For the first time in 40 years, No. 7 St. John’s is the Big East regular-season champion, clinching the crown with a 71-61 victory over Seton Hall at Madison Square Garden on Saturday afternoon.
RJ Luis poured in 21 points to lead the Red Storm’s effort, improving his school’s record to 26-4 and 17-2 in Big East play. The Queens school had not been outright conference champions since the 1984-85 season, sharing the title in 1985-86 and 1991-92.
Despite the benchmark achievement, Rick Pitino’s men did not cut down the nets. That appears to be an honor reserved for potentially winning the Big East Tournament, which runs from March 13-16 and will see St. John’s hold the No. 1 seed.
“We wanted a Big East crown from the beginning of the year,” Pitino, in just his second year at St. John’s, said. “That was our goal.”
The 17 Big East wins extend the school’s record while 26 overall wins are the most Red Storm wins in a single season since 1985-86.
Zuby Ejiofor added 21 points with 10 rebounds while Kadary Richmond, the reigning Big East Player of the Week who is nursing double groin pulls, added nine points and nine rebounds.
