They match-up well with the DePaul personnel and Malik Boothe seems to have a better grasp of the SJU game plan than the DePaul rotating door at point guard.


NBE Blogger Prediction:

St. John’s 65
DePaul 59

ST. JOHN'S HOPES TO HOST GARDEN PARTY VS. SU

February 24, 2009


At 7-7 in the Big East and losers of seven of their last 10 games, the Syracuse Orange can not afford the slightest mis-step as the Big East regular season comes to a close these next two weeks. SU has landed in the NIT the last two seasons and they need to take care of business over these next few games to avoid another nervous selection Sunday.

For St. John's, playing for pride as the regular season winds down is an all-too-familiar reality under Norm Roberts. At 4-10 the Redstorm have little hope for any postseason play, but with all 16 teams playing in the 2009 Big East Tournament, at least they have a chance this season.


Here are some pregame stories and previews from the internet on tonight's game:

Orange Scoutin Report: Syracuse @ St. John's (Post-Standard)
Ex-Cuse Storm's Poor Hospitality (NY Post)
Orange Men Look for a Critical Win (Post-Standard)

St. John's hopes to follow up Sunday evening's 70-65 win over Seton Hall in cozy Carnesecca Arena with a win tonight in Madison Square Garden against a slumping Syracuse Orange club. The Redstorm upset Notre Dame earlier this season in the Garden and, despite the usual large contingent of SU fans expected, hope to make the Garden their home once again with a big win.

Syracuse players admitted following Sunday afternoon's loss in the Dome to Villanova that they need to start winning. After facing a 10-game gauntlet of tough conference games, tonight is no time to relax and take a breather because SJU is going to come after them to take back MSG.

SU continued to show they are prone to fundamental breakdowns in the loss to 'Nova. Wether it is not getting back on defense, poor rebounding technique or questionable shot selection, the Orange continue to be a team that frustrates when watching them play. They have impressive individual talent in Jonny Flynn, Eric Devendorf, Paul Harris, etc. However, all too often, it is the individual trying to make the play, not the team.

Tonight they will have to work together and also hope to get some production from Arinze Onuaku and Rick Jackson inside. If SU goes into a pass/dribble and shoot attack, the SJU defense will make that a very difficult way to succeed.

St. John's will need to find some offensive output to keep up with SU. The famed zone defense of the Orange will put the pressure on the SJU perimeter game, which is very erratic, so how point guard Malik Boothe decides to attack the defense will be the biggest key for SJU. His inexperience might get the best of him in this one.

SU is a 5 1/2-point favorite, which looks to be a solid line. In this instance, I think SJU will struggle with the Orange zone and allow Syracuse to get the win they desperately need.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Syracuse 71
St. John's 64

ST. JOHN'S LOOKS TO AVOID A PIRATE SWEEP

February 22, 2009

In a rematch of a February 5th contest, won by Seton Hall 91-81, St. John’s looks to even the score between the two teams when they meet on the SJU campus in Carnesecca Arena Sunday afternoon.

Once again it is a season of streaks for SHU. After beginning conference play 0-6, the Pirates rattled off five straight wins against the lower third of the Big East. Since that streak, SHU has lost two in a row, although they played fairly well, against UConn and Marquette. Now, with USF coming to Newark on Wednesday, the Pirates hope to build some momentum for a tough finishing stretch.

St. John’s made a late rally to make the final score in Thursday’s match-up with Duke look closer than the game really was. The Redstorm are 3-10 in the Big East and are currently mired in a five-game losing streak.

This is a key game for both programs who recruit many of the same players in the NYC/NJ metro area. Bobby Gonzalez has made it pretty clear he circles the local rivalry games and thus far this season they have already swept NJ-rival Rutgers and are looking to complete the sweep against SJU, but much to his dismay, it will have to be accomplished on the Queens campus at Carnesecca Arena and not at Madison Square Garden.

The Redstorm has been hit hard by injuries all season long. They are likely as healthy as they will be for this game with Malik Boothe, Justin Burrell and Rob Thomas all in the line-up after missing some time throughout the season. Their best player, Anthony Mason Jr, was lost for the year in November.

The key to this game will be the Redstorm defense on Jeremy Hazell. A good strategy would be to put DJ Kennedy on him and make his assignment to contest everything. SHU does have other scoring options outside of Hazell, but his three’s seem to ignite the Pirates and for them to win on the road he is likely to need to be ‘on’.

This should be a pretty intense game, but the SHU pressure defense really pushed the pace in the first meeting, leading to the SHU win. If the Redstorm do not get better guard play and control the pace, the same thing is likely to happen.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Seton Hall 80
St. John’s 75

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S @ MARQUETTE

February 14, 2009


After winning their first nine Big East conference games, Marquette has dropped back-to-back conference road games to South Florida and Villanova. They return home for a Valentines Day date with St. John’s at 9 PM in the Bradley Center before hosting Seton Hall next week. Marquette finishes up Big East play with a five game stretch that sent shivers down the spine of many when the schedule game out and is still looking like a true test of their mettle. Road games with Georgetown, Louisville and Pitt along with home games against UConn and Syracuse is certain to test anyone prior to the Big East Tournament.

St. John’s is up first and they are coming off a 71-61 loss at Cincinnati. The Redstorm are now 3-9 in the Big East and currently in the midst of a three-game losing streak. The injury-riddled team is probably as healthy as they are going to get, but the guard pressure they will face in this contest does not seem to be a promising match-up, especially when Marquette comes out for blood after surrendering 102 points in their last game.

“They have a terrific team so we’re going to really have to execute and take care of the basketball in the beginning of the game,” St. John’s head coach Norm Roberts told media members this week. “They play so hard on every single play and we have to match that to compete with those guys.”

Expect that effort to be intensified with a loud and supportive Saturday night crowd and some recent frustrations from the two-game losing streak. St. John’s really could be in the wrong place at the wrong time in this one.

Here are some pregame stories and previews on the game:

Marquette vs. St. John’s (Cracked Sidewalks)
Marquette’s McNeal Downplays Scoring Record (Chicago Tribune)
Marquette, led by their three senior guards, including new all-time leading scorer Jerel McNeal, should unleash a relentless wave of pressure, both offensively and defensively, led by their perimeter attack. Even with a small interior line-up, St. John’s is not a team that should be able to make the Golden Eagles pay for their shortcomings.

St. John’s will play hard and rely on defense to keep games close. DJ Kennedy is a versatile forward and Paris Horne has been one of the better perimeter scorers in the league of late. However, there is not much else working for St. John’s right now and with a loud and enthusiastic crowd looking to get their team back on track, look for Marquette to roll tonight.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Marquette 80
St. John’s 61

ST. JOHN'S LOOKS TO REVENGE EARLIER LOSS TO CINCINNATI

February 11, 2009


With a daunting four-game stretch right around the corner, the surging Cincinnati Bearcats can not afford a mis-step tonigh when they host St. John's in Fifth Third Arena at 7:30 PM. UC has won four of their last five and six of their last eight, including a sweep of Georgetown and a win over Notre Dame at US Bank Arena last week to pull them abover .500 in conference play at 6-5.

St. John's continues to scuffle along in the Big East under Norm Roberts. While injuries have hit a young Redstorm squad quite hard, SJU is 3-8 in the Big East and the amount of 'winable' conference games are dwindling with the schedule ahead. SJU is coming off a solid defensive effort against Louisville, before the Cards pulled away at the end for a 60-47 decision.

Here are some pregame stories and previews on tonight's game:

A Solid Building Block (Cincinnati Enquirer)

Looking ahead, after tonight's contest, Mick Cronin's squad will travel to Pittsburgh this weekend to start a stretch that also includes games with Louisville and West Virginia, at home, and then a trip to Syracuse. They can ill-afford to drop a game tonight as they have clawed their way back into the NCAA Tournament mix and have positioned themselves that finding a way to win three of these next five puts them in a real position to finish 11-7 in the Big East. While that is definitely getting ahead of ourselves, it shows how important this game is.

UC is led by guard Deonta Vaughn who iasked to carry the bulk of the scoring load as well as the ball-handling chores of the club. He has been getting offensive support in the frontcourt from Mike Williams and Yancy Gates, who was the top freshman in the Big East last week. Sophomore guard Larry Davis has also stepped up his scoring, which is a big key to UC's chances of success as it takes some pressure off of Vaughn.

These two teams met back on January 22nd and UC rallied from a double-digit deficit to post a 71-60 win. The game got really chippy as DJ Kennedy and Rashad Bishop were both ejected after earning a pair of double technicals for continued jawing after a brief altercation. SJU was already without point guard Malik Boothe and forward Rob Thomas because of injuries and the loss of Kennedy was too much for them to take down the stretch as UC ran past them in the last 10 minutes for the win.

Boothe is back and Thomas is also healthier, so if Kennedy can contain his emotions and if Paris Horne can rebound from his horrendous shooting effort against Louisville, SJU matches up pretty well with UC.

The Bearcats are a 9 1/2-point favorite in tonight's game, but look for both teams to defend very well, keeping this a relatively low-scoring affair. I liked how SJU competed in the first game until their lack of depth caught up to them, I think they will compete again tonight with the motivation from the previous game on their minds. However, Vaughn is the best player on the court and provides enough offense for UC to get the important win heading into their tough stretch.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Cincinnati 64
St. John's 59

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S HOSTS LOUISVILLE AT MSG

February 8, 2009

Since joining the Big East, Madison Square Garden has not been a friendly place for the Louisville men’s basketball team. However, this year’s Cards have risen into the top five of the national rankings with an 8-1 Big East record and a 17-4 mark overall. This afternoon, they take on the Redstorm of St. John’s in the world’s most famous arena.

St. John’s has battled injuries and youth and sit at 3-7 in the Big East and 12-10 overall. While injuries have left them short-handed all season, this is as healthy as they will be the rest of the season with Malik Boothe and Rob Thomas returning to the line-up in the last week or so.

Cards Tweak Where They’re Weak (Louisville Courier-Journal)
Line-up is Pressing Issue for Cards (Courier-Journal)


The college basketball lines list Louisville as a 10 ½ point favorite on the road. A healthy number, but the Cards are coming off a 68-51 loss at home to No. 1 UConn in a much-hyped game. The result has seemed to leave Rick Pitino reeling a bit as line-up changes with Preston Knowles and Terrence Jennings possibly seeing increased time, if not starting roles, to fix the areas Pitino is not happy with. He is looking for more of a pressing and offensively attacking line-up and these players have been showing him the most improvement.

St. John’s could be very vulnerable to this attacking defense as their ballhandling is shaky, at best. The return of Boothe allows most player to return to their natural positions, improving their ballhandling as a team, but they are still a young team prone to mistakes under pressure.

St. John’s can also be very hot and cold with their offense, as can Louisville, so expect this game to be on the low-scoring end of things.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Louisville 67
St. John’s 57

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S TAKES ON SETON HALL

February 5, 2009


The Seton Hall Pirates, on a current two-game win streak, host Norm Roberts and his St. John's Redstorm at the Prudential Center in Newark (NJ) tonight in a Big East match-up. SHU beat Rutgers, 70-67, in their last game behind 35 points from Jeremy Hazell and are 2-6 in Big East play.

The Redstorm have won two of three, beating Rutgers, 70-59, and South Florida, 65-48, at home and losing 75-52 at West Virginia in between. SJU is 3-6 in the Big East.

Pregame stories and previews:

St. John's & Seton Hall Ready for Battle (NY Daily News)

The 'storm received a nice lift to their line-up with the return of Malik Boothe and Rob Thomas from injury in their last game, a win over USF. Boothe had not played since a December 21st loss to Virginia Tech because of an injured thumb. Being the lone SJU true point guard, coach Roberts was anxious to get him back on the court and the sophomore logged 37 minutes against USF.

Thomas provides an offensive lift off the bench, and had scored in double digits in four of five games before injuring a groin in the 1st half of a loss to UConn on January 15th. He had six points in 18 minutes in his return.

SJU had already lost Anthony Mason Jr for the season, so this is probably as full of a compliment of players as they will have this season. Boothe moves back into a backcourt that has a very hot player next to him, Paris Horne. The 6'3 sophomore is averaging a team-best 14.4 points a game, but that number is 18.8 in the last six contests. Fellow sophomore DJ Kennedy, a 6'6 wing, averages 13 points and a team-high 6.8 rebounds for SJU.

Seton Hall is led by Jeremy Hazell, one of the nation's top scorers at 23.4 points a game. The 35-point performance was one of his five 30-pt plus games this year and he averages 24.8 points in Big East games. Hazell has the green light to launch from nearly anywhere at anytime and has the confidence to make them in any situation, no matter how many he has made, or missed, previously.

Robert 'Stix Mitchell adds 15.7 points and game and point guard Eugene Harvey averages nearly 13 points and 5 assists a game. Much is made of the short SHU roster and lack of depth that really hurts their frontcourt, but they definitely have some guys that can fill it up offensively.

The 9 PM contest is being shown by ESPN and the early college basketball odds have Seton Hall favored by 5 1/2 points on their home floor.

Being at home, you have to believe the Pirate offense will outshine the St. John's defensive effort. Their is not a lot of room for error for Seton Hall with a thin roster, but Hazell can certainly carry the load offensively and the frantic pace will likly take St. John's out of their game.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Seton Hall 76
St. John's 67

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: SOUTH FLORIDA @ ST. JOHN'S

February 1, 2009


The final Big East match-up on this Super Bowl Sunday has South Florida, getting away from all the big game excitement at home to travel north to meet St. John's in a conference match-up.

Each team comes into the game with 2-6 conference records. The Redstorm own home wins over Notre Dame and Rutgers, whole USF has swept two games from pitiful DePaul.

The Bulls are led by the one-two punch of shooting guard Dominique Jones and emerging freshman big man Augustus Gilchrist.

Jones, a junior, averages a team-high 18.4 points a game, leads the team with Gilchrist at 4.9 rebounds a contest, and also leads the team in assists (4.0) and steals (1.6). Gilchrist is averaging just over 12 points a game in Big East play.

St. John's has been decimated by injury, losing Anthony Mason Jr for the season in November and have been without point guard Malik Boothe and forward Rob Thomas lately. The Redstorm still plays hard under coach Norm Roberts and give a little extra effort in the comfy confines of Carnesecca Arena.

Paris Horne has been on a tear for SJU, eclipsing 20 points in three of his last four games and DJ Kennedy does a little bit of everything as a point-forward in their attack. If SJU can get Justin Burrell going against the thin USF front line, SJU will be in good shape today. St. John's is a slight home favorite (-2 1/2), they should be a winner in a pretty good game.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

St. John's 66
South Florida 62

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S @ WEST VIRGINIA

January 28, 2009


West Virginia will look to shake off the sting of their rivalry game loss to Pittsburgh from the weekend. The Mountaineers are in the midst of a brutal stretch of games and they can not afford to take a breath against the Redstorm and let up in any way.

St. John’s got a win over the weekend against Rutgers and are now 2-5 in Big East play. They have yet to win on the road in the Big East and Morgantown is not a friendly venue for a visiting team.

Here are some pregame stories and previews found on the internet this morning:

WVU Seels Ninth in a Row vs. St. John’s (Times West Virginian)
Redstorm Descends on Mounties (Bluefield Daily Telegraph)
Mountaineers Host Redstorm (Register-Herald)
Mountaineers Board Work Rebounds Under Huggins (Daily Mail)
Mountaineers Out to Regroup (Martinsburg Journal)

Even though the lost on Sunday to Pittsburgh, I am starting to like this West Virginia team more and more. They play hard on both ends of the floor for coach Huggins, they play unselfish and they will attack the boards. Their inexperience at key positions and the lack of a player ready to carry them offensively is still holding them back, but Da’Sean Butler and Alex Ruoff are definitely very capable scorers. If Devin Ebanks starts to flash more on the offensive end, this is a team that should continue to improve. They might be the team to watch and with Notre Dame and Georgetown showing signs of heading in the other direction of WVU, they could find themselves setting in among the top third of the Big East.

It is still a tough go for St. John’s and Norm Roberts. They are another team that will play hard for their coach, but they do not have enough bullets available to win consistently, especially on the road in the Big East. With injuries claiming Malik Boothe, Anthony Mason Jr and Rob Thomas, the Redstorm line-up is limited in scoring punch and ball-handlers, an area that WVU will certainly exploit.

While a 16 ½-point line seems quite high, considering that WVU is prone to some poor offensive showings and that SJU will defend, they still should earn a comfortable win right in that neighborhood of a difference.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

West Virginia 77
St. John’s 60

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S HOSTS BEARCATS OF UC

January 22, 2009

Capping of a busy Thursday night in the Big East is a 9 PM game in Jamaica, Queens as St. John’s will host Cincinnati in Carnesecca Arena.

Cincinnati is a disappointing 2-4 in conference action after being swept in their season home and home with Providence. The Friars defeated UC on Monday night 72-63 to complete the sweep. So far, PC’s only two conference wins have come against DePaul and Rutgers, teams yet to win in Big East play.

St. John’s got some people excited when they upset Notre Dame in Madison Square Garden on January 3rd, 71-65. However, the Big East schedule has bitten them back as they have lost three consecutive games to Pittsburgh, Connecticut and Villanova by an average of 18 points. Tonight begins a stretch of seven conference games for the Redstorm where they only see one ranked opponent, a rare run in the Big East. Can they take advantage of it?

Here are some pregame stories and previews on tonight’s game:

UC Must Take Pressure off Vaughn (Cincinnati Enquirer)
As Injuries Linger, SJU’s Kennedy Rises to Occasion (NY Daily News)

The time is now for Cincinnati to pull out of their funk. For a team many thought could emerge as a conference darkhorse, they have been a disappointment with a 2-4 conference record. Their defense, which was so poor early in league play, has improved, but they still ask for too much from Deonta Vaughn so as he goes, all too often, so do the Bearcats.

St. John’s continues to struggle with injuries that had already took down their best player (Anthony Mason Jr.) for the year back in November and now starting point guard, Malik Boothe, and emerging bench contributor, Rob Thomas, have been sidelined. Justin Burrell is back playing, but has not been the same since fracturing bones in his face and having to wear a protective mask.

While the UC defense has been suspect, the St. John’s offense has been more suspect. While the ‘Storm will defend, this is likely to be a close, low scoring game, and with Vaughn, Mike Williams and Yancy Gates, UC has more offensive potential and, although the Redstorm is the 1-point favorite, look for the Bearcats to get the much-needed win.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Cincinnati 62
St. John’s 58

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEWS: ST. JOHN'S VISITS 'NOVA

January 18, 2009



Villanova (1-2) looks to climb back to .500 in Big East play on Sunday afternoon when they welcome St. John’s to the City of Brotherly Love for a big East match-up. The Redstorm are 1-3 in Big East play so far this year.

With much of the city of Philadelphia fixated on the NFL Odds of the Eagles reaching the Super Bowl later this afternoon, there is a little hoops appetizer to start their sports day.

Villanova will look to shake off the rust of not playing in eight days, when they lost to Louisville 61-60 at home. The Wildcats made a late run to take the lead, but a Terrence Williams basket with seven seconds put UL up by one. In the final seconds, ‘Nova missed two free throws and a couple point blank shots and ended up with a disappointing loss.

St. John’s played both Pittsburgh and Connecticut tough for about a half this past week, but ended up falling to both as they just did not have enough depth to compete the full forty minutes. Still, Jay Wright understands that Norm Roberts’ team will come after the Wildcats on the defensive side of the ball.

“I love their team’s toughness,” Wright said this week during the coach’s conference call. “They have four guys in double figures. They’re very well balanced. They play great team defense. I love their team defense.”

Against the Panthers, DJ Kennedy scored 18 points. It was Kenendy who was the catalyst for SJU’s upset win over Notre Dame earlier this season. Against UConn, Paris Horne scored 24, however, they will need to fin more than just one guy stepping up, they need a team effort, like they got against ND.

Injuries are also a problem for the Redstorm. They already lost Anthony Mason Jr for the season to injury and will likely be without starting point guard Malik Boothe once again. Justin Burrell has been playing with a mask after breaking facial bones in practice back in December, he has not seemed to be at his best since the injury. Adding to the injury list is Rob Thomas, the redshirt sophomore who has a long history of injury problems (among others) that have kept him off the floor. Thomas pulled a groin and did not play in the second half versus UConn on Thursday.

Villanova’s leading scorer this year is Dante Cunningham, who is averaging over 17 points and nearly 8 rebounds a game. Junior Scottie Reynolds is still capable of carrying the offensive load, too. For evidence of that, you need not look much further than his 40-point outburst in an OT win at Seton Hall which accounted for the Wildcats’ lone conference win to this point.

Look for Villanova to extend the defensive pressure in the half court to make it difficult for SJU to run their offense with freshman Quincy Roberts handling the point guard duties with Boothe out. This is where VU is at their best and should lead them to victory as 14 ½ point favorites.

Here are some pregame stories and previews found on the web:

St. John’s Sees Light After Brutal Stretch (NY Times)

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Villanova 70
St. John’s 60

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: UCONN AT ST. JOHN'S

St. John’s will look for an instant replay tonight as they try and upset the second straight top-10 opponent to visit Madison Square Garden in two home games. Back on January 3rd the Redstorm stunned Notre Dame, 71-65, behind DJ Kennedy’s double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds. Tonight, Connecticut brings their lofty national ranking to the Garden and will look to leave with it intact.

Here are some pregame stories and previews found on the internet this morning:

Huskies Make Turn in Fine Form (Middletown Press)
Second Half of Season Starts Tonight (Norwich Bulletin)
Johnnies’ Rob Thomas Up to Huskie Task Tonight at Garden (NY Daily News)
Huskies Make the Turn (TheDay.com)
It’s Homecoming Day for Walker (TheDay.com)
Huskies Bracing for Back Nine (Connecticut Post)
UConn Plays St. John’s at the Garden (Courant)

UConn enters the contest with an overall record of 14-1 on the season and 3-1 in the Big East. The Huskies have rallied for three consecutive wins since opening conference play with a 74-63 home loss to Georgetown. This is the third and final leg of a three-game road swing for Jim Calhoun’s squad, coming up with a 61-55 win at West Virginia and an 81-72 win at Cincinnati.

In the victory at Cincinnati, AJ Price shook off the cobwebs from his perimeter game by pouring in 22 points and Jeff Adrien had another day at the office with a 13-point, 12-rebound double-double for the victors.

St. John’s hung with #1 Pittsburgh for the first half on Sunday afternoon in the Steel City before the Panthers overwhelmed SJU after intermission in a 90-67 loss for the ‘storm. SJU turned the ball over 24 times as they continue to miss point guard Malik Boothe.

As usual, expect a very large contingent of UConn fans to invade the Garden tonight, giving it a strong feeling of a game being played in Hartford, or even Storrs, when the two teams take the floor. The Huskies will also look to use their size and strength in the paint with 7’3 Hasheem Thabeet and Adrien to take away the scoring opportunities of SJU. Pressure from Price and freshman point guard Kemba Walker in pushing the pace of the game will also be a detriment to SJU who will be without a point guard. In the loss to Pitt, Quincy Roberts, a freshman filling in for Boothe, had just one assist against 8 turnovers.


The oddsmakers are listing the Huskies as 12 ½-point favorites, but that seems to be a road line, we feel UConn will feel much more at home than this line indicates and they should role and get their offense moving with some easy buckets and a stingy defense making things very hard on SJU. It will be quiet different than playing against Notre Dame…

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Connecticut 78
St. John’s 63

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S @ PITTSBURGH

January 11, 2009


The newly anointed #1 team in the country will play their first game EVER as the top dog in the country when the undefeated Pitt Panthers host the Redstorm of St. John’s on Sunday at the Peterson Events Center.

Pitt has been off a week and basking in the glow of being the country’s top rated team, according to the AP and the coaches poll. In their last outing they hammered Georgetown, 70-54, at the Verizon Center.

St. John’s has also been itching to get back on the floor as the Redstorm stunned Notre Dame at Madison Square Garden in their last outing. SJU is 1-1 in Big East play and rebounded from a 21-point conference opening loss to Providence with the win over the Irish.

Here are some pregame stories and previews from the internet:

Panthers Repeat ‘Bye Week’ Routine (Post-Gazette)
Homecoming for former Schenley Star DJ Kennedy (Tribune-review)
Fields Unfazed by Ranking (FoxSports.com)
St. John’s Ready for Date With #1 Pittsburgh (NY Times)
Pitt Prepares for Life at the Top (Tribune Review)

The early college basketball betting lines have Pitt as a 19 ½-point favorite on Sunday. The Panther ripped SJU last season at Madison Square Garden despite a huge offensive outburst from Anthony Mason Jr. Mason is out for the season with a knee injury and point guard Malik Boothe is also out with injury. The Redstorm do not match up well with the Panthers and DeJuan Blair and Sam Young will be tough to handle inside for SJU.

Defensively, Pittsburgh is still very strong and Jermaine Dixon has quickly established a reputation of being another lock down defender for the Panthers. In addition, Pitt can bring Brad Wanamaker and Gilbert Brown off the bench as well, both with potential to be elite defenders in the Pitt mold. The key to some of Pitt’s recent success is the upgraded offensive production from the pair as they both average 10 PPG in the two Big East contests to date played by the Panthers.

SJU got a career game from DJ Kennedy, who had 20 pts and 10 rebounds in the win over Notre Dame last week. Kennedy was a high school teammate of DeJuan Blair, so it is a homecoming for the 6’7 G/F. Kennedy could be pressing a little trying to show the hometown crowd what he has while going up against the No. 1 team in the country that he is so familiar with.

If there ever was a game to get used to being No. 1 in the Big East, this is likely the one for Pitt. They should have a very lively crowd ready to welcome the #1 Panthers as they have not played at the Peterson Events Center in 25 days (3-0 on the road since their 12/17/08 win over Siena). This is a game they should win comfortably, although the oddsmakers seem to have put a rather large number on this one for two teams more than willing to play a slower pace.


NBE Blogger Prediction:

Pittsburgh 76
St. John’s 58

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: NOTRE DAME @ ST. JOHN'S

January 3, 2009

Notre Dame heads to Madison Square Garden to met St. John’s on Saturday afternoon. The Irish, despite two losses in their pre-conference schedule, have remained in the top 10 and are currently ranked #7 in the country.

The Irish opened Big East play with a 92-82 win at DePaul and will look to start off with back-to-back road wins ahead of Monday’s date with Georgetown at the Joyce Center. In their win over the Blue Demons, old reliable Luke Harangody dominated the paint with 26 points and 16 rebounds and senior Zach Hillesland added a career-best 17 points in the win.

St. John’s started fast on New Year’s Eve sprinting out to an 11-0 led on Providence in Rhode Island. However, the Redstorm turned into a pumpkin well before midnight as PC stormed back to bury SJU 75-54.

Sean Evans led SJU in their conference opener with 16 points and 10 rebounds. The Redstorm was without point guard Malik Boothe, out with an injury, and Justin Burrell has not found his comfort zone since returning to action wearing a mask due to facial fractures suffered earlier this season. SJU is already without Anthony Mason Jr, their leading scorer from a year ago, who will miss the rest of the season because of a knee injury suffered in the season’s second game.

Here are some of the pregame stories and previews found on the web:

Cool Hands Carried Irish (South Bend Tribune)


Native New Yorker Kyle McAlarney returns home for the contest and look for the outside half of the dangerous inside/outside duo of McAlarney and Harangody to have a big game. Once K-Mac hits a few shots to loosen the defense, Harangody will go to work inside and SJU has few answers for the Irish offense that can rack up the points.

The latest college basketball odds have the Irish as a 9 1/2-point road favorite. We would like to see St. John’s prove they can keep up with an offense as potent as the one they will see on Saturday.


Prediction:

Notre Dame 75
St. John’s 63

BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S @ PROVIDENCE

December 31, 2008


The Keno Davis era enters the Big East schedule in his debut season as the Providence Friar basketball coach on New Year's eve when PC hosts St. John's at the Dunkin Donuts Center in downtown Providence.

While neither team is looking like they are completely out of the running to appear in your March Madness betting pools when the NCAA Tournament roles around, both have not quite doomed their season yet.

Here are the articles on the web previewing the contest:

As Big East Season Opens, Question is, Is PC Ready (Providence Journal)
St. John's at PC Match-ups (Providence Journal)

While St. John's sits at 9-3 on the season, the pre-conference period has not been a real healthy one for Norm Roberts' club. They lost their best player, Anthony Mason Jr., for the season to a knee injury. They have yet to beat anyone of significance, losing to three ACC squads (Va Tech, Miami and BC), two of which were in the Garden, and will play the Big East opener without their starting point guard, Malik Boothe, because of injury and still have Justin Burrell rounding into form after breaking facial bones earlier this month.

Providence enters the game with an 8-4 mark, with losses to Northeastern in Davis' debut, Baylor, St. Mary's (CA) and at Boston College as well. PC has a win over Rhode Island to their credit and has shown, at times, to be capable of scoring some points.

With the injury concerns of SJU, especially playing without their point guard in this one, I like the Friars to get a home win as Keno Davis collects his first Big East win.

Prediction:

Providence 73
St. John's 63