St. John’s had a foot in the trap, and the door was nearly closed.
It was a sluggish and offensively challenged outing for the No. 22 Red Storm on Tuesday night in Chicago, but it prevailed against DePaul with its defense 68-56 as the team’s attention can officially shift to No. 3 UConn on Friday night at Madison Square Garden.
The Johnnies (17-5, 10-1 Big East) looked to have found separation from the Blue Demons in the second half, opening up a 13-point lead, 50-37, with 10:11 remaining but an improved DePaul team never quit.
“This was a tremendous win for us because this was a very, very difficult game to play,” Rick Pitino said after the victory. “And we had to be the better defensive team down the stretch, and we made some really offensive plays.”
It was an extended 15-6 run for DePaul (12-11, 4-8 Big East) to get back within six of St. John’s, 56-50, with 3:35 left but after a St. John’s timeout the Red Storm rattled off the next six points – which was started by a tough layup by Bryce Hopkins.
It capped an interesting night for Hopkins, who finished with 15 points in front of many family members and friends. The Illinois native helped keep the Red Storm afloat in the first half with ten points but missed a handful of shots at the rim and free throw line in the second half.
“I thought Bryce really wanted the ball in crucial times, made great plays,” Pitino said.
What Hopkins might have lacked in the second half with efficiency, Zuby Ejiofor picked up the slack.
After a half in which he was mostly unproductive, missing four of his five shot attempts, he found a groove after halftime with 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting – finishing with a team-high 16 points.
The same can be said for Oziyah Sellers who only had three points in the first half before adding 10 points to help close out the eighth straight victory for the Red Storm.
It was the ninth straight Big East road win for the program, which ties the longest streak in program history set during the 1985-86 seasons.
“We’re trending in the right direction,” Ejiofor explained.
The stage is now getting set for Friday’s (8:00 p.m. ET, FOX) showdown between St. John’s and UConn inside Madison Square Garden, which is pegged to be the game of the year in the conference.
“It’s UConn, Friday night, MSG, what much could you ask for?” Ejiofor said.