Luis Takes Red Storm To Semi Finals
Photo: Special to the NY Beacon
By Andrew Rosario
The big question going into the St. John’s (#5 19-12, 11-9 conference) game against the Seton Hall (#4 20-11, 13-7 conference) was whether or not Seton Hall would continue their dominance over the Red Storm. The Pirates swept both regular season games and came back from a 19-point deficit in their last meeting in February to shock first year head coach Rick Pitino. He ripped into the team after the loss. “It’s been a disappointing year,” he said. The team got the message and ended the year on a five-game winning streak. Seton Hall went into the Big East tournament winning their last two regular season games. It was a sold out crowd on a day when the temperature reached an unseasonably like 70 degrees. It was even hotter on the Madison Square Garden.
Seton Hall jumped out to 13-8 lead and then saw St. John’s respond by outscoring them 16-13 taking their first lead of the game (26-24) after a Zuby Ejiofor 3-pointer with 9:44 left in the first half. The Red Storm took the biggest lead of the first half 37-28 only to see the Pirates close the gap to 5-points (45-40) as the half came to a close. St. John’s shot 60% from the floor and was led by RJ Luis Jr with 10 points. Seton Hall shot 54% from 3-point land as they were led by Al-Amir Dawes who scored 13.
St. John’s came out on a mission in the second half. They jumped out to a 54-41 lead and never looked back in the 91-72 win. Not only did the Red Storm shoot 52% from the floor, they took advantage of the free throw line converting 19 of 20 attempts. Every time the Pirates attempted to close the gap, the Red Storm answered with their defense. First year head coach Rick Pitino lit into his team after they blew a 19-point lead to the Pirates in February. They responded in a big way Thursday night. “March is what it’s all about in college basketball,” he said. “We told the guys, you gotta play your best basketball going into March.” St. John’s did just that and regardless of the outcome when they face the #1 ranked Connecticut Huskies Friday, they just about punched their own ticket to March Madness when the NCAA announces the teams Sunday. It will be the first time since the Red Storm will be a part of the madness since the 2010-2011 season. RJ Luis led the Red Storm with 18 points. Al-Amir Dawes led Seton Hall with 22.
