St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Visits Marquette Saturday
1/8/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's men's basketball team visits the BMO Harris Bradley Center on Saturday to square off with Marquette at 2 p.m. on FSN. The Red Storm looks for its first BIG EAST victory of the season against a hot Golden Eagles squad that has won 10 of its last 12 games.
In honor of Hall of Famer Al McGuire, the annual "Al's Day" celebration is in order to recognize the accomplishments of the legendary Marquette coach and St. John's player. McGuire lettered at St. John's from 1948-51, averaging 8.1 points in 81 career games, and in his final season helped the team to third place finishes in both the NCAA and NIT. In 13 seasons at Marquette, McGuire led his teams to a 295-80 record, 11 postseason appearances and the 1977 National Championship.
Locally, the live telecast will air on YES Network with Brian Anderson and Nick Bahe calling the action for FOX Sports. St. John's IMG Radio broadcast with John Minko and Brandon Tierney can be heard on 570 AM WMCA and through the TuneIn app.
St. John's is coming off a hard-fought battle with No. 10/12 Xavier on Wednesday at Carnesecca Arena. Federico Mussini (Reggio Emilia, Italy) and Ron Mvouika (Paris, France) each poured in 19 points taking the Musketeers to the wire. Mussini electrified the crowd with his fifth 3-pointer that made it a one-point game with two minutes to play, but Xavier sank 7-of-8 free-throws down the stretch to hold off the Red Storm.
Mussini leads St. John's and is the second-highest scoring freshman in the conference, only trailing Marquette's Henry Ellenson (16.0 ppg), with 13.1 points per game. One of the top shooters in the BIG EAST, the 6-foot-1 Italian guard ranks second in the league with 37 triples and fifth with an 85.1 free-throw shooting percentage. Mussini, like other St. John's freshmen, has played big minutes for the Red Storm averaging 33.6 minutes per game.
Entering only the third true road game of the season, St. John's looks to continue its success at the Bradley Center where the program has come away with wins in three of its past four visits. Senior guard Felix Balamou (Conakry, Guinea) has led the Red Storm in road games this season averaging 12.5 points per game.
Marquette is coming off a signature road win at No. 8/9 Providence on Tuesday. Freshman guard Haanif Cheatham went for a team-high 16 points, while Ellenson recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds to go with four blocks. The Golden Eagles have won seven of 10 home games this season.
About the Series with Marquette
- St. John's is 10-15 all-time versus Marquette in a series that dates back to 1960.
- The Red Storm has won the past four games, including three of the last four in Milwaukee.
- St. John's earned a 67-51 victory in their last meeting on March 4, 2015 at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
