RJ Luis Jr. leads the way as St. John's breezes past Seton Hall
St. John's guard RJ Luis Jr. drives to the basket against Seton Hall guard Isaiah Coleman during the first half of an NCAA men’s basketball game Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. Credit: Noah K. Murray
NEWARK — The buildup was all about returns. The result was all about destinations.
St. John’s trip to New Jersey to play Seton Hall on Saturday night had the draw of Kadary Richmond going back to face the team for which he starred the previous three seasons. But in the end, it was all about the Red Storm ascending to first place in the Big East standings and a likely return to the AP Top 25.
St. John’s blew past Seton Hall with a huge first half in which it limited the Pirates to 4-for-30 shooting en route to a 79-51 victory before 9,652 at Prudential Center. The Red Storm won their fifth straight game and 11th in their last 12. More important: Their victory combined with Xavier’s win at No. 7 Marquette put St. John’s (16-3, 7-1) alone at the top of the Big East.
“It’s nice to be in first place, but the job’s not finished,” said RJ Luis Jr., who had 24 points, including four three-pointers, to go with eight rebounds. “So we’ve got to just keep on winning games and playing together and having fun.”
“I’d rather take first place than last place, but I really don’t think about that,” coach Rick Pitino said. “I’m just consumed with the next game . . . I’m proud for the St. John’s fans. I know it means something to them.”
St. John’s took a 26-7 lead with 8:58 left in the first half, extended it to 37-13 and led by 25 early in the second half. Seton Hall (6-12, 1-6) never got closer than 16 in a final 20 minutes that was chippy and marked by a pair of flagrant 1 fouls by Seton Hall and a double technical called on Pitino and Pirates coach Shaheen Holloway.
The Pirates fans, as expected, gave Richmond an unpleasant reception. He heard vigorous boos when he was introduced with the starting lineup and each time he touched the ball for about the first 10 minutes. The score eventually seemed to take a toll on the venom.
“It was nice to come back and get a win despite all the boos and stuff like that,” said Richmond, who had 12 points, six assists and five rebounds. “I think that I carved out a very good career here, so I appreciate them today.”
In the closing minutes, the many St. John’s fans in attendance chanted Richmond’s name. “It was cool they embraced me and showed me love,’’ he said. “They knew what was going on all night with the crowd.”
“Every one of those students and everybody in the building would have done the same thing he did,” Pitino said of Richmond’s transfer to St. John’s. “If the [NIL] money was the same, he would be playing for Shaheen. If the money was close, he’d be playing for Shaheen.”
Zuby Ejiofor had 15 points and nine rebounds and Aaron Scott added 10 points, eight rebounds and three steals for St. John’s.
There also was the unanticipated comeback of Deivon Smith from the right shoulder injury that kept him out of Tuesday’s win over Georgetown. Just the day before, Pitino had all but ruled him out for this contest.
Smith did not look entirely like himself but still was a contributor. He played 17 minutes and had two assists and three rebounds, though the righthanded shooter was 0-for-6 and made a number of passes with his left hand.
Isaiah Coleman had 11 points for Seton Hall. Former Red Storm player Dylan Addae-Wusu missed the game with a foot injury.
The boos that Seton Hall fans showered on Richmond each time he touched the ball in the first half at least gave them a chance to put voice to something. There was very little for them to cheer about as St. John’s blew them off the starting line en route to a 39-16 halftime lead.
It was the fewest points allowed in a first half by St. John’s since it limited Rutgers to 14 in the first half of a win on Feb. 6, 2008.
The Red Storm defense was sensational, holding the Pirates to one stretch of 9:51 in which they shot 0-for-16.
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.