St. John's, Zuby Ejiofor have taken massive steps forward this season
St. John's forward Zuby Ejiofor (24) drives to the basket against Seton Hall guard Dylan Addae-Wusu (0) and center Godswill Erheriene (54) on Saturday, March 1, 2025. Credit: AP/Noah K. Murray
There were signs last season that Zuby Ejiofor might be capable of contributing much more than the backup role he was in.
Mostly it showed up later in the season when he emerged as a better defensive option than starter Joel Soriano. He played with hustle and passion, contested everything and never took a play off.
This season, St. John’s has taken a quantum leap, and in many ways, the program and Ejiofor are traveling parallel arcs.
The Red Storm have won their first outright Big East regular-season championship in 40 years and ascended to No. 6 in the national rankings as they head into Thursday’s Big East Tournament quarterfinals. And the 6-9 Ejiofor, who came off the bench to average 4.4 points and 3.1 rebounds in 11 minutes per game last season, was unanimously elected a team captain in October, emerged as the nation’s top offensive rebounder and was named first-team all-conference.
An incredible three-day stretch for the Texan started Saturday when his one-hander beat the final buzzer in overtime for a win over then-No. 20 Marquette in Milwaukee, flowed into Sunday’s all-conference selection and was capped Monday by being voted by conference coaches as the Big East’s Most Improved Player of the Year.
“I thought it could happen, knew I was in the conversation,” the junior said Monday night at a team appearance at Applebee’s in Fresh Meadows. “I put in a lot of work over the summer to try and get better, and there was a big jump from my sophomore year. Me and my family are really proud of what’s been accomplished, but there’s a lot more to do this season.”
Ejiofor transferred from Kansas before the 2023-24 season. Red Storm coach Rick Pitino recounted in October that Jayhawks coach Bill Self had told him St. John’s was getting a high-quality guy but that his ceiling was probably as a backup. Now Pitino, who likes to have a little friendly fun with his coaching rivals, has been sending Self video clips of Ejiofor’s highlights.
He is averaging 14.1 points and 8.2 rebounds, including a Division I-best 4.3 offensive rebounds.
“It’s a season that you dream of, but you never really picture it until it actually happens,” Ejiofor said.
Pitino and his coaching staff knew of Ejiofor because he was highly recruited out of high school before he went to Kansas, where he played five minutes a game as a freshman before putting himself in the NCAA transfer portal. But it wasn’t until he worked out for Pitino and his assistants on his campus visit that they saw the potential.
“We were really impressed with his athleticism and his size,” St. John’s associate head coach Steve Masiello said. “It was his character, his work ethic, the high motor that never stops. There was all this behind-the-scenes stuff that doesn’t show up in a boxscore.”
Few coaches, if any, develop players the way Pitino does. Daniss Jenkins, for example, was a good player for Pacific before becoming an excellent player for Iona and then a star for the Red Storm when he followed Pitino to Queens. And Ejiofor, who has a daily passion to improve, was perfect to work with.
Watch him now. For a player his size, Ejiofor is remarkable in his ability to defend any position, including guards on the perimeter. He has developed a three-point shot. He is physically challenging to rebound against.
“You watch the way he works and it’s been contagious, like we all caught it,” RJ Luis Jr. said. “The whole DNA of our team is playing hard, being aggressive and getting into the other team on defense. That’s his DNA, too.”
He has worked as hard at developing his leadership skills as he has on his game. It was a new thing for him, but he now gives a pregame talk before every contest and said, “I’m proud that I can lead with my voice and not just my example.”
His teammates laugh about how well that part has developed this season.
“In the beginning it was bad; he was very awkward with it,” Luis said. “It’s a new role. It’s a big role. It took a lot, but he’s come into it.”
“Yeah, the pregame speeches were a little all over the place,” Kadary Richmond said. “He’s gotten much better. He does it before every game and he’s become a vocal guy, so we let him do his thing.”
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.