Unique Drake of St. John's Univ. women's basketball team speaking...

Unique Drake of St. John's Univ. women's basketball team speaking with the press on media day at Carnesecca Arena Tues. Oct. 17, 2023. Credit: Errol Anderson

The amount of exposure may have changed.

The expectations have not. At least not internally.

“We’re still driving to get ourselves in the position we were last year: To be in the postseason but not really just be in the postseason [but to] be in the NCAA Tournament,” St. John’s Red Storm women’s head basketball coach Joe Tartamella said during an interview following practice last week.

The Red Storm are coming off a 2022-23 campaign in which they were 23-9 overall, 13-7 in the Big East, and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2015-16 season. 

St. John’s defeated Purdue, 66-64, in a First Four game, before dropping a 61-59 decision to North Carolina in the first round. 

It was a season that has already gone down in the program’s annals, and those associated with the St. John’s are fully cognizant of what it meant.

“Last year was really special,” Tartamella said. “The group we had was special and I’ve had groups like that. And now we’re going to continue to build again with the foundation that we’ve created over time and then, obviously, from last year. But I don’t think the expectation has ever changed since I’ve taken over or even when I was an assistant here.” 

Now the challenge is to build upon that success with an almost entirely new group.

The 2023-24 edition of the Red Storm has eight newcomers joining returnees Jillian Archer and the reigning Big East Sixth-Woman of the Year Unique Drake, who averaged 8.6 points per game in 32 games last season.

The roster turnover likely factored into Big East coaches predicting St. John’s will finish sixth in the conference’s preseason poll, but Tartamella believes this group will improve as the season progresses, and Drake sees bonds forming that could lead to success.   

“We have great team chemistry,” said Drake, who was an honorable mention to the Big East’s preseason team. “Everyday we get to know each other off-the-court and on the court.” 

All of which begs the question: What is a reasonable goal for this St. John’s squad?  

“Everybody has the same goal: To return to the NCAA Tournament,” Drake said. “I think everybody has the same goal to win, compete. At the end of the day I think we all want to go to the NCAA Tournament again, so just getting back to the tournament is everybody’s goal.”

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited Digital AccessOnly 25¢for 6 months

ACT NOWSALE ENDS SOON | CANCEL ANYTIME