By Noah Zimmerman
The Red Storm keep rolling in the face of adversity.
It seemed as if this was surely the game they’d lose to snap a 5-game winning streak as St. John’s trailed Xavier by 16. Still, Rick Pitino’s squad were able to mount a comeback, sending the game to overtime before winning 79-71.
This time it was graduate Kadary Richmond leading the way for St. John’s. The guard erupted for 19 points, his highest scoring performance of the season. Richmond was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll, the latest of a handful of Johnnies named to the list.
Other high-scorers for St. John’s were Zuby Ejiofor, RJ Luis Jr., and Simeon Wilcher, who all scored 16 apiece. Ryan Conwell led Xavier with 21 points despite the losing effort.
With the win, the Johnnies continued to climb both the AP and USA Today polls, earning #15 and #14 rankings respectively.
The real test comes up next month as St. John’s finally clashes with Marquette and UConn after finishing the season series against Providence on Feb. 1.
Marquette and St. John’s continue to jockey for the BIG EAST lead, both 8-1 entering the week. It’s likely the two will decide who gets the top spot when the Red Storm welcomes the Golden Eagles to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, Feb. 4.
The Huskies have slipped into 4th in the conference behind Creighton, but remain a dangerous foe as St. John’s heads to Connecticut next Friday, Feb. 7.
