St. John’s ready to begin Big East title defense with conference opener against DePaul

NEW YORK — Rick Pitino doesn’t expect St. John’s to go 18-2 in Big East play again.

But the head coach believes his Johnnies have what it takes to repeat as conference champions, even if this season’s team remains a work in progress.

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“We’re not as good as UConn right now, but you wouldn’t expect that because UConn had three really pivotal players back,” Pitino said after Saturday’s 91-64 win over Iona. “But by the end of the year, I would hope we’re at that level.”

No. 22 St. John’s (6-3) begins its title defense on Tuesday night when it hosts DePaul at Carnesecca Arena in its first game against a conference opponent.

Last season, St. John’s won its first outright Big East regular-season championship since 1985 and its first conference tournament championship since 2000.

Between its 18-2 record in conference play and its 3-0 record in the conference tournament, St. John’s went 21-2 against Big East opponents last season.

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“The Big East is going to be tougher this year,” Pitino said, describing Butler, Georgetown and Providence as being “significantly better” than they were last season.

“We’re not going to win like we did last year. But I think we can defend [the conference championship] with our defense getting a lot better.”

The Big East coaches pegged St. John’s as the preseason favorite to win the conference, but No. 5 UConn (10-1) has been the superior team thus far.

UConn, which won back-to-back NCAA championships in 2023 and 2024, took a step back last season, but it has benefited this year from the continuity provided by the returns of Solo Ball, Alex Karaban and Tarris Reed Jr.

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St. John’s, meanwhile, is 0-3 against ranked opponents, prompting it to fall from No. 5 in the AP’s preseason poll to its current No. 22 ranking.

The Red Storm brought back only one starter from last season’s team in senior forward Zuby Ejiofor, though many lauded a transfer class headlined by Bryce Hopkins, Ian…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/st-john-ready-begin-big-021800254.html

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Publish date : 2025-12-16 02:18:00

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