Zuby Ejiofor has become the player most synonymous with this era of St. John’s basketball.
He’s been with the program since the hiring of Rick Pitino, going from a bench player to one of the best players in the Big East in three years. His passion, energy, and determination are pillars in the development coaching style of Pitino, and it’s played out in real time for the country to see.
There’s been a lot of work behind the scenes to get Ejiofor to this point in his career, however, but he wouldn’t change anything as he enters his final home game in a Red Storm uniform at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night (7:00 p.m. ET, Peacock) against Georgetown.
“I became a man in this program,” Ejiofor said after the Johnnies defeated Villanova on Saturday night. “Coach Pitino, for the last three years now, has been guiding me through this whole process. Not just with the game of basketball, but just life in general.”
“I’m really blessed to be able to put on this jersey each and every night. Playing at Madison Square Garden, calling that your home court and just putting on a performance like this in front of the best fans in the country. It means everything to have this type of performance, especially with my family in the crowd as well.”
Yet Rick Pitino can be an acquired taste for players in this age of college basketball. The Hall of Famer claims he doesn’t get on players nearly as hard as he would earlier in his career, but it’s still very demanding to play for him.
“He gets on me as much as he would get on a guy like [Lefteris Liotopolous] or Fotis [Konstantinidis] or anybody else on the team,” Ejiofor explained. “And that’s how [we] got to be able to just create a special bond.”
“It’s a great relationship.”
The success Zuby Ejiofor has seen in a Red Storm uniform has been unprecedented in the recent history of the program, winning a Big East regular season and tournament title last season while in the hunt to repeat as champions this year.
He was the Big East’s Most Improved Player a year ago as well as a First Team All-Big East selection, which he will be again this year.
He’s also likely to be the Big East Player of the Year after being named as the Preseason Player of the Year in September. Should Ejiofor win the award he would become the first player to win the postseason award after gartering the preseason honor since Josh Hart in 2017.
“It’s never about Zuby, always about St. John’s, always about the team,” Rick Pitino said on Monday. “Never about himself, always about winning, never moody, always disappointed when things don’t go well but willing to fight through it.”
It’s why the two have been a perfect match.
“The way [Rick Pitino] carries himself every single day, his passion for basketball, coming in every single day and being energetic, being loud and being who he is, and you can see what the game means to him,” Ejiofor explained on what Pitino’s impact has been on him.
“And like I said, not just the basketball, but I feel like I grew. I literally grew up here the past three years.”
Zuby Ejiofor knows he still has more games to play at Madison Square Garden this season, but Tuesday night will be his last with the arena draped in St. John’s decals. It’ll be an emotional night for him and his family, and his teammates have told him he’s going to cry, but he’s out to prove them wrong.
“I’m definitely not crying,” he claims.