Red Storm to Welcome Butler to Carnesecca Arena

After a two-and-a-half-week layoff, the St. John's women's basketball team will return to action on Saturday, as the Red Storm welcomes Butler to Carnesecca Arena for a 2 p.m. contest.

The matchup between the Johnnies and the Bulldogs will be streamed live on the BIG EAST Digital Network, available on FloSports, with Pat O'Keefe and Kim Adams on the call from Queens.

Following the postponement of its contest with Xavier scheduled for Jan. 6, the Red Storm will take the court for the first time since Dec. 22. The Johnnies will look to carry over the momentum from their last outing, a 60-57 victory over St. Bonaventure to close out non-conference action. In the win over the Bonnies, St. John's mounted a late comeback after trailing by as many as 12 early in the third quarter.

Qadashah Hoppie paced the Red Storm in scoring against the Bonnies, chipping in a team-high 12 points. The senior captain has finished in double figures in all four games that she has played in this season and has led the Red Storm in scoring in three of those four contests.

Leilani Correa, who ranks second in the league in scoring with 21.3 points per game, notched her first double-double of the season against St. Bonaventure. The sophomore from Manchester, N.J. recorded 11 points to go along with a team-high 10 rebounds. Dating back to last season, Correa has recorded 10 or more points in nine-straight games, including four 20-plus point performances.

As a team, the Johnnies held the Bonnies to 28 percent shooting from three-point range, marking the fourth time this season that the Red Storm has held its opponent to less than 30 percent shooting from beyond the arc. The Johnnies currently sit third overall in the conference in defending the perimeter.

Saturday will mark the 15th all-time meeting between St. John's and Butler, with the Red Storm leading the series, 10-4. The Johnnies swept the regular-season series last year, downing the Bulldogs, 67-42, at Hinkle Fieldhouse before winning, 85-80, in an overtime thriller at Carnesecca Arena. Hoppie led the way for the Red Storm against Butler last year, combining for 20.0 points per game on a 56 percent shooting mark from the floor.

The Johnnies and the Bulldogs both enter Saturday's matchup hungry for a conference victory, as they are the only remaining teams without a BIG EAST win this season. The Bulldogs are also looking to snap an eight-game skid, as they have not won a game since February 23, 2020.

Leading Butler in scoring is Okako Adika with 15.0 points per game. Adika joins the Bulldogs this season from Odessa College where she was named the WJCAC MVP a season ago. Adika is also averaging 6.2 rebounds per game this year.

Genesis Parker, who averaged 9.0 points per game over 2019-20 campaign, made her first appearance of the season for the Bulldogs on Thursday against Providence. In her first game back, Parker chipped in nine points and four rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Following Saturday's contest with Butler, the Johnnies will travel to Chicago for a 7 p.m. ET showdown with No. 20/22 DePaul on Jan. 13.

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Players Mentioned

Leilani Correa

Qadashah Hoppie

St. John's University Athletics