St. John's Deivon Smith expected back for Kansas State game
St. John's guard Deivon Smith (5) drives to the basket during the second half of an NCAA men’s college basketball game against New Mexico, Sunday, Nov 17, 2024, in New York. St. John's won 85-71. Credit: Noah K. Murray
An important non-conference game. Farewell tributes to legendary coach Lou Carnesecca. The probable return of senior guard Deivon Smith.
St. John’s will have a lot going on Saturday when it hosts Kansas State for an 11:30 a.m. Big 12-Big East Battle contest at Carnesecca Arena.
Coach Rick Pitino took issue with Smith’s conduct during and after the Nov. 24 loss to Georgia in the Bahamas, said there would be “consequences” and charged the other players with determining his penalties. Smith didn’t practice before or play in the Nov. 30 win over Harvard, as decided by the team, Pitino said.
Co-captain Zuby Ejiofor said Friday that in the eyes of the team, Smith’s penalty is completed.
“Over the past two or three days, he’s been practicing,” he said. When asked directly if he will play, Ejiofor responded, “Ultimately that is Coach P’s decision, but we all support Deivon and we’re all looking forward to him getting back with the group and playing basketball.”
Ejiofor added, “I wouldn’t say everything’s going to be exactly the way it was, but it’s looking like it as of late . . . everything has been pretty good so far.” He suggested that Smith still might need to regain some of Pitino’s trust.
Ejiofor recounted that he and RJ Luis Jr. were crossing campus after a workout and happened upon Carnesecca sitting on a bench. He remember Luis saying “That’s Coach Lou!” and the two engaging him in a brief conversation.
“He knew who we were,” Ejiofor said of the iconic coach who died last Saturday at age 99. “We had like a friendly little interaction for two to three minutes and it was pretty cool to see that he knew exactly who we were. He was just filled with so much life . . . It was a pretty cool moment.”
St. John’s asked that those attending Saturday’s game be in their seats at 11:15 a.m. for a pregame ceremony celebrating Carnesecca. They will receive commemorative pins and keepsakes and see the new tribute patch the Red Storm (6-2) will wear against the Wildcats (6-2) and for the rest of the season.
“He had a really big impact on the university,” Ejiofor said. “We’re looking forward to . . . dedicating this game to him and coming up with a big-time win for him.”
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.