A non-conference matchup against a ranked team is nothing new to St. John’s basketball head coach Rick Pitino. It probably doesn’t mean much to his players either, but for the program this weekend in the Bahamas presents a chance to snap an incredible drought.
The Red Storm have not played a non-Big East matchup against a ranked team while the Johnnies have been ranked since January 2000 when it played No. 13 Ohio State.
It has not defeated any ranked opponent as a ranked team since 2011 when the No. 23 Red Storm toppled No. 15 Villanova and has not secured a non-conference win in such a game since 1990 when the No. 17 Johnnies took down No. 3 Georgia Tech.
For a program that has as much history as St. John’s, it’s inconceivable that the team has not stumbled into a ranked victory.
However, it’s an era of new beginnings for the No. 22 Red Storm (4-0), who have now been ranked in the AP Top-25 for consecutive weeks for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
In order to break these streaks, it hinges on a victory Thursday night against No. 13 Baylor (3-1). The only way St. John’s will play another ranked team in the Baha Mar Championship with a loss to the Bears is if Virginia beats No. 11 Tennessee on the other side of the bracket.
The Red Storm will also play Georgia in a standalone non-conference game on Sunday morning at Atlantis.
Pitino’s squad has played well through the first four games of the season and its best performance came on Sunday afternoon at Madison Square Garden in a 14-point victory against New Mexico, but the Johnnies will need to raise its level of play if it wants to leave the Bahamas with a winning record on the weekend.
“Right now, we’re really taking it one game at a time,” captain Zuby Ejiofor said. “Our main focus right now is Baylor.”
“I think it would be a really significant win for us…We have the blueprint on what it takes to win against Baylor.”
Tipoff between No. 22 St. John’s and No. 13 Baylor is 7:00 p.m. ET (CBS Sports Network).