St. John's basketball host 7-foot-1 center Vincent Iwuchukwu on visit

Rick Pitino is still trying to find his next starting center for the St. John's basketball team and he's turned his attention to a player from Southern California.

The Johnnies hosted USC center Vincent Iwuchukwu on a visit Wednesday night, having him tour Madison Square Garden while he was in New York.

Iwuchukwu, a 7-foot-1 center who just completed his sophomore season, played in 31 games this season for the Trojans, averaging 5.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game.

However, his college career did not get off to the best start as he suffered a cardiac arrest incident on July 1, 2022 while preparing for his freshman season at USC. He was sidelined until December, when he was allowed to practice in a limited capacity.

Iwuchukwu missed the first 16 games of the season, before returning to the court in mid-January to play in 14 games.

His offensive game is still raw and needs work but the size, length, and athleticism that Vincent Iwuchukwu possess is too great to overlook. He was a 5-star recruit, ranked No. 25 in the nation, before selecting USC over programs like Baylor, Arkansas, Kansas, Texas, and UCLA.

He has two years remaining of eligibility and his current recruitment has been kept very quiet. Other programs that are hoping to land him are unknown.

St. John's has been involved with a few centers in the transfer portal this offseason but hasn't yet found the replacement for Soriano, who has exhausted all of his eligibility.

Drexel's Amari Williams and Rutgers' Cliff Omoruyi are two of the other top transfers that the Red Storm are trying to remain involved with.

The Johnnies have yet to land a commitment from a transfer portal prospect this offseason and still have five vacant scholarships to fill with many holes on its current roster.