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First date tentatively set for St. John’s basketball non-conference schedule

By Kevin Connelly

St. John's basketball forward Marcellus Earlington (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images)
St. John's basketball forward Marcellus Earlington (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images) /
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The first date on the St. John’s basketball non-conference schedule has been tentatively set.

One down, maybe 26 more to go.

CBS Sports college basketball insider Jon Rothstein reported the tentative dates for the Big East vs. Big 12 Challenge this season that will take place on the campus of each individual home team.

The challenge will begin on November 29 with the Baylor Bears against the Seton Hall Pirates and close, for now, with the Kansas State Wildcats in Hinkle Fieldhouse against the Butler Bulldogs on December 11.

Rothstein reported that three matchups, Villanova vs. Texas, West Virginia vs. Georgetown, and Oklahoma State vs. Marquette, still have dates to be determined.

However, St. John’s will be traveling down to Lubbock, Texas to face the Texas Tech Red Raiders on December 13.

The Johnnies and Red Raiders also could have met this season in the Preseason NIT, but the Red Storm opted out of the tournament, which will be played in the college basketball bubble in Orlando, Florida.

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Hours after news became official that Mike Anderson and his team would not travel to Florida, word also became available that the Arizona Wildcats would not play in the event, although it was expected the Pac-12 program would not participate after the conference canceled all sports through January 1.

The Pac-12 recently reversed its decision and will allow athletics beginning in November, but Sean Miller’s team will not be making the trip.

Anyway, back to St. John’s basketball.

The Red Storm also had non-conference games scheduled against Sacred Heart and La Salle in Queens, but those games are in question as the team is trying to play against local teams prior to Big East play to keep travel at a minimum, according to multiple reports.

ALSO READ: St. John’s opts out of Preseason NIT amid COVID concerns

With the Big East vs. Big 12 Challenge set far in advance, expect the next schedule news to drop surrounding the Johnnies being the Big East Conference slate of games before any other non-conference games become known.