The St. John’s men’s basketball team dropped one spot to No. 10 in the Associated Press top 25 poll, announced Monday, after a .500 week.
The Red Storm were upset by unranked Villanova on Wednesday night in Philadelphia for what was just their second Big East loss of the season. They rebounded with a comeback 79-73 victory over then-No. 24 Creighton at Madison Square Garden to stay in first place in the Big East.
Despite dropping one spot, St. John’s remained in the AP’s top 10 for consecutive weeks for the first time since the 1998-99 season. They finished that year ranked No. 9 in the nation and advanced to the Elite 8 at the NCAA Tournament.
St. John’s improved to 22-4 overall and 13-2 in Big East play with the win on Sunday over Creighton. It is the school’s most overall victories in a single season since 1999-00 (25) and its most Big East victories since winning 14 in 1998-99.
Guard Kadary Richmond averaged 18 points with 7.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and 3.0 steals last week, including 19 points with 10 rebounds against Creighton, which was the Red Storm’s third win against a top-25 opponent in the last 12 days. He was named to the Big East Weekly Honor Roll on Monday.
“Kadary just keeps getting better and better,” head coach Rick Pitino said. “I love his confidence. He doesn’t think about shooting a three. He just has great confidence right now and that’s why he’s playing so well.”
Just five games remain in the regular season, with St. John’s returning to action on Wednesday in Chicago against DePaul before a Sunday clash against UConn at Madison Square Garden.
