St. John's RJ Luis' status up in air for matchup against UConn
RJ Luis Jr. of the St. John's Red Storm grabs a rebound in the first half against the Creighton Bluejays at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Zuby Ejiofor is optimistic. St. John’s coach Rick Pitino isn’t so sure.
The question of whether leading scorer RJ Luis Jr. will play for the 10th-ranked Red Storm when they host two-time defending national champion Connecticut on Sunday at the Garden still felt like a mystery on Friday as he was not expected to practice leading up to the Big East matchup.
Luis (groin injury) missed a game for the first time this season Wednesday night when the Red Storm beat DePaul in Chicago. Pitino said after the game that “RJ is probably going to miss Connecticut.”
Luis, who is averaging 17.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.4 steals, is in contention for Big East Player of the Year. He had 21 points and seven rebounds for St. John’s (23-4, 14-2) in its 68-62 road win over UConn (18-8, 10-5) on Feb. 7.
“I’m really optimistic,” Ejiofor said. “He’s a competitor and we all know exactly what he brings to the table and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he’s playing . . . He told me he’s doing good and he’s getting treatment and he’s doing whatever he’s capable of doing just to get back as soon as possible.”
Told of Ejiofor’s optimism, Pitino said: “I wouldn’t be pessimistic or optimistic because he hasn’t done a single thing and you won’t know until he tries it [Saturday]. So there’s no reason to be optimistic, no reason to be pessimistic . . . If he’s 100%, we’re playing him. If he’s not, we’re not playing him.”
Winning without key players — Deivon Smith missed several games with a shoulder injury — is something St. John’s has excelled at.
“I just think we focus on the game plan, defensively and offensively, and don’t worry about who’s playing or who’s not playing,” Pitino said. “Just focus on trying to win the game with what you have.”
The final call could be on Luis. As Pitino said, “It’s RJ’s decision.”
Award-winning coach?
Pitino is in the running for some serious coaching accolades in this resurgent St. John’s season. With the Red Storm in first place after being picked to finish fifth in the preseason poll of conference coaches, he likely is the frontrunner for Big East Coach of the Year.
On Monday, he was one of 15 coaches announced on the watch list for the 2025 Naismith Coach of the Year Award. Though Pitino’s Louisville teams won two Big East regular-season titles and three conference tournament championships, he never has won that award. At the end of the 1986-87 season, after taking Providence to the Final Four, he was named the Wooden and NABC National Coach of the Year.
Glover done for season
Freshman guard Jaiden Glover has been ruled out for the remainder of the season because of the tendon tear in his right wrist that has bothered him for much of the season, Pitino said. Glover appeared in 22 games and averaged 2.2 points in 6.4 minutes but was a three-point threat that Pitino used in certain situations. He was 10-for-30 on three-point attempts . . . Sophomore center Vince Iwuchukwu was cleared to return after missing the DePaul game with a concussion.
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.
