Three keys to victory for St. John’s basketball against BYU

St. John’s basketball Key to Victory No. 2 – Win the rebounding battle

It should go without saying, but St. John’s has to be competitive on the glass if they want to come away with a victory.

Facing three players at least 6-foot-10, Mike Anderson will rely upon Josh Roberts, Isaih Moore, Arnaldo Toro, and Marcellus Earlington to win the battle in the front court and on the glass.

Anderson and the Johnnies do have some experience with playing against 7-footers and it didn’t go too well last season against Romaro Gill of Seton Hall.

In two meetings against the Red Storm, Gill posted 14 points and 13 rebounds in a win over St. John’s at Madison Square Garden and 12 points and six rebounds in a win at the Prudential Center.

Gill was just 5-of-13 from the field in the first meeting between the Big East rivals last season before going a perfect 6-for-6 in the second matchup.

However, Josh Roberts had his best game of conference play in that first matchup with the Seton Hall 7-foot-2 standout with 16 points and eight rebounds on 8-of-11 shooting.

Can St. John’s find a way to slow down the BYU front court? That’s arguably the biggest question entering Wednesday’s matchup.