St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Picked Second in Preseason Poll; England and Hoppie Named to Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
10/10/2019 9:12:00 AM | Women's Basketball
England was one of four players to garner unanimous preseason all-league selection
For the first time since 2015-16, a season that saw the St. John's women's basketball team claim the BIG EAST Championship, the Red Storm has been picked to finish second in the conference by a poll of the league's coaches.
This marks the third time in six years that the Johnnies have been selected second in the BIG EAST Preseason Poll.
Additionally, Tiana England and Qadashah Hoppie were both named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. DePaul, the reigning conference Champion, was the only other program to place two student-athletes on the preseason all-league team.
Coming off a campaign that saw her lead the conference in assists with 5.7 per game, England was one of four unanimous selections to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. The Stamford, Conn., native reached the 10-dime mark on three different occasions last year and ranked inside the top-20 nationally at the conclusion of the season. After dishing out 176 assists last year, England cracked the top-15 on the St. John's all-time assist list with 347 despite having played just two campaigns in Queens.
In addition to her facilitating abilities, the redshirt junior paced the team in scoring during conference play with 12.0 points per game. England reached double figures in 16 contests, eclipsing the 20-point mark twice.
The Red Storm's leading scorer from a season ago, Hoppie (11.6 ppg) also found her name on the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. The Staten Island native scored in double figures a total 18 times last year, eclipsing the 20-point mark on three different occasions.
In 2018-19, the junior guard set single-game career-highs in nearly every statistical category, including points (24), free throws (17), rebounds (6) and assists (6). The local product also led the team in dimes in seven different games last year.
St. John's is expected to make the biggest jump of any BIG EAST team in 2019-20, as the league's coaches picked the Red Storm to finish second after the Johnnies finished eighth in the conference a year ago. In the 2015-16 season, the Red Storm turned in a 23-10 record, won its first BIG EAST title since 1988 and made the NCAA Tournament for the 10th time in program history.
Coming off its fourth BIG EAST Tournament title in the last six seasons, DePaul (81 points) was predicted to repeat as the league's champion. The Red Storm (70 points) received one first place vote to edge out third-place Seton Hall by 12 points. Creighton rounded out the top four with 50 points.
Coming off trips to the WNIT, Providence and Villanova tied for fifth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll with 44 points apiece. Butler was slotted seventh with 43 points. A pair of teams under the direction of new head coaches, Xavier (23 points) and Marquette (19 points), were picked to finish eighth and ninth, respectively. Georgetown rounded out the poll in 10th with 18 points.
In addition to their preseason individual award winners, the Johnnies also welcome back another starter in senior Alisha Kebbe, who finished in double figures a team-high 19 times last year. The Philadelphia native was one of five St. John's players to average double figures last season with 10.7 points per game.
The Red Storm will kick off the 2019-20 campaign on Nov. 5, traveling to St. Bonaventure for a matchup with Bonnies.
BIG EAST Women's Basketball
Preseason Coaches' Poll (First Place Votes)
1. DePaul (9) 81
2. St. John's (1) 70
3. Seton Hall 58
4. Creighton 50
5. Providence 44
Villanova 44
7. Butler 43
8. Xavier 23
9. Marquette 19
10. Georgetown 18
BIG EAST Women's Basketball
Preseason Player of the Year
Shadeen Samuels, Seton Hall, Sr., F
BIG EAST Women's Basketball
Preseason Freshman of the Year
Jordan King, Marquette, Fr., G
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Kristen Spolyar, Butler, Sr., G
Jaylyn Agnew, Creighton, Sr., F
Chante Stonewall, DePaul, Sr., F
Kelly Campbell, DePaul, Sr., G
Selena Lott, Marquette, Jr., G
Mary Baskerville, Providence, So., F*
Tiana England, St. John's, R-Jr., G*
Qadashah Hoppie, St. John's, Jr., G
Desiree Elmore, Seton Hall, Jr., G/F
Mary Gedaka, Villanova, Sr., F*
A'riana Gray, Xavier, Jr., F*
*unanimous selection
This marks the third time in six years that the Johnnies have been selected second in the BIG EAST Preseason Poll.
Additionally, Tiana England and Qadashah Hoppie were both named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. DePaul, the reigning conference Champion, was the only other program to place two student-athletes on the preseason all-league team.
Coming off a campaign that saw her lead the conference in assists with 5.7 per game, England was one of four unanimous selections to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. The Stamford, Conn., native reached the 10-dime mark on three different occasions last year and ranked inside the top-20 nationally at the conclusion of the season. After dishing out 176 assists last year, England cracked the top-15 on the St. John's all-time assist list with 347 despite having played just two campaigns in Queens.
In addition to her facilitating abilities, the redshirt junior paced the team in scoring during conference play with 12.0 points per game. England reached double figures in 16 contests, eclipsing the 20-point mark twice.
The Red Storm's leading scorer from a season ago, Hoppie (11.6 ppg) also found her name on the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. The Staten Island native scored in double figures a total 18 times last year, eclipsing the 20-point mark on three different occasions.
In 2018-19, the junior guard set single-game career-highs in nearly every statistical category, including points (24), free throws (17), rebounds (6) and assists (6). The local product also led the team in dimes in seven different games last year.
St. John's is expected to make the biggest jump of any BIG EAST team in 2019-20, as the league's coaches picked the Red Storm to finish second after the Johnnies finished eighth in the conference a year ago. In the 2015-16 season, the Red Storm turned in a 23-10 record, won its first BIG EAST title since 1988 and made the NCAA Tournament for the 10th time in program history.
Coming off its fourth BIG EAST Tournament title in the last six seasons, DePaul (81 points) was predicted to repeat as the league's champion. The Red Storm (70 points) received one first place vote to edge out third-place Seton Hall by 12 points. Creighton rounded out the top four with 50 points.
Coming off trips to the WNIT, Providence and Villanova tied for fifth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll with 44 points apiece. Butler was slotted seventh with 43 points. A pair of teams under the direction of new head coaches, Xavier (23 points) and Marquette (19 points), were picked to finish eighth and ninth, respectively. Georgetown rounded out the poll in 10th with 18 points.
In addition to their preseason individual award winners, the Johnnies also welcome back another starter in senior Alisha Kebbe, who finished in double figures a team-high 19 times last year. The Philadelphia native was one of five St. John's players to average double figures last season with 10.7 points per game.
The Red Storm will kick off the 2019-20 campaign on Nov. 5, traveling to St. Bonaventure for a matchup with Bonnies.
BIG EAST Women's Basketball
Preseason Coaches' Poll (First Place Votes)
1. DePaul (9) 81
2. St. John's (1) 70
3. Seton Hall 58
4. Creighton 50
5. Providence 44
Villanova 44
7. Butler 43
8. Xavier 23
9. Marquette 19
10. Georgetown 18
BIG EAST Women's Basketball
Preseason Player of the Year
Shadeen Samuels, Seton Hall, Sr., F
BIG EAST Women's Basketball
Preseason Freshman of the Year
Jordan King, Marquette, Fr., G
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Kristen Spolyar, Butler, Sr., G
Jaylyn Agnew, Creighton, Sr., F
Chante Stonewall, DePaul, Sr., F
Kelly Campbell, DePaul, Sr., G
Selena Lott, Marquette, Jr., G
Mary Baskerville, Providence, So., F*
Tiana England, St. John's, R-Jr., G*
Qadashah Hoppie, St. John's, Jr., G
Desiree Elmore, Seton Hall, Jr., G/F
Mary Gedaka, Villanova, Sr., F*
A'riana Gray, Xavier, Jr., F*
*unanimous selection
Players Mentioned
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