The idea of Zuby Ejiofor playing against Kansas was a possibility last season when the Jayhawks were put in the same pod as the St. John’s basketball team in the NCAA Tournament, but the matchup never came to fruition after Arkansas’ victory over Kansas.
This year, however, was different.
St. John’s as a No. 5 seed and Kansas as a No. 4 seed in San Diego were destined to battle for a spot on the line in the Sweet 16 and it’ll be on display for the country to see on Sunday afternoon (5:15 p.m. ET, CBS) with top-overall seed Duke waiting.
Yet the Red Storm aren’t concerned about its superstar getting too overwhelmed by the moment of playing his former school with its season hanging in the balance.
“I don't think Zuby cares about playing Kansas,” Rick Pitino said on Saturday during his press conference at Viejas Arena. “I think he's concerned about this is a chance to get to the Sweet 16.”
“But I think [against Northern Iowa], he was a little bit tight,” Pitino added. “He came out of it, and I think he'll be fine tomorrow.”
The good news for Ejiofor is that he has a teammate with the experience of playing his former team to rely on, although he circumstances couldn’t be more different.
Bryce Hopkins was at the center of attention three times when the Johnnies met Providence this season and he knows that emotions can run high when playing a former school.
“He knows what it is,” Hopkins said about Ejiofor. “He’s very mature about it.”
Hopkins added that when he played the Friars he never wanted to sink into the narrative about playing his former team, rather just focus on the matchup and playing through his teammates.
“I feel like Zuby is going to be perfectly fine. He’s been doing it all year,” Hopkins explained.
“Zuby plays with a chip on his shoulder and he’s going to show some emotion, obviously…Zuby’s going to be Zuby.”
Despite the divorce, there’s not too many hard feelings on either side, especially from Kansas head coach Bill Self.
“Zuby is the most successful guy that has left and have gone on and been amazing,” Self said on Saturday. “And of course, we love Zuby. We didn't want him to leave. We're really happy for his success -- we just hope it doesn't come against us.”
Self added that the two don’t communicate often but he will occasionally send him a text message if he had an extraordinary game.
“I would have loved to have seen him stay. We all wanted him to stay, but with what his goals were, he made a good, solid decision.”